One of the most common questions new authors ask before publishing their first book is: But how much will this actually cost me?

As a self-published author (rather than a traditionally-published one), you’ll be responsible for covering all the expenses associated with producing, launching, and marketing your books. If you have yet to publish a first book, it’s wise to wonder what the endeavor will cost you.

But the honest answer is that it depends. You can publish a book for almost nothing, or invest several thousand dollars to produce something truly professional, and there are several levels of spending in between.

The key, however, isn’t how much you spend, but rather, where you decide to spend it. So let’s break down what some of the most common self-publishing expenditures are and their degrees of variance so you can make the most strategic decisions for your new author business.

The Short Answer: Publishing Costs Range Widely

Most self-published authors fall somewhere in these ranges in total production costs for their books (not including marketing or ad spend):

• Bare minimum, DIY approach: $0 - $500
• Moderate, professional approach: $500 - $3,000
• High-end, competitive approach: $3,000 - $10,000+

Now, this doesn’t mean you need to spend over $3,000 if you want to publish a successful book. But it does mean that certain investments can dramatically improve your book’s quality, and therefore, its chances at finding success.

The Core Costs of Self-Publishing

Let’s walk through the main areas where authors typically spend money on producing a single book.

Editing

Editing is often the biggest investment an author makes in a book, so it’s a great item to consider spending a solid portion of your budget on. A well-edited book builds trust with readers, while poor editing can sink even a great story.

Types of editing can include:

• Developmental editing (big-picture structure, plot, pacing)
• Line editing (sentence flow, clarity, tone)
• Copyediting (grammar, punctuation, consistency)
• Proofreading (final polish to catch mistakes)

Typical all-inclusive costs for editing also come in a variety of ranges:

• $0 (self-editing only)
• $300 - $1,500 (light editing or using a newer editor)
• $1,500 - $5,000+ (full editing with experienced professionals)

Many editors charge per word, so if your manuscript is on the longer side, you can expect to pay more.

If you’re looking for smart ways to save on editing, you can always try:

• Using beta readers or critique partners instead of professional editors
• Self-editing thoroughly before hiring a professional
• Combining line editing and copyediting into a single edit (many editors offer this)
• Skipping developmental editing if you believe your structure and pace is strong

If there’s one item that you plan to invest in, make it editing. While spending some amount on things like professional cover design or formatting are also recommended, those tend to have more affordable options available that can still provide some great results. When it comes to editing, however, paying more for a highly experienced editor in your genre can make a world of difference for your books.

Formatting (Interior Layout)

Formatting, or creating the interior layout for your print book and eBook, is a specialized skill that helps to make a book look and read professionally. While you’ve likely written your book in a word processor like Microsoft Word or Google Docs, creating compliant and compatible interior files often requires taking your manuscript outside those platforms for best results.

The most common options for formatting a book are to use specialized tools built for the job and doing it yourself, or hiring a professional formatter to handle the job in-full. Typical costs are:

• $0 (DIY using a program you already own)
• $50 - $200 (purchasing book formatting software then DIY)
• $50 - $300 (hiring a professional formatter)

Formatting is often easier to DIY than editing or cover design if you’re willing to purchase the software then spend time learning how to use it. And if you’re planning to publish more books in the future, this is often a great one-time investment that you can use for all of them.

However, a professional formatter will likely get the job done quicker, and can often achieve specialized formatting design that you may not be able to do on your own. It all depends on your willingness to invest time in learning, and the complexity of your book’s interior.

ISBNs

An ISBN is a unique numerical identifier for your book. In the U.S., for many years it was common to purchase one for each format of a book through a supplier like Bowker, which authors could then use across all platforms they published those books to.

These days, however, author-owned ISBNs have become less necessary to purchase, though it depends on how you plan to publish and distribute your book. Your costs and associated options often include:

• $0 (via third-party retailer platforms like Amazon KDP, Kobo, and IngramSpark)
• $125 (single-format ISBN in the U.S.)
• $295 (discounted bulk rate for 10 ISBNs)
• $575 (discounted bulk rate for 100 ISBNs)

It’s important to know that the free versions assigned through retailers can only be used for formats sold on those platforms. For example, if you opt for a free ISBN for your paperback book on Amazon KDP, you cannot associate that ISBN with your book on any other platform.

The usefulness of a purchased ISBN is that you can use it across any platform you decide to publish on, and it helps to associate that ISBN directly with you as the publisher, displaying either your name or your imprint name alongside it. But it’s becoming less common these days for authors to purchase their own universal ISBNs, especially for eBook formats.

*Note that in many countries outside the U.S., such as Canada, full-use ISBNs are provided for free, so be sure to check the specifics offered in your country.

Publishing Platform Fees

The good news here is that most major self-publishing platforms are free to use. Where they instead make their money is by keeping a percentage of the royalties your books earn with each sale through that platform.

There are, however, other types of platforms that may require subscription or upload fees to use. So potential costs you may be looking at depending on how you decide to publish your book are:

• $0 (through retailers like Amazon KDP, Kobo, and Google Play)
• $25 (to upload revised versions of your already-published book through platforms like IngramSpark or Draft2Digital
• $100 (for a subscription to wide distributors like PublishDrive)
• $200+ (for a subscription to platforms that allow you to sell books direct, like The Bookshelf)

For many authors just starting out, using free platforms is often the best option while you build your business and gradually experiment with how and where you want to sell your books.

Optional Costs to Consider

While these expenditures aren’t technically required just to produce and publish a book, they can be a great idea to consider spending on to help elevate your book’s visibility and establish your author brand.

Author Website

Unlike the other platforms you use to publish and promote you and your books, a website gives your author business a home base that you truly own and control. A website provides so many ways to help you grow your author business securely, so having one is highly recommended.

The typical costs associated with building and maintaining an author website can be:

• $50 - $100/year (domain registration and hosting)
• $100 - $300/year (subscriptions to website builders and/or direct sales platforms)
• $300+ (hiring a professional designer to build your website)

An author website gives you a place to always lead your readers to learn more about you, display all your books in one convenient location, sign up for your newsletter, or even buy books direct. It’s an invaluable tool and well worth the additional expense when utilized properly.

Email Newsletter Service

Your email list is one of the most valuable assets you can build as an author, because again, it’s something you truly own and control in full (unlike social media accounts). So alongside an author website, it’s highly recommended to consider one of these services as early in your author career as possible.

Typical costs associated with the variety of email list service options available can include:

• $0 (free tiers for smaller lists, usually up to 1,000 subscribers)
• $10 - $50/month (for a growing list)
• $50 - $200+/month (for a large or highly engaged audience)

You can always start with a free plan and do audits of your list every once in a while to clean out inactive subscribers and keep yourself in a lower pricing tier. Then you only need to upgrade to a higher cost when your list growth truly demands it.

Marketing and Promotion

It’s rare these days that a book can reach large sales numbers—let alone make back what it cost to produce—without some type of marketing or promotion. But this is also where costs can vary wildly from book to book.

Free strategies for promotion include:

• Social media
• Email newsletters (if on a free tier)
• Author website
• Organic content (blogs, videos, etc.)

Paid options like investing in Amazon ads, Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok ads, or specific book promotion services all range in price:

• $50 - $100 (for small campaigns)
• $500 - $5,000 (for serious marketing efforts)
• $5,000+ (for well-oiled, consistent advertising on high-earning books)

The best advice is to start small with your daily ad budget and do lots of testing to see what works best before scaling up. And in some cases, paid promotion may not even be the best choice for your books if you’re finding that free organic marketing is working well.

Audiobook Production

The audiobook market is growing extremely fast as the format gains popularity with readers. However, they tend to be a larger investment than producing an eBook or a print book.

Options for producing an audiobook and associated costs may be:

• $0 (DIY narration and production)
• $50/month + wordcount fees (for subscriptions to AI audiobook services)
• $1,000 - $5,000+ (for professional narration and production)

It’s a great idea to create an audiobook when your budget allows for it, as it will enable you to reach an entirely new market of readers. However, it’s not a requirement when first publishing a new book, and many authors often wait to produce one until they can use earnings from digital and print formats to contribute to the cost.

How to Decide What to Spend

Based on the breakdowns we’ve detailed above, many self-publishing costs generally fall into one of three different brackets of spending:

• Bare-bones budget ($0 - $300): often consists of self editing, DIY cover and formatting, free ISBNs, and organic marketing/promotion
• Balanced budget ($500 - $2,000): often utilizes professional copyediting only, a pre-made or mid-range custom cover, DIY or low-cost formatting, and a small promotional budget
• Premium budget ($3,000 - $8,000+): may implement the full editing suite (developmental, copy/line, and proofreading), a fully custom cover, professional formatting, and a strong marketing push

So how do you know which one is right for you? First and foremost, it depends on what your overall budget is. And if your budget is limited, then how do you decide what to spend it on? By asking yourself the right questions:

• What are my goals for this book?
• Am I building a long-term author career?
• Where will spending money create the biggest impact?

As a general rule of thumb, the best recommendation is to prioritize your spending on good editing and good cover design. These are the two most important factors for gaining interest from potential buyers (via a great cover) and then providing them with a good reading experience (via a well-edited book).

While self-publishing doesn’t have to be expensive, it does require thoughtful investment. You can absolutely start small, learn as you go, and reinvest as your skills and audience grow. 

Many successful authors didn’t spend thousands of dollars on their first book; they just made smart, business-minded choices. Do the same, and you’ll build yourself a great foundation even when your publishing budget isn’t a massive one.

Related Questions

Is it possible to self-publish a book for free?

Yes, it’s entirely possible to publish a book at no cost by using free tools and platforms. Just know that you’ll instead be investing your own time and sweat equity (beyond writing) to complete all the production steps needed to get that book out into the world. You may also be risking quality and sales potential by not opting to pay for professional services for some steps.

Do you need to form a business to self-publish a book?

No, you are not required to create a formal business entity in order to self-publish and sell your books. Many authors start as sole proprietors just publishing under their personal name and tax information. If and when their business grows large enough, they may then consider forming an LLC or similar structure for their income. But to start, you can work as a sole proprietor, even if you decide to publish your books under an invented imprint name.

Is self-publishing cheaper than traditional publishing?

Self-publishing your book actually has higher startup costs than signing with a traditional publisher. But as a self-publisher, you’ll earn a much higher royalty on your sales, meaning recouping those initial costs (and then earning even more money) may be easier. It’s also important to know that most traditional publishers these days offer very little to no advance payment for books they publish, and they will also not provide marketing for your books. That’s still left up to you as the author, so even the traditional route has its own expenses.