Amazon Vendor vs. Seller Accounts
Differences and what they mean for Adspert
This article explains the two Amazon account models — Vendor Central and Seller Central — how they differ, and how Adspert works with both.
1. Main differences between the two account types
Amazon offers two fundamentally different ways to sell products:
| Seller Account (Seller Central) | Vendor Account (Vendor Central) |
Who sells to the customer? | The merchant (you) | Amazon |
Who sets the selling price? | The merchant | Amazon |
Who carries inventory and sales risk? | The merchant | Amazon |
Who is the legal seller? | The merchant | Amazon |
Revenue model | Retail price minus Amazon fees | Wholesale price paid by Amazon |
Seller Central
With the Seller model, you sell directly to end customers on Amazon’s marketplace.
You control pricing, inventory, and margins. Amazon provides the marketplace and optional logistics.
Vendor Central
With the Vendor model, you sell your products to Amazon as a wholesale supplier.
Amazon then resells them to end customers. Pricing, promotions, and discounts are controlled entirely by Amazon.
2. Impact on advertising and performance management
Because the business models are different, advertising and optimization work differently as well.
Seller Accounts
Advertising cost and sales revenue belong to the same business
Metrics like ACOS and ROAS reflect real economic performance
Bids can be optimized based on economic efficiency
Vendor Accounts
Advertising costs are paid by the Vendor
Sales revenue goes to Amazon
The Vendor only receives the agreed wholesale price
This means:
A good ACOS or ROAS in a Vendor account does not necessarily mean the advertising is profitable for the Vendor, because the actual margin is not visible.
3. How Adspert works with Seller and Vendor Accounts
Adspert supports both account types, using the data Amazon provides in each case.
Adspert with Seller Accounts
Adspert uses:
Product prices
Sales revenue
Advertising costs
Performance metrics
This allows Adspert to optimize based on real economic efficiency (for example ROAS or cost-to-revenue ratio).
Adspert with Vendor Accounts
Adspert receives from Amazon:
Purchase orders from Amazon
End-customer sales data
Advertising costs
However, Adspert does not have access to the Vendor’s wholesale prices or margins.
Optimization is therefore based on sales volume and advertising efficiency, not on actual profit.
4. What this means in practice
In the Seller model, bids can (!) be aligned with real profitability (only for enterprise subscription).
In the Vendor model, Adspert can optimize for sales and efficiency, but not for the Vendor’s true margin.
Both models can be automated with Adspert — but the interpretation of performance data differs due to the underlying business model.