No credible public benchmark gives one marketplace fee percentage for all fashion brands in India. Fees depend on your agreement, category, price band, fulfilment model and returns. The practical benchmark is your effective fee rate: total marketplace deductions divided by gross selling price, tracked monthly by category and compared with your seller agreement or rate card.
Why one benchmark number does not exist
Founders often search for a single figure such as what share of the selling price a marketplace should take. Any number you find in a blog post, including this one, should be treated with caution. Marketplace fees are set by your seller agreement, and they differ by marketplace, category, price slab, brand arrangement and fulfilment model. Terms also change over time.
So instead of chasing an outside number, build an internal benchmark. It tells you what you actually pay, whether that matches what you agreed, and which products or months are drifting.
What to include in the fee percentage
Decide the components once and keep them fixed, otherwise month-to-month comparison is meaningless. A practical fashion-brand view includes:
- Commission: the percentage or margin-based charge on each order.
- Fixed or collection fees: per-order charges, if your terms have them.
- Shipping and logistics fees: forward and reverse, if charged to you.
- Return-related charges: return shipping, restocking or damage-related deductions.
- Other deductions: penalties, adjustments, ad or promotion charges, if netted from settlements.
Keep taxes such as GST and TCS in a separate column. Their treatment depends on your registration and the latest rules, so confirm with your tax adviser rather than folding them into a fee benchmark.
How to calculate your effective fee rate
The core formula is simple:
Effective fee rate = total marketplace deductions ÷ gross selling price × 100
Choose one denominator and stay with it. Gross selling price (before returns) is easier to reconcile to order data. Net sales after returns shows the burden on kept revenue. Many teams track both, and the gap between the two is a useful signal of how much returns cost you.
- Export the settlement report for the period.
- Map each deduction line to a component above.
- Match the order lines to the sales report.
- Calculate the rate overall, then by category, brand and price band.
What moves the percentage
When your rate changes, check these drivers before assuming a mistake:
- Category and price slab: your rate card may apply different terms across them, so mix shifts change the blended rate.
- Return rate: fashion returns are high in many categories, and reverse logistics inflate the effective rate on net sales.
- Fulfilment model: who ships and who pays for it changes what is deducted.
- Low-priced items: fixed per-order charges weigh more heavily on a lower selling price.
- Promotions: check who funds a discount, as it affects the base on which the commission is calculated.
Turning the benchmark into an audit
An effective rate becomes powerful once you compare it with the expected rate from your agreement. Build an expected-fee column per order using the rate card, then compare it with the deduction in the settlement. Differences usually come from wrong category mapping, a stale price slab, duplicate charges or return fees applied to orders that should not attract them.
Keep a simple recovery log: order ID, expected charge, actual charge, difference, date raised and status. A tool like MarketplaceMetrics by Fundle automates this for Indian brands by reconciling sales and settlements, checking fees against agreed terms and tracking return and recovery cases. Myntra Excel reports are reviewed today, and other marketplaces are in scope discussion.
Where to confirm the latest terms
Always verify against source documents, not memory or forum posts. Check your signed seller agreement, the current rate card or commission annexure on the seller panel, and the fee breakup in each settlement report. If the portal and the agreement disagree, raise it with your account manager in writing. For tax lines, rely on your tax adviser.
Worked example
Illustrative example only; all figures are made up for explanation.
A brand sells 200 orders in a month with a total gross selling price of ₹2,00,000 (average ₹1,000).
| Component | Amount (₹, illustrative) |
|---|---|
| Commission charged | 36,000 |
| Fixed/collection fees | 5,000 |
| Shipping and logistics | 14,000 |
| Return-related charges | 6,000 |
| Other deductions | 1,000 |
| Total deductions | 62,000 |
Effective fee rate = 62,000 ÷ 2,00,000 = 31% of gross selling price.
Now suppose the rate card implies an expected commission of ₹34,000. The charged ₹36,000 leaves a ₹2,000 gap, about one percentage point of gross selling price. That gap is the item to trace by order, not the 31% headline.
Questions and answers
What is a normal marketplace fee percentage for fashion brands in India?
There is no dependable universal figure. It depends on your agreement, category, price slab, fulfilment model and returns. Use your seller agreement and rate card for the contractual terms, and calculate your own effective rate from settlement data.
Should I calculate fees on MRP or selling price?
Use the actual selling price paid on the order, since that is what most deductions relate to. Check your agreement for the commission base, because discounts and funding arrangements can change it. Track MRP separately if you need discount analysis.
Do returns count in the fee percentage?
Yes, track them, but show them separately. Return-related charges can raise your effective rate noticeably in fashion. Report one rate on gross selling price and another on net sales after returns, so you see both fee and return impact.
How often should I audit marketplace fees?
Review every settlement cycle if you can, and at least monthly. Frequent checks help you raise disputes while order data is fresh, and within any claim windows your agreement specifies. Confirm those time limits in your seller terms.