Sell your books online with Blurb

There are four ways to distribute and sell a self-published book with Blurb: your own Instant Store, Retail Distribution through the Blurb Bookstore, Amazon, and Ingram, Bulk Book Printing Services for large-quantity orders, or the RPI Print API for your own storefront.

Pick a project you've already created, then choose a selling route above and follow its setup. Most sellers start with an Instant Store, since it's live in minutes with no separate sign-up.

Yes. Instant Store, and Retail Distribution are both print-on-demand, so a copy only prints once it's ordered, and there's nothing to buy or store in advance.

Print-on-demand means your book only prints once a buyer orders it. There's no minimum run, no warehouse, and no upfront printing cost to cover before you make a sale.

Only Amazon and Ingram, both under Retail Distribution, require an ISBN for retail listing. Your Instant Store link doesn't need an ISBN or barcode.

Selling directly to readers through your Instant Store means you bring the buyer and set the price, so what's left after your printing cost is yours. Selling through Amazon or Ingram means the retailer brings the buyer and takes its own profit cut.

Yes. Magazines and notebooks & journals are sellable through most of these routes. Availability varies by channel, so check each route's product page for specifics.

Yes. Blurb ships to buyers in over 70 countries, so your Instant Store and Retail Distribution listings can reach readers well beyond your own market.

With Blurb Instant Store, you set your book's price and keep everything above the print cost. Your profit per book is your selling price minus the print cost. Buyers pay for shipping, and there are no subscription or platform fees.

Instant Store pricing gives you lower print costs when you sell your book directly to readers, so you keep more of each sale. Unlike a royalty, where a retailer pays you a share of the sale, you keep the full difference between your price and the print cost. Use the Instant Store profit calculator to see your earnings per book.

Yes. Every selling option through Blurb is built for self-published books: you don't need an agent or a publisher to use Instant Store, Retail Distribution, Bulk Book Printing Services, or the RPI Print API.

Instant Store can go live in minutes once you have a print-ready project. Retail Distribution listings typically take longer, since Amazon and Ingram review submissions before they go live.

Yes, but only through Amazon. Ingram's retail listings are limited to trade books (paperback & hardcover books), not photo books. Your Instant Store and the Blurb Bookstore are also open to photo books if you want another retail path.

Yes. You keep full ownership of your book content; Blurb only takes a non-exclusive license to print and distribute it on your behalf. You, not Blurb, are recognized as the publisher of your book. See our Terms of Service for full details.

It depends on what matters most to you: Instant Store for the highest profit and full control, Retail Distribution for reach to readers who don't know you yet, Bulk Book Printing Services for a large event or resale order, or the RPI Print API if you're building your own platform. The comparison table above lines all four side by side if you want the full picture.