Download the settlement report from the Payments reports section of Seller Central, open it in Excel and filter by settlement ID. Read each row by transaction-type, amount-type and amount-description to separate sales, fees, taxes withheld and refunds. Sum the rows and match the total to your bank deposit, then compare commission and fee lines against your seller agreement or rate card. Menu names change, so confirm in Seller Central.
Where to find the settlement report
In Seller Central, go to the Reports menu and open Payments. You will usually find statement-style views and downloadable settlement files there. Menu names and layouts change from time to time, so check the Amazon help pages for the current path.
For reconciliation, prefer the downloadable flat file (tab-delimited or Excel-friendly) over the on-screen summary. The summary tells you the total; the flat file tells you why the total is what it is.
- Download one file per settlement period, not one large date range, so each file maps to one bank credit.
- Save the original file untouched and work on a copy.
- Note the settlement ID, start date, end date and deposit date at the top of each file.
Understand how a settlement is structured
Amazon groups transactions into a settlement period. Every row in the file belongs to one settlement ID, and the file carries a total amount that should equal what is transferred to your bank for that period.
Two points trip up first-time readers:
- Posted date is not order date. A row can be posted in this settlement for an order placed earlier, such as a refund or a delayed shipment event.
- Settlement periods can overlap months. Your books-by-month view will not match the settlement view unless you map by posted date.
Reserved or held amounts may also carry forward. If a deposit looks lower than expected, check for reserve or adjustment rows before assuming an error.
The columns that matter most
Column names can vary by report version, so verify against your own file. These are the ones to focus on:
| Column | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| settlement-id | Ties every row to one payout |
| deposit-date | When the transfer was initiated |
| transaction-type | Order, Refund, adjustment or other event type |
| order-id / sku | Lets you trace a row to an order and product |
| amount-type | Broad bucket such as item price, item fees or promotion |
| amount-description | The specific component, such as principal, tax or a named fee |
| amount | Signed value; negative means a deduction |
| posted-date | The date the event was recorded |
A pivot table with transaction-type and amount-description in rows and amount as the sum gives you a one-screen view of the whole settlement.
Reading fees, taxes and deductions
Once you pivot, group the lines into four families:
- Sales: principal, shipping charged to the customer, and any tax collected on behalf of the government.
- Marketplace fees: commission, fixed closing fee, shipping or fulfilment fees, and any other service charges.
- Tax-related deductions: GST on fees, and amounts withheld such as TCS and TDS where applicable.
- Reversals: refunds, returns, A-to-z claims, reimbursements and adjustments.
This guide does not quote fee, GST, TCS or TDS rates because they depend on your category, price band, fulfilment type and current law. Confirm them in your seller agreement and Amazon's current rate card, and ask your tax adviser how withheld amounts should be treated in your returns and credits.
Pay special attention to refund rows. Check whether the commission or fees on a returned order were reversed as per your terms, and whether a returned unit that came back damaged has a reimbursement or claim line.
A repeatable reconciliation routine
- Tie the total. Sum all rows in the file and match it to the file total and the bank credit.
- Pivot by description. Create the sales, fees, taxes and reversals view described above.
- Test commission. For a sample of orders, recompute commission from your rate card and compare with the file.
- Test refunds. List every refund row and check that the related fee reversals and return-handling charges are consistent with your terms.
- Check withheld amounts. Compare TCS and TDS lines against your tax records and statements.
- Log exceptions. Record order ID, settlement ID, expected value, actual value and difference. Raise a case with Amazon and track it until recovered.
Flipkart works on the same principle: a settlement or payment report with order-level rows, fee lines and return adjustments. Column names differ, so build a mapping once and reuse it.
Doing this manually across months and platforms gets heavy. 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; Amazon and other marketplaces are in scope discussion.
Worked example
Illustrative example only. All figures below are made up to show the method, not real rates or results.
| Line (one order) | Amount (₹, illustrative) |
|---|---|
| Principal | 1,200 |
| Commission | -150 |
| Fixed closing fee | -25 |
| Shipping or fulfilment fee | -70 |
| Tax on fees | -40 |
| TCS withheld | -10 |
| TDS withheld | -8 |
| Net for this order | 897 |
Now suppose your rate card says the commission for this item should be ₹140 (illustrative). The file shows ₹150, so there is a ₹10 over-deduction on one order. Across hundreds of orders, such gaps add up, which is why you test a sample each settlement and log every mismatch with order ID and settlement ID before raising a case.
Questions and answers
Which Amazon report should I use for reconciliation?
Use the downloadable settlement flat file from the Payments reports area, because it has order-level rows with fee descriptions. The on-screen summary only shows totals. Menu paths change, so check the current Seller Central help pages for the exact location.
Why does my bank credit not match the settlement total?
Common causes are reserves or held amounts carried forward, adjustments posted in a different period, or deposits split across dates. Match the file total to the statement first, then check reserve and adjustment rows before raising a query with Amazon.
How do I check whether Amazon charged the right commission?
Take a sample of orders, find the commission row for each, and recompute it using the rate card and category in your seller agreement. Log any difference with order ID and settlement ID, then raise a case with supporting evidence.
Are TCS and TDS deductions visible in the settlement report?
They usually appear as separate deduction lines, but names can vary. Do not rely on this guide for rates. Confirm current rules with your tax adviser and match the withheld amounts to your official tax statements and returns.