The problem
An Amazon settlement mixes sales, referral and FBA fees, refunds, storage and advertising, so the payout never matches the sales. If a VAT-registered seller spends 6 hours a month splitting settlements in Xero, that's 6 hours of fiddly work before every VAT return.
What the AI does
Link My Books connects your Amazon seller account to Xero or QuickBooks Online. Its pricing page lists automatic posting of settlements, payout reconciliation, VAT reporting, product grouping for goods at different VAT rates, cost of goods tracking and profit and loss by channel, and says one Merchant ID covers every Amazon marketplace in a region. It's priced by orders a month: the calculator shows $35£26€31A$50C$49 a month excluding VAT for 500 orders on one channel. Set it up with your accountant, check the first months against Seller Central's own reports, and let it post each settlement after that.
A worked example
A seller in Manchester with about 450 Amazon orders a month across FBA and self-shipped orders is VAT-registered and already pays for Xero Grow ($52£39€46A$75C$73 a month).
Before
About 6 hours a month splitting settlements into sales, fees, refunds and VAT by hand
After
About 1.5 hours a month checking the entries Link My Books posts
What it's worth
About 4.5 hours a month saved, worth around $150£113€134A$217C$212 if your time is worth $33£25€30A$48C$47 an hour. Link My Books is $35£26€31A$50C$49 a month excluding VAT for up to 500 orders on one channel, about $41£31€37A$60C$58 with VAT. Xero Grow at $52£39€46A$75C$73 is assumed already paid.
How to set it up
- Ask your accountant whether they already use Link My Books and how they want Amazon sales, fees and VAT coded.
- Start the 14-day free trial, which needs no card and includes 90 days of history, and connect Amazon and Xero.
- Run the VAT setup with your accountant, including any overseas VAT registrations.
- Compare the first three months of posted settlements with Seller Central's reports.
- Each month, check the entries and reconcile each settlement's bank line.
What goes wrong
- Amazon VAT can be complicated (marketplace rules, overseas stock, mixed rates); Link My Books says it doesn't give tax advice, so the return stays your accountant's job.
- Your plan follows a rolling average of orders and upgrades automatically 7 days after an email if you go over; a strong Q4 can raise the price.
- Cost of goods figures are only as good as the costs you enter; update them when supplier prices change.
- Xero Ignite is limited to 20 invoices and 10 bills a month, so check your Xero plan can take the entries.