KDP vs IngramSpark — which do you actually use and why?

@brewed_prose OP

1mo ago

I'm about a month out from launching my first novel and I keep going back and forth between KDP and IngramSpark for the paperback. KDP seems simpler and the print cost is lower, but everyone keeps telling me Ingram is the only way to get into bookstores. For those of you who've actually published both ways, which do you use and what made the decision for you?

11 comments

@the_red_pen1mo ago

I do both, and it's not really an either/or. KDP for the ebook and the Amazon paperback because the print cost and royalty math is better there, and IngramSpark for the same paperback into expanded distribution so libraries and indie stores can order it. The trick is you set the KDP paperback to NOT use expanded distribution, otherwise the two fight over the same channels and Ingram can't list it. One ISBN per format, your own ISBNs from Bowker (or free ones if you're in a country that gives them out), and you avoid the whole mess.

@indie_ivan1mo ago

The thing nobody tells debut authors: a bookstore will basically never stock a KDP paperback because Amazon is their competitor and the discount/returns terms are wrong for them. Ingram lets you set the trade discount (40-55%) and mark the book returnable, which is what a store needs to even consider ordering it. If bookstore presence matters to you at all, Ingram isn't optional.

@manuscript_mona1mo ago

Worth adding the returnable setting is a double-edged sword. If you mark it returnable, stores can order and send back unsold copies and you eat the print cost on the returns. A lot of us set returnable for the first few months around launch when stores might actually order, then switch it off. Don't leave it returnable forever and forget about it.

@brewed_proseOP1mo ago

This is exactly the nuance I was missing, thank you. So realistically the workflow is: ebook on KDP, paperback on KDP with expanded distribution OFF, then the same paperback on Ingram for everyone else. Did I get that right?

@the_red_pen1mo ago

Exactly right. Some people even skip the KDP paperback entirely and let Ingram supply Amazon too, but then your Amazon print availability can show longer shipping times, which hurts conversion. Keeping the Amazon paperback on KDP keeps it Prime-fast. That's the only reason to run both.

@foggy_chapters1mo ago

Proof quality is the other reason I drifted to Ingram for print. KDP's paperbacks are fine but the matte cover scuffs and the color consistency on my cover varied between copies. Ingram's print felt a notch more like a trade paperback to me, especially on cream paper. Order a physical proof from both before you commit, it's a few dollars and you'll see the difference in your hands.

@quietpages1mo ago

Hardcover is the sleeper reason to use Ingram. KDP hardcover is newer and limited on trim sizes and has no dust jacket option, Ingram does case laminate and jacketed with way more trim choices. My hardcover only exists because of Ingram.

@wattpad_to_print1mo ago

Small warning from experience: do NOT publish the same ISBN to KDP expanded distribution and Ingram, you'll get a 'title already in distribution' rejection from Ingram and then spend a week emailing both support teams to untangle it. Decide which channel owns expanded distribution before you click publish, not after.

@pulp_priya1mo ago

If you genuinely don't care about physical bookstores and you're a pure-Amazon-reader genre (a lot of romance and litRPG is), Ingram is honestly just overhead for a debut. Be honest with yourself about whether your readers buy in stores or buy on a Kindle at 11pm. Mine are the 11pm crowd, so I'm KDP-only and I sleep fine.

@draft_zero1mo ago

One practical gotcha: Ingram charges a setup fee per title (around 49 USD last I did it, though they run free codes you can find by searching, and ALLi members get them). KDP is free to upload and revise. So if you're someone who's going to upload, spot a typo, and re-upload six times, do that churn on KDP first and only push to Ingram once the interior is locked.

@kovac_ink1mo ago

Don't forget Ingram is also your route to international print. They have print facilities in the UK, Australia, and the EU, so a reader in Melbourne gets a locally printed copy instead of a six-week boat. KDP prints in fewer locations. For my non-US readers Ingram cut the delivery complaints to basically zero.