Pricing Settings: How to manage Price, Profit, and Fees

Introduction

This article explains how to set up your pricing settings on AutoDS, allowing the system to automatically calculate your selling prices based on your preferred profit margins and expected fees.

Understanding and correctly configuring these fields ensures you reach your desired profitability while covering transaction costs and platform fees.

Benefits

Save Time: Automatically adjust prices based on rules you define.
Stay Competitive: Maintain competitive pricing even when supplier prices change.
Ensure Profitability: Avoid losses by applying minimum profit margins.
Customization: Apply different settings per supplier, platform, or store.

Step-by-Step Guide

Go to the Settings menu in the AutoDS platform.
In the Supplier Settings section, choose the store and supplier you want to update.
Select the ‘Pricing’ tab.

Note: Changes apply only to new uploads and future orders. Update existing products in bulk from the Products page.

👉 Learn More: Bulk Changes - A Full Overview

Configure your price

First, check the field explanations here to help you better understand:

Field	Description
Buy Price	The cost you pay to purchase the product from the supplier. If “Include Shipping Price” is enabled, the supplier’s shipping cost will be added to the Buy Price.
% Profit	Target profit margin as a percentage of the Buy Price. Example: 30%* → Covers 10% tax + 20% net profit*
$ Profit	Fixed profit per sale. Can be combined with % Profit to ensure a minimum return.
% Fees	Percentage-based charges, such as: selling channel commissions, payment processor fees, and advertising costs.
$ Fees	Fixed charges per transaction (e.g., Stripe fees, shipping charges, etc).
Dynamic Profit	Profit rules based on product price ranges (applies to new listings only).
Set Price Cents Value	Rounds final prices to consistent cents. It may slightly affect profit. Example: Round $16.47 to $16.99
Compare Price (Shopify only)	Show a discounted price by displaying the original price crossed out. Example: Was $15 → Now $10 (33% off)
Include Shipping Price (Not supported for “Worldwide”, Print On Demand, and Sourcing Requests from outside China)	Price: Adds supplier’s shipping fee to Buy Price before calculating profit. Example: If the product costs $10 and shipping is $2, the Buy Price becomes $12. ⚠️ Not available for Worldwide, Print On Demand, or Sourcing from outside China. In these cases, either: Add the shipping cost manually under $ Fees, or Increase your % Profit to cover it. Note: For China Sourcing, the shipping price is always included in the product cost.
Default Automation	Choose whether to apply your predefined automation rules to new listings. 👉 Learn More: How to Set Up the Automations Feature on AutoDS?

💡 Tip:

Enable Price and Stock Monitoring (available for all plans except Importer 200) to keep listings updated with supplier changes multiple times a day. This prevents selling out-of-stock items or products at a loss.

Calculation Formula

AutoDS calculates your sell price using the values you define. The calculation uses this formula:

Subtotal = Buy Price + (Buy Price × % Profit) + $ Profit
After Fees = Subtotal ÷ ($ Profit - % Fees)
Final Sell Price = After Fees + $ Fees

This ensures that your final sell price covers your profit goals and any selling platform fees.

Here is an example:

Buy Price = $10
% Profit = 30%
$ Profit = $1
% Fees = 15%
$ Fees = $0.50

Step	Formula	Example (Values)	Result
Subtotal	Buy Price + (Buy Price × % Profit) + $ Profit	$10 + ($10 × 30%) + $1	$14.00
After Fees	Subtotal ÷ (1 - % Fees)	$14 ÷ (1 - 15%)	$16.47
Final Price	After Fees + $ Fees	$16.47 + $0.50	$16.97

Need a hand? Download the AutoDS - Price, Fees and Profits Calculator to simplify your calculations.

Make sure to only update the input values. Do not edit the formulas in the Subtotal or Final Sell Price fields.

Note: The final selling price may be rounded according to your pricing settings.

Estimating Fees and Profits

To ensure accurate and profitable pricing, it’s important to include all recurring costs per sale. These typically include:

Selling channel fees (e.g., 2.5%)
International transaction fees (e.g., +1.5%)
Payment gateway commissions (e.g., Stripe, PayPal)
Advertising or marketing costs (calculated as a percentage of the sale)
Subscription or domain costs (converted into a per-sale percentage)

💡 Tip

Review several completed orders in your store and calculate the highest combined percentage of fees. Use this figure in your settings to ensure you maintain a profit.

Click the “Help me calculate” button to open a tool that guides you in estimating the correct fee percentage to enter.

How Dynamic Profit Works

Dynamic Profit lets you set different profit rules depending on how much a product costs.

You create price ranges based on the supplier’s cost, and for each range, you choose how much profit you want to make.

Minimum Price (cost from supplier)
Maximum Price (cost from supplier)
Desired Profit (fixed amount or %)

For example:

Supplier Cost	Profit You’ll Make
$0–$20	$5
$20.01–$50	$8
$50.01–$100	$12

Preventing Sales at a Loss

Sales can happen between scans, so an item may sell at a price that no longer reflects the latest supplier cost.

Here’s how you can reduce the risk using your pricing settings:

Why It Happens

AutoDS scans product prices and stock multiple times per day.
A sale may occur between scans, using the last known price.
No dropshipping tool updates prices in real time.

How to reduce the risk

Enable the Price and Stock Monitoring
Increase % Profit or add $ Profit
Give yourself a buffer to absorb price increases or changes due to temporary deals ending.
Use Dynamic Profit
Set higher profits for lower-cost items to ensure a minimum return, especially where small price changes can wipe out your margin.
Include Shipping Costs
If your supplier charges for shipping and it’s not added to the Buy Price, activate the Include Shipping Price option or add this manually in $ Fees.
Add Extra in % Fees or $ Fees
Account for small unexpected costs by padding your settings with a small percentage or fixed fee.
Monitor High-Risk Products
For fast-selling items or products with frequent price fluctuations, monitor them closely and consider manually adjusting their pricing.
Define a Safe Maximum Loss Limit
On the Orders tab, use the “Maximum Loss” field to define how much you’re willing to cover if a product’s price increases unexpectedly after a scan but before a sale.

Tools like Keepa or CamelCamelCamel can show price history, but they update less frequently than AutoDS and may miss some changes.

👉 Learn More: Why Were my Orders Processed at a Loss or when Out of Stock (OOS)?

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Which products are affected by pricing settings?
A: Pricing settings apply to products imported after the changes are saved. For existing listings, update them using bulk changes from the Products page.

Q: Can I set different rules for different suppliers or stores?
A: Yes. Simply select the store and supplier you want in Settings to configure rules for each supplier, store, or platform individually.

Q: What happens if the supplier increases the price?
A: AutoDS updates your product price (if Price Monitoring is enabled) according to your rules. Products are scanned several times a day, but not in real time.

Q: Why does changing my Sell Price also change the profit % or fees?
A: When Set Price Cents Value is enabled, AutoDS adjusts the final price to match your preferred cents (e.g., .99). This may slightly change profit % or fees.

How to prevent it:

Go to Settings → choose supplier → Pricing.
Uncheck Set Price Cents Value.
Click Save.
Once disabled, manual Sell Price changes will no longer affect other profit values.

price cents