Most D2C brands should audit marketplace fees and deductions on three layers: a quick weekly exception check, a full monthly reconciliation of every settlement against agreed terms, and a deeper quarterly review of commission, returns and recovery cases. Add an off-cycle audit whenever rate cards, categories, pricing or settlement report formats change. Confirm dispute time limits in your seller agreement.
The three-layer cadence that works for most brands
There is no single correct frequency, because the right rhythm depends on order volume, number of marketplaces and how much margin a small error can erase. For most Indian D2C brands, a layered approach works better than one big annual exercise.
- Weekly: a light exception check on new settlements, looking for unusual deductions, missing payouts and sudden jumps in returns.
- Monthly: a full reconciliation of sales, settlements, commissions, fees and returns against your agreed terms.
- Quarterly: a deeper review of patterns, open recovery cases, category mapping and whether the terms you are charged under still match the terms you signed.
High-volume brands, or those with many SKUs and frequent promotions, often move the weekly check closer to a per-settlement check. Low-volume brands can keep the weekly layer very short.
What to check at each layer
Keep each layer narrow so it actually gets done. The table below is a starting point, not a rulebook; adapt it to your settlement reports.
| Cadence | Focus | Typical checks |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly | Exceptions | Unexpected deduction lines, delayed or short payouts, return spikes, negative settlements |
| Monthly | Full reconciliation | Orders vs settlements, commission vs agreed terms, fixed and shipping fees, return and RTO adjustments, penalties |
| Quarterly | Patterns and terms | Repeat errors by category, ageing of open disputes, rate card changes, recovery outcomes |
The reference for every check is the same: your seller agreement, the current rate card and the settlement report itself. Marketplaces revise terms from time to time, so confirm the latest version rather than relying on an older copy or memory.
Triggers for an off-cycle audit
Do not wait for the calendar when something material changes. Run a focused audit if any of these happen:
- You receive a revised rate card, commercial addendum or policy notice.
- You launch new categories, change product weights or dimensions, or reprice heavily.
- You join a big sale event or run a promotion with unusual funding terms.
- The settlement report format changes, or new deduction heads appear.
- Return or RTO rates move sharply.
- A payout is short or delayed without explanation.
An off-cycle audit can be narrow. Check only the affected SKUs, categories or deduction heads for the period since the change.
Why waiting for quarter-end gets expensive
Fee errors tend to repeat. A wrong category mapping or an incorrect weight slab affects every order it touches until someone notices. The longer the gap between audits, the larger the pile of affected orders.
There is also a timing risk. Marketplaces usually have time limits within which a seller can raise a dispute, and these differ by marketplace and issue type. Check the dispute and claim windows in your agreement and seller portal, and set your audit cadence so that you find issues well inside them. If you review only once a quarter, older settlements may already be out of window when you spot the problem.
How to set up the routine
- Collect the source terms. Keep the signed agreement, latest rate card and any addenda in one folder with dates.
- Standardise settlement data. Download reports on a fixed day and keep a consistent format so month-on-month comparison is possible.
- Define expected vs actual. For each order or settlement line, compute what you expected to be charged and compare it with what was deducted.
- Log every mismatch. Record the order, the deduction head, the amount, the evidence and the date raised.
- Track disputes to closure. Note whether each case was recovered, rejected or is still open, and review ageing every quarter.
- Assign an owner. Finance and the marketplace operations team should agree who runs each layer, so nothing sits between them.
Doing it manually vs with a tool
Spreadsheets can handle one marketplace and modest volume. They get fragile when settlement files are large, deduction heads multiply or several people edit the same sheet. At that point the weekly layer is usually the first to be skipped.
MarketplaceMetrics by Fundle reconciles marketplace sales and settlements, checks commissions and fees against agreed terms, and tracks returns and recovery cases. Myntra Excel reports are reviewed today, and other marketplaces are in scope discussion. Pricing is a tailored quote, so it is worth assessing fit against your volumes before deciding.
Worked example
Illustrative example only; figures are not real rates or customer data.
A brand has 2,000 orders in a month. Under its agreed terms, the expected total commission and fixed fees come to about ₹150 per order, or ₹3,00,000 for the month. The settlement reports show ₹3,18,000 deducted. The gap is ₹18,000.
- Weekly check: the first week's settlement shows deductions higher than expected on one category. The team flags it, raises the case and finds a wrong category mapping. Roughly ₹4,500 is exposed at that point (illustrative).
- Monthly check only: the issue is found at month-end with ₹18,000 affected.
- Quarterly check only: if the error continues unchanged, about ₹54,000 is affected by the time it is found, and some older settlements may be close to or beyond the dispute window.
The error is the same in all three cases. Only the detection time changes, and with it the amount at stake and the chance of recovery.
Questions and answers
Is a monthly audit enough for a small D2C brand?
For low volumes on one marketplace, a monthly reconciliation can be enough if you add a quick check on each settlement. Increase frequency when order volume, SKU count or the number of marketplaces grows, or when terms change.
What should I audit first if I have limited time?
Start with commission against your agreed terms, then return and RTO adjustments, shipping or fixed fees and penalties. These usually account for most deduction lines. Use your seller agreement and settlement report as the reference.
How long do I have to dispute a wrong deduction?
It varies by marketplace and issue type. Check the dispute or claim window in your seller agreement and seller portal, and confirm the latest terms. Set your audit cadence so errors are found well before that limit.
Who should own the fee audit, finance or marketplace operations?
Both have a role. Operations usually knows the category, pricing and return context, while finance owns reconciliation and closing. Name one accountable owner for each cadence layer and agree how disputes are escalated and tracked.