For years, Amazon sellers treated Walmart Marketplace as an afterthought — a secondary channel that required work without offering meaningful volume. That view is increasingly outdated. Walmart Marketplace has grown to more than 100,000 sellers and is expanding its seller base aggressively. In certain categories, particularly home goods, sporting goods, and electronics, Walmart now represents 15–25% of the online purchase volume that Amazon captures.
More importantly for sellers, Walmart Marketplace is a less saturated competitive environment than Amazon. The brands competing seriously on Walmart today are ahead of the curve. The brands that wait another two to three years will face the same competitive density that makes Amazon so difficult to enter profitably.
100,000+ | Active sellers on Walmart Marketplace
Why Walmart Marketplace Is Different From Amazon
Understanding Walmart Marketplace requires setting aside the Amazon mental model. The platforms share structural similarities — both are third-party marketplaces where sellers list products, both offer fulfillment services, both run advertising programs — but the operational dynamics, customer demographics, and competitive environment are meaningfully different.
Customer demographics: Walmart's online customer base skews more value-oriented and geographically diverse than Amazon's. Walmart shoppers are more likely to be price-driven, which means discount-heavy and value-pack products often outperform premium positioning. Brands with a "good value" positioning rather than a "premium quality" positioning typically perform proportionally better on Walmart than on Amazon.
Omnichannel integration: Walmart's physical store network is a competitive advantage Amazon cannot match. Walmart allows marketplace sellers to offer in-store pickup options, store return capabilities, and integration with Walmart+ membership benefits. For brands with broad consumer appeal, omnichannel exposure across 4,700+ Walmart stores creates touchpoints that purely digital platforms cannot replicate.
Lower competition: The number of sellers competing for any given product category on Walmart is typically 20–40% of the competition on Amazon. This means lower PPC costs, higher organic visibility for newer listings, and a more achievable path to category leadership for brands willing to invest.
CETA began expanding our brands to Walmart Marketplace in 2023. Across our portfolio, Walmart now contributes 8–15% of total US marketplace revenue for enrolled brands, with significantly lower advertising costs per dollar of revenue generated compared to Amazon. For the same product, we consistently see Walmart CPC costs running 40–60% below Amazon CPC costs.
Walmart Marketplace Fees: A Complete Breakdown
Walmart Marketplace uses a referral fee structure similar to Amazon but with some category differences and generally no subscription fee for a seller account.
Referral Fees
Walmart's referral fees range from 6% to 20% depending on category. Unlike Amazon, there is no professional seller monthly fee — Walmart does not charge a per-month subscription. You pay only referral fees on completed sales.
| Category | Walmart Referral Fee | Amazon Referral Fee | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electronics | 8% | 8% | Equal |
| Home & Kitchen | 15% | 15% | Equal |
| Sports & Outdoors | 15% | 15% | Equal |
| Clothing | 15% | 17% | Walmart 2% lower |
| Health & Personal Care | 8% | 8–15% | Walmart simpler structure |
| Toys & Games | 15% | 15% | Equal |
| Grocery | 8% | 8–15% | Walmart simpler structure |
| Beauty | 15% | 8–15% | Walmart flat, Amazon tiered |
| Automotive | 12% | 12% | Equal |
The referral fee advantage of Walmart over Amazon is modest for most categories — typically 0–2 percentage points. The more significant cost advantage comes from Walmart's advertising ecosystem, which remains considerably cheaper than Amazon's.
Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS)
Walmart's equivalent to Amazon FBA is Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS). Fees are competitive with Amazon FBA for standard-size items and in some cases cheaper for larger items.
| Size Category | WFS Fee | Amazon FBA Fee (Comparable) |
|---|---|---|
| Small item (under 1 lb) | $3.45 | $3.06–$3.22 |
| Standard item (1–2 lb) | $4.95 | $4.71 |
| Standard item (2–3 lb) | $5.45 | $5.42 |
| Oversize items | $9.90+ | $9.73+ |
| Storage (per cubic ft/month) | $0.75 (Jan–Sep) | $0.78 (Jan–Sep) |
| Storage peak season | $1.50 (Oct–Dec) | $2.40 (Oct–Dec) |
The peak season storage fee advantage is notable: Walmart charges $1.50 per cubic foot versus Amazon's $2.40 from October through December. For brands with significant Q4 inventory builds, this difference is meaningful at scale.
Walmart's peak-season storage fees are 38% lower than Amazon's during Q4. For brands that build significant inventory positions for the holiday season, using WFS as a cost-effective complement to FBA can reduce total Q4 storage costs while diversifying fulfillment risk across two platforms.
Getting Approved to Sell on Walmart Marketplace
Walmart Marketplace is an application-based platform. Unlike Amazon, where essentially any business with a valid tax ID can open a professional seller account, Walmart reviews applications and approves sellers based on specific criteria.
Application Requirements
- Valid US business address and EIN (Employer Identification Number)
- US bank account for payouts
- Established US business history (Walmart looks for businesses with a verifiable operational track record)
- Product catalog with GTINs (UPCs, EANs, or ISBNs) for all items
- Clear product images meeting Walmart's image standards
- Competitive pricing (Walmart actively monitors price parity with Amazon and other channels)
What Walmart Evaluates
Walmart's approval process considers business legitimacy and seller quality. Factors that improve approval odds include established sales history on other platforms, a professional website with SSL and clear business identity, an existing product catalog with verifiable GTINs, and a business that has been operational for at least 6–12 months. New businesses with no sales history face higher rejection rates.
Application Timeline
Walmart's review process typically takes 1–4 weeks. If your initial application is rejected, you can reapply after addressing the stated deficiencies. Common rejection reasons include missing GTINs for catalog products, pricing that does not compete with Amazon equivalents, or insufficient business establishment evidence.
Listing Optimization for Walmart
Walmart's search algorithm (search-name-unknown to sellers but similar in concept to Amazon's A9) evaluates listings on relevance and customer experience signals. The optimization principles differ enough from Amazon to require a dedicated approach.
Title Structure
Walmart titles have a maximum of 75 characters and should lead with brand name, then product name, then key differentiator. Walmart's algorithm is less tolerant of keyword-heavy titles than Amazon's and will suppress listings that appear to be keyword-stuffed rather than consumer-friendly.
Image Requirements
Walmart requires a minimum 2000 x 2000 pixel main image on a white or white-gradient background. The product must occupy at least 80% of the image space. Additional images can include lifestyle, infographic, and multi-angle shots, with a maximum of 10 images per listing.
Pricing Competitiveness
This is the most critical Walmart listing requirement. Walmart's algorithm suppresses listings where the price is higher than the same product's price on Amazon or other major channels. Walmart calls this "price competitiveness" and it directly impacts listing visibility. If your Amazon price is $24.99 and your Walmart price is $26.99, Walmart may reduce your listing's search visibility or add a "price may be higher than other retailers" badge that depresses conversion.
Walmart's price parity enforcement is automated and aggressive. Before launching on Walmart, audit your pricing across all channels. Any channel where you have higher pricing than your planned Walmart price will create a visibility problem. For brands using retail distribution channels with MAP policies, ensure your Walmart MAP aligns with MAP enforcement across all channels, or create Walmart-specific SKUs (bundle variations, exclusive size options) that do not trigger cross-channel price comparisons.
Walmart Connect: The Advertising Platform
Walmart Connect (formerly Walmart Advertising) provides Sponsored Products and display advertising capabilities similar to Amazon Advertising. The key differences:
- Lower CPCs: Average Walmart Connect CPCs run 40–60% below Amazon US equivalents in most categories
- Fewer placement types: Walmart does not yet offer the full suite of advertising products Amazon does — no Sponsored Brands Video, no Amazon DSP equivalent
- Growing platform: Walmart has invested heavily in advertising technology and the platform capabilities are expanding rapidly
For brands moving from Amazon to Walmart, the lower advertising costs represent genuine margin improvement — but only if you approach Walmart's advertising system on its own terms rather than directly porting Amazon campaign structures.
Walmart's advertising algorithm rewards listings with strong organic conversion history. Before launching aggressive Walmart Connect campaigns, spend the first 30–60 days generating organic sales and building conversion data. The algorithm weights listings with proven conversion history more favorably in both organic and paid placements. This is similar to Amazon's approach but Walmart's conversion history weighting appears to be stronger relative to raw bid amounts.
FAQ
Is Walmart Marketplace worth it for Amazon sellers?
For most Amazon sellers with US-focused product catalogs, Walmart Marketplace is worth the investment. The key advantages are lower advertising costs (40–60% lower CPCs), less competitive organic ranking environment, and access to Walmart's enormous traffic without the high customer acquisition costs of Amazon. The primary consideration is operational overhead — maintaining a separate catalog, fulfillment method, and customer service pipeline for Walmart adds complexity. For brands generating more than $500,000 annually on Amazon, the Walmart opportunity is typically large enough to justify the operational investment.
How long does Walmart Marketplace approval take?
Walmart's approval process typically takes one to four weeks from application submission. The review evaluates your business credentials, product catalog quality, and pricing competitiveness. Having all required documentation ready — EIN, US bank account, product GTINs, professional website — reduces approval time. If your application is rejected, Walmart usually provides the reason and allows reapplication after addressing the stated deficiencies. Brands using Walmart's Reseller or Strategic account onboarding pathways may have access to expedited review processes.
What sells best on Walmart Marketplace?
Categories that perform disproportionately well on Walmart Marketplace relative to Amazon include home goods and furniture (where Walmart's omnichannel advantage is strong), sporting goods and outdoor equipment, toys, groceries and consumables, and value-tier electronics. Categories where Walmart underperforms relative to Amazon include luxury goods, tech accessories, and niche products with small but high-spending customer segments (Walmart's customer demographic is more broadly distributed than Amazon Prime's premium-leaning profile). Products at the $10–$50 price point tend to perform better on Walmart than products above $100.
Can you use Amazon FBA inventory to fulfill Walmart orders?
Amazon's Multi-Channel Fulfillment (MCF) technically supports fulfilling Walmart orders using FBA inventory, but there are significant practical issues. First, Amazon MCF shipments arrive in Amazon-branded packaging — a problem that Walmart's marketplace rules discourage. Second, MCF fees for non-Amazon fulfillment are higher than standard FBA fees. Third, Walmart increasingly prefers sellers to use WFS for listing eligibility and fast delivery badging. The recommended approach is to use either WFS for Walmart-specific inventory or a third-party 3PL that can fulfill from shared inventory across both marketplaces without marketplace-branded packaging.
What is the difference between WFS and Amazon FBA?
Both WFS (Walmart Fulfillment Services) and FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) are first-party fulfillment services where the marketplace stores and ships your inventory on your behalf. The key differences: WFS has lower peak-season storage fees ($1.50 versus $2.40 per cubic foot October through December), WFS does not yet offer the full international network that Amazon FBA provides, WFS offers 2-day delivery to customers qualifying for fast delivery badges, and WFS requires onboarding approval separately from seller account approval. For brands launching on Walmart, WFS enrollment typically improves listing visibility and conversion because WFS-fulfilled listings qualify for Walmart's fast-delivery badges that influence purchase decisions.