Marketplaces

OTTO or Amazon? A marketplace comparison for sellers

By the MarktRank team · 16 October 2026 · 2 min read · Deutsche Version

In short

Amazon has lower entry costs and no application review like OTTO's, but far more competition. OTTO charges a €99.90 monthly base fee, reviews every application and has around 6,100 sellers – meaning fewer competitors per search term. Many sellers use both and measure their visibility separately.

Fees compared

	OTTO	Amazon.de
Monthly	€99.90 base fee	€39 (Professional) or €0.99 per item (Individual)
Per sale	Commission per assortment, partly tiered	Referral fee per category, mostly 8–15%

All amounts excl. VAT, as of October 2026, according to OTTO Market and Amazon. OTTO's commission per assortment and a worked example are in OTTO marketplace fees.

Approval: who may sell?

OTTO reviews every application individually. Requirements include a registered seat in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, France or Denmark, your own VAT ID and German-language customer service; small businesses under §19 UStG are excluded. To sell on Amazon, you open a seller account on one of its two plans.

Shipping and logistics

On OTTO, sellers ship themselves with carriers such as DHL, GLS, Hermes, UPS or DPD; tracking is mandatory. Amazon additionally offers its own logistics with Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA); since April 2026 Amazon adds a 1.5% surcharge to FBA fees.

Competition and reach

OTTO reports 12.6 million active customers and around 6,100 marketplace partners (OnlinehändlerNews, March 2026). On Amazon, according to Amazon, around 47,000 German small and medium-sized businesses alone sold in 2024 – not counting sellers from other countries. For you, that means fewer sellers usually compete for the top spots per search term on OTTO.

Ranking: two different searches

A good position on Amazon tells you nothing about otto.de. Each marketplace has its own search, its own ad slots and its own page size – otto.de shows 120 products per page. Measure your positions for each marketplace separately. MarktRank specialises in otto.de and shows overall, organic and ad position; more in otto.de SEO.

What to plan in addition for OTTO

Allow more lead time on OTTO: acceptance is followed by an identity check that can take up to 15 working days according to OTTO. Companies based outside Germany use the OSS procedure for VAT, according to the requirements. You also accept a sustainability declaration that excludes certain materials.

Which marketplace suits you?

Amazon if you want to start quickly with low fixed costs or hand off logistics.
OTTO if you meet the requirements and want to become visible in a smaller field of competitors.
Both if your range and logistics can carry it – with separate cost calculations and separate rank tracking.

Frequently asked questions

Is OTTO cheaper than Amazon?

OTTO's base fee is higher (€99.90 vs €39 a month). What you pay overall depends on the commission or referral fee in your category and your sales.

Is there something like FBA on OTTO?

According to OTTO Market, marketplace sellers ship themselves with common carriers. We found no offer comparable to FBA there.

Can I check my position on otto.de for free?

Yes, on marktrank.de for 5 products without an account.

Sources

See where your product ranks on otto.de
Overall, organic and ad position for every keyword – 5 free checks, no account needed.

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