Short answer. The KDP paperback minimum page count is 24 pages for black ink and premium color, and 72 pages for standard color. The maximum depends on paper and trim: 828 on white at 6 x 9, 776 on cream, 812 on groundwood, and as low as 550 at 8.5 x 11. Spine text needs at least 79 pages.
Key points
- 24 pages is the floor for almost every paperback on KDP.
- Cream paper is thicker, so its maximum is lower than white.
- Big trims like 8.5 x 11 have the lowest maximums.
- Our paperback interior formatting gives you the real page count from a formatted file, not a guess.
What is the KDP paperback minimum page count?
24 pages, at every trim size, for black ink on white, cream or groundwood paper and for premium color. Standard color is the one exception: it starts at 72 pages and stops at 600. Hardcovers start at 75.
What is the maximum page count?
It depends on paper and trim. For Amazon.com:
| Trim | White | Cream | Groundwood |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 x 8 to 8 x 10 | 828 | 776 | 812 |
| 8.25 x 6 and 8.25 x 8.25 | 800 | 750 | 784 |
| 8.5 x 8.5 and 8.5 x 11 | 590 | 550 | 578 |
If your book is 800 pages on cream at 6 x 9, KDP will not take it. Switch to white, or pick a larger trim so the text fits on fewer pages.
How many words make 24 pages?
At our measured 379 words a page at 6 x 9, 24 pages holds about 9,100 words. Front matter counts toward the 24, so a title page, copyright page and contents page bring the word count you need down a little.
At the top end, 828 pages at that rate holds about 314,000 words. Few novels get close.
How many pages do you need for spine text?
KDP's cover help says at least 79 pages. A cover with spine text on a shorter book may be rejected and has to be fixed before the book goes live. One line on the same page says 80, so we plan for 80. Our post on KDP paperback cover size shows how the spine width follows from the page count.
What if your book is too short or too long?
Too short: add real back matter. An about-the-author page, a list of your other books or a preview chapter all count. Blank filler pages will not get you there. KDP's formatting help allows at most 4 blank pages in a row at the start or in the middle of a book, and 10 at the end.
Too long: change the paper or the trim. White paper allows 52 more pages than cream at 6 x 9. A bigger trim fits more words a page. Splitting into two volumes is the last option.
The fix we do for this: we format your interior at your trim size and tell you the page count before you order the cover, so the spine is sized once. Send us a chapter for a free formatted sample.
Does the page count change the print cost?
Yes, above 110 pages. Up to 110 pages a black ink paperback on Amazon.com costs a flat $2.30 to print at a regular trim. After that each page adds $0.012. Our post on KDP paperback print cost by page count has worked examples.
What else do authors ask about KDP paperback page counts?
No. The minimum is 24 pages.
Yes, every page in the PDF counts. KDP allows at most 4 blank pages in a row at the start or middle and 10 at the end.
Cream paper is thicker. KDP's spine formula uses 0.0025 inch a page for cream against 0.002252 for white. Our guide to KDP cream vs white paper says which suits novels and which suits nonfiction.
75 pages, and the maximum is 550.
No. The cover is a separate file.
What should you do next?
Divide your word count by about 380 for a 6 x 9 estimate and check it against the table. If you are near either limit, get a formatted page count before you design the cover. Our paperback interior formatting page explains how we work.
