Guide · Amazon Warehousing and Distribution
Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD) is Amazon's upstream bulk storage: you send pallets to an AWD center, Amazon holds them cheaply, and its replenishment logic moves units into FBA fulfillment centers as they sell, and, through multi-channel distribution, out to other channels. It solves FBA storage limits and aged-inventory fees. It also creates an inventory-accounting question every multichannel seller hits within a week: which of those units can you promise to a customer right now? This page explains the AWD inventory states, how they flow through the SP-API, and how an order management system should treat each one.
What AWD is
FBA storage is pick-ready, close to the customer, and expensive, with aged-inventory surcharges that begin at 181 days and peak-season storage spikes. AWD is the opposite: pallet-level, upstream, priced for scale. You inbound bulk to an AWD distribution center, Amazon's algorithm watches your FBA levels and sales velocity, and replenishment orders move units into fulfillment centers before they run out. Multi-channel distribution extends the same pool to other destinations, including Walmart Fulfillment Services and direct-to-consumer orders. Amazon opened the program to all sellers, not only FBA users, and no longer performs prep anywhere in its network, so units have to arrive AWD-ready.
Fees in 2026 are published as storage per cubic foot per month (lower under Amazon-managed replenishment than under manual control), per-box inbound and outbound processing, and transportation per cubic foot for AWD-to-FBA transfers, with a regional premium introduced this year for West-region storage. Exact rates live in Seller Central and change; the operational point is that AWD trades per-unit handling for cheaper holding, which suits slow, seasonal, and bulk SKUs and rarely suits fast movers.
Inventory states
| State (AWD API) | What it means | Sellable now? | OMS treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Available in AWD | Units on the shelf in an AWD center | No | Reserve. Counts toward replenishment planning, not toward any channel’s offer quantity |
| Reserved for replenishment | Units allocated to an AWD-to-FBA replenishment order | No | Pipeline; will become FBA inventory after transit and receipt |
| In transit to AWD | Your inbound shipment, not yet received | No | Inbound pipeline |
| In transit AWD to FBA | Replenishment on the move | No | Pipeline; expected FBA receipt date informs buffers |
| FBA fulfillable (FBA Inventory API) | Received, pick-ready units in fulfillment centers | Yes | The only quantity Amazon offers can promise; MCF draws from it too |
The mistake that costs money is counting AWD units as available. A seller with 5,000 units in AWD and 200 fulfillable in FBA has 200 to sell today; replenishment takes days and Amazon decides the cadence. Promising the 5,000 on Amazon does nothing (Amazon controls the FBA offer quantity), but promising them on Walmart or your own store and planning to fulfill through MCF oversells the moment demand outruns the 200. The AWD API returns each state separately, with expiration dates where relevant, so an OMS can read them without guessing.
On the wire
The SP-API Amazon Warehousing and Distribution API returns real-time AWD inventory by SKU, including units reserved by replenishment orders and units in transit to AWD or from AWD to FBA, plus the inbound orders you create through Send to Amazon Warehousing and Distribution. It does not return FBA fulfillable quantity; that comes from the FBA Inventory API you already use. A complete picture is the two joined by SKU: fulfillable from one, reserve and pipeline from the other, expiration from AWD where the product carries one.
| Question | Source | Use in the OMS |
|---|---|---|
| How many can I sell on any channel right now? | FBA Inventory API fulfillable quantity (plus your own warehouses) | Available-to-sell across channels |
| How much reserve is behind that? | AWD API available quantity | Replenishment planning, purchasing, reorder points |
| What is already moving to FBA? | AWD API reserved and in-transit quantities | Buffer sizing on other channels until receipt |
| What is aging or expiring? | AWD API expiration data | Promotions and clearance before fees or write-off |
| What did I send in? | AWD API inbound orders | Reconciling received vs shipped |
Multi-channel distribution
Multi-channel distribution lets AWD ship to destinations other than FBA: replenishment into Walmart Fulfillment Services, transfers to your own warehouse or 3PL, and direct-to-consumer fulfillment for orders from other channels. It makes AWD a shared reserve behind several networks rather than an FBA-only feeder. The accounting rule does not change. Units in AWD are still not available to promise on any channel until they have landed somewhere pick-ready, whether that is an FBA center, a WFS center, or your own dock. What MCD changes is where the replenishment can go, so the reserve can be planned against total demand instead of Amazon demand alone.
When it fits
| If you... | AWD verdict |
|---|---|
| Keep running into FBA capacity limits or aged-inventory surcharges | Strong fit; that is what it was built for |
| Sell seasonal or slow-moving SKUs you want in network before peak | Strong fit |
| Sell fast movers with steady replenishment from your own warehouse | Weak fit; you pay processing and transportation to hold stock you could ship yourself |
| Need kitting, custom packaging, or prep | Not a fit; AWD does not prep, pair it with a 3PL |
| Sell the same SKUs on Walmart and DTC and want one reserve | Fit, through multi-channel distribution, with the reserve excluded from available-to-sell |
Automation
InfiPlex reads FBA fulfillable quantity through the FBA Inventory API and treats it as available for Amazon and for Multi-Channel Fulfillment. AWD quantities are read separately and held as reserve: visible for planning and reorder points, never published to Walmart, Shopify, or any other channel as available. Your own warehouses and 3PLs form the rest of the pool, and routing rules decide which source ships each order. Inbound flows to FBA are covered on FBA inbound shipments; the FBA connection itself on Amazon FBA integration; the cross-channel logic on inventory sync.
Frequently asked
The questions multichannel sellers ask after their first AWD inbound lands.
No. AWD units are upstream reserve. Only FBA fulfillable units, received and pick-ready in fulfillment centers, can be promised on Amazon or fulfilled through Multi-Channel Fulfillment. An OMS should hold AWD quantity for planning and exclude it from every channel's offer quantity.
Amazon's replenishment logic monitors your FBA levels and sales velocity and creates AWD-to-FBA replenishment orders automatically. Units move from available in AWD to reserved, to in transit, to FBA fulfillable on receipt. Manual replenishment is possible but priced higher.
The SP-API Amazon Warehousing and Distribution API, which returns available AWD quantity, units reserved by replenishment orders, units in transit to AWD and from AWD to FBA, expiration data, and your inbound orders. FBA fulfillable quantity comes from the FBA Inventory API.
Yes, through multi-channel distribution, which replenishes Walmart Fulfillment Services, transfers to your own facility or 3PL, and fulfills direct-to-consumer orders from AWD stock. Units remain unavailable to sell until they land somewhere pick-ready.
Storage per cubic foot per month, cheaper under Amazon-managed replenishment than manual, per-box inbound and outbound processing, and transportation per cubic foot for AWD-to-FBA transfers, with a West-region storage premium introduced in 2026. Current rates are published in Seller Central.
No. Amazon no longer performs prep anywhere in its network, including AWD, so units must arrive compliant. Sellers who need prep, kitting, or custom packaging pair AWD with a 3PL or their own warehouse.
Usually not. AWD's advantage is cheap holding for slow, seasonal, or bulk inventory that would otherwise incur FBA storage limits and aged-inventory surcharges. Fast movers replenished from your own warehouse pay AWD processing and transportation for little benefit.
It reads FBA fulfillable quantity as available for Amazon and MCF, reads AWD quantities separately as reserve for planning and reorder points, never publishes AWD units to other channels, and routes each order to the warehouse, 3PL, or Amazon source that should ship it.
Resources
FBA fulfillable as available, AWD as planning stock, your warehouses and 3PLs in the same view, every channel fed the truth. Live in 1–3 business days.
We connect FBA, AWD, and seller-fulfilled inventory for multichannel brands every week. Show us your SKU list and channel mix and we will map what each channel should see. Contact us, email info@infiplex.com, or call 888‑770‑0857.
InfiPlex™ is a trademark of InfiPlex. Amazon, Seller Central, Seller Fulfilled Prime, Amazon Business, Amazon Warehousing and Distribution, Selling Partner API, FBA, and Prime are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. InfiPlex is an independent integration provider and is not endorsed by or affiliated with Amazon. Program rules, thresholds, and fees are set by Amazon and change; verify current terms in Seller Central before relying on them. ©2026 InfiPlex. All rights reserved.
InfiPlex provides eCommerce companies, warehouses, and 3PLs with a robust platform to manage their sales channels.
©2026. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & License