One of the most frustrating (and increasingly common) scenarios that Amazon sellers find themselves in is finding the perfect product to sell, and then feeling defeated when they find out the product is within one of Amazon’s gated categories.
Whether you’re a new Amazon seller just learning the ropes or an experienced seller looking to expand your product inventory, Amazon gated categories can be a pain. In this article, we’ll go over what exactly Amazon gated categories are, which categories are restricted, and how you can get approved to sell in these desirable categories.
Amazon Gated Categories are categories of products that Amazon sellers are not permitted to sell in without explicit permission from Amazon.
In order to protect their brand and consumer trust, Amazon has identified several categories of products that have specific prerequisites and requirements that must be met in order to have a chance of being approved to sell in these categories.
These gated categories span a wide range of products, from watches to sports collectibles to jewelry. Many sellers find it frustrating how expansive the list of gated categories is, as it can feel overwhelming to try and find categories they aren’t gated from selling in.
It’s important to understand what categories are gated and how they work, but it’s also important not to get too frustrated by Amazon’s gated categories. While it may seem daunting at first, there are plenty of categories that aren’t gated by Amazon, as well as ways to be approved to sell products in Amazon’s gated categories.
Let’s go over which categories are gated and which ones aren’t so you know exactly what types of products are available for you to sell on Amazon’s marketplace.
The following categories are strictly prohibited to sell on Amazon Marketplace without going through a formal approval process and getting permission from Amazon to sell in these categories:
There’s a variety of reasons that Amazon has for gating these specific categories. For example, in the case of categories such as Fine Art and Collectible Coins, Amazon knows that collectibles like that require a lot of experience and knowledge to sell correctly. As a result, Amazon wants to vet these sellers appropriately and ensure that customers are not being scammed by sellers claiming to have rare collectibles that are in fact just basic replicas.
In addition to the above categories, Amazon also restricts the sale of used items in the below categories. It is always restricted to sell used items in these categories - there is no approval process to change this.
While the large range of gated categories may feel overwhelming, there are also plenty of Amazon categories that are permitted to sell in right off the bat without having to jump through hoops. Let’s take a look at what categories you can sell in.
Want to know what Amazon categories you can sell in without submitting an approval request? Here’s some of the product categories that aren’t gated by Amazon:
There are plenty of product categories to choose from if you want to stay away from ungated categories. Plus, even if you do want to pursue selling items in gated categories, you can sell items in Amazon’s ungated categories in the meantime - this will help get your seller metrics up, which in turn can help you get approved to sell in gated categories.
After learning about Amazon’s gated categories, you’ve decided you want to pursue selling in these categories, but have no idea whether you qualify and what you need to do to get approval. Luckily, the process for applying to sell in Amazon’s gated categories is fairly straightforward.
Let’s start with the basics - what kind of qualifications does Amazon expect from sellers in order to be eligible to sell in gated categories?
If you meet the above criteria, it’s a no-brainer to at least apply to sell in Amazon’s gated categories.
Once you click the “Request Approval” button, Amazon will lay out any specific documents or information that you need to provide in order to be considered for approval. Once in a while, sellers even get lucky and Amazon auto-approves them to sell in a category immediately upon clicking the “Request Approval” button!
If you get approved, you’ll receive a message from Amazon letting you know that you’re now approved to sell items within that specific product category.
If you want to check on the status of an application, you can return to the “Add a Product” page within the “Inventory” menu. You’ll see a link on that page that says “To manage your selling applications, click here” which you can click at any time.
Navigating Amazon’s gated categories can seem daunting at first, but it’s actually a pretty manageable process. There are plenty of product categories to sell in if you don’t want to pursue Amazon’s gated categories or if you need to get your seller metrics up before applying.
Once you’re ready to pursue selling in Amazon’s gated categories, you can simply follow the steps laid out in this article to apply. Amazon will let you know if you’re approved, and if Amazon doesn’t approve your application at first, you can keep trying! If you focus on improving your seller metrics and providing excellent customer service, you may get approved to sell in Amazon’s gated categories in the future.
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