Amazon strives to ensure low prices, fast and free shipping, and vast product selection, which is a key reason why customers continue to return to our store for their shopping needs. Independent sellers who share our customer-centric approach build successful businesses on Amazon, and we celebrate their success.
At the heart of our store: Good prices for everyone
Shopping should be simple: customers want to find what they need at a fair price. That's why Amazon has built its store around helping customers discover competitive offers from Amazon and a growing community of selling partners, including 47,500 German sellers.
Independent selling partners are a critical part of the success of the Amazon store. While they set their own prices, Amazon helps customers find the best deals among all available offers through clear pricing information and tools that highlight competitive offers while protecting against unreasonably high prices.
Understanding featured offers
For many products in our store, multiple sellers, including Amazon itself, offer the same item. When this occurs, customers will notice one offer prominently displayed - the Featured Offer. This represents Amazon's recommendation for the best overall value, considering multiple factors important to customers.
As part of our commitment to maintaining customer trust and helping all selling partners grow their businesses, we evaluate all competing Amazon retail and third-party seller offers. The offer selected as the Featured Offer is highlighted with a Buy Now button on the product detail page.
Each selling partner independently sets their prices, shipping fees, delivery promises, and return policies. We highlight the offer customers would most likely choose if they compared all offers in detail, based on a combination of their features, including price.
This is a common practice among other retailers. In addition, we have processes in place to avoid highlighting unusually high prices as the Featured Offer. This helps ensure customers can trust they're seeing competitive prices.
Protecting customers from significantly high prices
Amazon's systems actively monitor for prices that seem unusually high compared to typical market rates. We calculate a product’s recent "typical" price in our store based on a variety of inputs, including a product’s Amazon sales history, the item’s Recommended Retail Price, available reference price information, and offers for the same or similar products at other reputable retailers.
For instance, if a household item like a toaster typically priced at 20€ is suddenly listed at 200€, our tools flag that to protect consumers. This includes removing listings with obviously incorrect prices and not featuring uncompetitive offers prominently.
When a product is available for less at a reputable competing store, the offer may not become the Featured Offer. Customer trust in the Amazon store would be lost if they purchase the Featured Offer, only to learn it was cheaper at another reputable retailer. However, all offers remain visible and accessible through the product's buying options.
These protections serve both customers and selling partners. When prices appear significantly higher than expected, Amazon notifies sellers through the Pricing Health page in Seller Central, providing objective reference prices to help sellers make informed pricing decisions. This helps maintain customer trust while protecting our store's and selling partners' reputation.
Supporting a thriving marketplace
Amazon’s approach ensures that customers visiting the store can confidently find offers with the best value, which is why they keep returning. This in turn benefits all businesses selling on Amazon.de.
Selling partners offering competitive prices and great service will qualify to become the Featured Offer. The success of this model is evident - independent sellers now account for more than 60% of sales in Amazon's store.
For customers, this means:
- Access to millions of products from both Amazon and independent selling partners
- Competitive prices driven by healthy competition
- Clear information about all available offers
- Protection against abusive or mistaken pricing
- Trusted Featured Offers representing good value
Looking ahead
Amazon continues investing in systems and services that help customers find great deals while supporting German businesses' growth. We maintain our commitment to earning customer trust by ensuring every shopping experience delivers value.
Whether purchasing directly from Amazon or one of many independent selling partners, customers can shop with confidence knowing Amazon's systems and services work to maintain competitive prices and protect against unreasonable pricing practices.
