If we are staunch loyalists to Amazon, we will surely realize that some products specify things like "Sold and Fulfilled by Amazon" or "Distributed by Amazon. Although they may seem similar terms, the truth is that there are quite a few differences between one and the other. Roughly, the first is a product or service sold directly from Amazon itself, with all the advantages that this entails. Regarding the second, the product is sold through a third party (that is, a certain company or independent seller) and its shipment is managed by Amazon. But what is the difference between sold by Amazon and actually fulfilled by Amazon? We see it.
Differences between sold by Amazon and Fulfilled by Amazon
Buying products on Amazon is one of the most common practices for different users throughout the year (here we saw some tricks to buy cheap on Amazon). As we saw in this other article on possible fraud on Amazon, there are three types of products on Amazon: sold and managed by external companies, sold and managed by Amazon and fulfilled by Amazon . If we already talked about the former in the linked article, this time we will see what differences there are between the latter two.
The guarantee
Product sold and distributed by Amazon.
The first of the differences and surely the most important of all. The guarantee period in the case of a product sold and distributed directly by Amazon is two years through Amazon itself . Within this period we can replace or return the product at any time if we wish, in addition to repairing it within that period if necessary. Likewise, the amount of the product in question can be reimbursed if within those same two years it presents a fault or operating problem. All at cost 0 by the user.
Regarding the guarantee of a product sold by an external company and managed by Amazon, the company is only responsible for the storage, shipping and return if it came from the product in question. In no case will your guarantee be managed by Amazon, but by the external seller for a minimum period of two years . In products that present failures of any kind and whose origin is from countries such as China, Hong Kong or countries outside the European Union, this process can take up to a few months. At Amazon it is a matter of hours or days.
The shipment
Shipping is another difference in products sold and distributed by Amazon and managed by Amazon. If we buy a certain product in Spain from Amazon, the shipment will be made from the warehouse closest to our city to any part of the Spanish territory .
Regarding the products distributed by Amazon, the product, despite being sent by the company, depends exclusively on its availability in the warehouse closest to our city . In addition, in territories such as the Canary Islands, Ceuta or Melilla there are certain shipping restrictions that can alter the arrival or price of the final product.
Quality and price
Product fulfilled by Amazon and imported from another country.
The last two differences of this type of product on Amazon lie in quality and price. In terms of quality, products sold by Amazon (if we buy them in “New” condition) generally have a higher quality than products sold by third parties. We are talking about top brand products, original and with European certification (for example, mobiles with European ROM instead of China). In the case of products managed by Amazon, this is not always the case, as we can find imported mobiles or “copy” products of other more popular ones .
And what about the price? It is generally lower in products distributed by Amazon for the reasons we just mentioned. If the product is sold directly by Amazon, it is usually somewhat more expensive, around 15% according to our estimates.