KDP trim sizes and margins explained

The common trim sizes and their page limits

The figures below come from KDP's help page on format, margins and bleed (kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/GVBQ3CMEQW3W2VL6, read on October 15, 2026). Trim size is the finished page, after cutting. KDP lists page limits per paper type; the columns here are black-and-white on white paper, black-and-white on cream paper, and standard color.

KDP also lists 5.06 x 7.81, 6.14 x 9.21, 6.69 x 9.61, 7.44 x 9.69, 7.5 x 9.25, 8 x 10, 8.25 x 6 and 8.25 x 8.25. Sizes wider than 6.12 inches or taller than 9 inches are classed as large trim by KDP's trim-size table (page G201834180). Marketplaces outside the US have their own lists: KDP Japan, for example, has a separate set of paperback formats.

How to choose a size

KDP gives no recommendation by genre. What follows is common practice, not a KDP rule.

• 5 x 8 and 5.5 x 8.5 are the sizes most often chosen for novels and narrative non-fiction: a small page, a light book, and fewer pages than a bigger trim.
• 6 x 9 is common for non-fiction, memoirs and workbooks, and gives more room for notes, tables and wider text.
• 7 x 10 and above suit textbooks, illustrated books and anything with large figures.

Two practical points apply to translated books. First, a translation changes the page count, so a book that fits one size in the source language may cross a margin threshold in another. Second, a smaller trim means more pages, which means a thicker spine and a different print cost. Settle the size before you format, since changing it later reflows the whole interior.

Minimum margins by page count

KDP sets a minimum inside margin, the gutter, that grows with the number of pages, because thick books need more room near the binding.

The outside, top and bottom margins have a minimum of 0.25 inch (6.4 mm) without bleed, and 0.375 inch (9.6 mm) with bleed. These are minimums. A page set at exactly the minimum is allowed but looks cramped, which is why most print books use wider margins.

Hardcover margins are described by KDP as the same as for paperback, but the gutter table is not repeated on the hardcover page, and hardcovers start at 75 pages. Confirm the figure on the manuscript template for the hardcover size you want.

Bleed: only if something touches the edge

Bleed is the extra area that lets images or color run to the edge of the page after trimming. KDP's bleed is 0.125 inch (3.2 mm), only at the top, bottom and outside edge, never on the binding side. The page is therefore the finished height plus 0.25 inch and the finished width plus 0.125 inch.

For a 6 x 9 inch book, the page with bleed is 6.125 x 9.25 inches. KDP states that if a single page has bleed, the whole interior must be set up with bleed. An interior with bleed must be a PDF; without bleed KDP also accepts DOC, DOCX, RTF, HTML and TXT. One caution: the KDP page gives two slightly different metric examples for 6 x 9 (15.54 x 23.46 cm in the text, 15.56 x 23.50 cm in the table), so rely on the inch formula.

A text-only novel does not need bleed. Choose it only when a full-page image or a colored background reaches the edge.

A worked example: a 6 x 9 inch novel of 300 pages

At 300 pages the inside margin must be at least 0.5 inch. Without bleed, the outside, top and bottom margins are at least 0.25 inch. The text area is then at most 5.25 inches wide (6 minus 0.5 minus 0.25) and 8.5 inches tall (9 minus 0.25 minus 0.25).

With bleed, the outside, top and bottom minimums rise to 0.375 inch, so the text area is at most 5.125 inches wide and 8.25 inches tall. If the translation grows the book to 310 pages, the minimum inside margin moves to 0.625 inch and the text area narrows again. That is the kind of effect to check after translation, and it is easy to miss.

KDP adds three requirements for the contents of the interior: body text of at least 7 point, lines of at least 0.75 point (0.01 inch, about 0.3 mm), and, in black and white, a gray fill of at least 10 percent recommended.

Spine width and cover size

The spine equals the page count multiplied by the thickness of one page, and KDP states that no constant is added. White paper is 0.002252 inch per page, cream paper 0.0025 inch, standard color 0.002252 inch and premium color 0.002347 inch.

The full paperback cover has a width of 2 times the trim width, plus the spine, plus 0.25 inch of bleed, and a height of the trim height plus 0.25 inch. For a 6 x 9 inch book of 200 pages on white paper, the spine is 200 x 0.002252 = 0.4504 inch and the full cover is 12.7004 x 9.25 inches. Spine text needs at least 79 pages, with a 0.0625 inch margin inside the spine.

KDP rounds when you upload and its cover calculator (kdp.amazon.com/cover-calculator) is the reference, so compare your numbers with it before you send the cover. The page count it uses is that of your PDF, rounded to an even number, blank pages included.

Checks before you upload

1. Pick the trim size and paper, and check that your page count is inside KDP's range for that pair.
2. Read the minimum inside margin for the final page count, not the draft's.
3. Decide on bleed, and set up the whole file with it if any single page needs it.
4. Embed all fonts, flatten transparencies, keep images at 300 dpi or more, and remove crop marks, bookmarks and comments.
5. Recalculate the spine and the cover from the final page count.

Our paperback layout service applies these rules to the finished translation, and the free cover and spine calculator uses the same formula. Librolingua is not affiliated with Amazon, and KDP can change its figures, so confirm the ones that matter on KDP's own pages.

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