Which is right for your book?
Picking the right printer and distribution option for your book can be a confusing journey. Searching the web for answers will result in an overload of information and conflicting answers. Some people swear by Lightning Source, others speak highly of CreateSpace. And just when you think you have things sorted out, IngramSpark comes along and adds another load of information to process.
One reason for all of the conflicting answers is there is no “one-size-fits-all” method to self-publishing. What method one author uses may not be the best choice for self-publishing your book.
Before you think about your printing and distribution choices, think about your current and future goals, and what success means to you. Having a clear definition of those things will help you make the right choices to meet them down the road.
In this article I will take a close look at Lightning Source, CreateSpace, and IngramSpark and let you make an informed decision on which path suits your needs.
————————-
*Update: Since the writing of this article, Lightning Source has stopped accepting self-publishing authors into their system and is directing them to IngramSpark instead, CreateSpace dropped its setup fee for Expanded Distribution, and IngramSpark has announced that they are now letting you choose between a 30% and 55% wholesale discount option.
View a webinar Kimberly Martin of Jera Publishing presented titled “CreateSpace or IngramSpark, What is the Right Choice For Your Book” in September of 2014.
————————-
Lightning Source, CreateSpace, and Ingram Spark are all print on demand (POD) printers that also offer distribution services to self-publishing authors. That means that in addition to being able to print your book, they can also distribute your book to a book wholesaler, such as Ingram, who will then make your book available to Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, as well as other book retailers, both online and off.
Lightning Source and IngramSpark are both owned by Ingram, which is one of the largest book wholesalers. CreateSpace is owned by Amazon. CreateSpace offers two choices for distribution, Standard and Expanded. The Standard option will get your book listed on Amazon only. The Expanded option will get your book distributed to Ingram.
Lightning Source and IngamSpark offer more binding types than CreateSpace, such as hardcover and saddle stich, while CreateSpace offers only perfect binding. Both offer color printing, but Lightning Source also offers a budget color option they call Standard Color.
Costs and Pricing
Profit per Book Sold
To calculate how much profit you will make on each book you sell you need to know the list price of your book, the wholesale discount you are offering, and the printing cost of the book. The retail list price of your book is the price it will be sold to the consumer. The wholesale discount is the discount off the retail list price of the book that you offer to the wholesaler (or retailer).
The formula is as follows:
List Price
– Wholesale Discount
– Printing costs
= Profit per Book Sold
Example:
$10.00 (list price)
– 50% (discount)
– $2.00 (printing cost)
= $3.00 (profit)
Crunch the Numbers
Let’s crunch the numbers and find out how much you can make when using Lightning Source, CreateSpace, and IngramSpark.
Fees
The fees shown below are based on a 6 x 9, black and white, perfect bound book.
Lightning Source | IngramSpark | CreateSpace (standard) |
CreateSpace (expanded) |
|
Cost per book | $.90 | $.90 | $.85 | $.85 |
Cost per page | $.013 | $.013 | $.012 | $.012 |
Setup fee | $75.00 | $49.00 | – | $25.00 |
Yearly fee | $12.00 | $12.00 | – | – |
Wholesale discount | 20%-100% | 55% | 40% | 60% |
The Breakdown
Let’s run some numbers for an average book:
- 6 x 9
- 250 pages
- black and white
- perfect bound
We are also going to assume that the author invested $1,500 in getting the book published, and expects to sell 50 books per month. For LightningSource, we will set the wholesale discount at 25%.
Here is how the numbers look after running the calculations:
Lightning Source | IngramSpark | CreateSpace (Standard) |
CreateSpace (Expanded) |
|
printing cost per book | $4.15 | $4.15 | $3.85 | $3.85 |
gross profit per book sold | $3.342 | $0.345 | $2.144 | $0.146 |
gross profit per 500 books | $1,671.25 | $172.75 | $1,072 | $73.00 |
1st year ROI** | $430.50 | -$1,341.70 | -$213.60 | -$1,437.40 |
book sales to break even | 471 | 4,483 | 700 | 10,445 |
* Numbers have been rounded, and were valid at the time this article written.
** ROI: Return on Investment, the amount made in this example after the first 12 months (12 months profits – investment)
“Wait, what is going on here? Why do you show me making so much more with Lightning Source when their printing costs are more?”
It all comes down to that wholesale discount we discussed.
CreateSpace Standard distribution requires you to set a wholesale discount of 40%. CreateSpace Expanded distribution requires you to set it at 60%, IngramSpark requires 55%. But LightningSource lets you choose between a 20% and 100% wholesale discount for your book. A low discount such as this is often referred to as a short discount. I suggest setting it at 25% (which is what the numbers reflect in the chart above) as that seems to be the magic number in getting your books listed on online retailers.
“But, if I set my wholesale discount to 25%, doesn’t that mean that I can’t get my book on the shelves at bookstores?”
This is correct. But even if you set your wholesale discount to 55%, which is considered a standard trade discount, you are not likely to see your book for sale on the shelves at Barnes and Noble or other large book retailers. The majority of brick and mortar chains will refuse to carry a self-published, or POD title, regardless of the wholesale discount offered. Your best bet in getting your book on the shelves is to establish a relationship with your local bookstores and sell your book directly to them on consignment.
Even if you got your book on the shelf at some bookstores, most of your sales will probably come from Amazon.com or other online retailers. Is it worthwhile to you to give up the profit on all of the sales through online retailers in the off-chance that Barnes and Noble may decide to sell your book in their retail stores? That is a question you must consider and answer yourself. You can change your wholesale discount for your book at any time with Lightning Source. So if you change your mind later, you are not locked in to your original choice.
“After looking at these numbers, why would someone ever want to go with CreateSpace or IngramSpark instead of Lightning Source?”
Think back to your goals and definition of success I mentioned at the beginning of this article. What are your goals? Your answer will help you determine the right method to choose for your book. Both Lightning Source and Ingram Spark require that you own your own ISBNs, which is an additional cost. You should also set up a business structure when going this route, which has its own fees and legal red tape to go through. With CreateSpace creating an account is much easier, you can have them assign one of their own ISBNs, and you can choose to skip setting up a business and just publish under your own name.
Crunch Your Own Numbers
Want to crunch your own numbers? Use our online Book Profit Calculator to calculate your own book’s potential profit. You can find our calculator at:
https://www.self-pub.net/tools/calculate.html
Enter in your data and see how much you can make on your book. Try out different list prices to see how raising or lowering the price affects the bottom line. Remember, don’t get greedy! While raising the price of your book will make your numbers look great on paper, in reality, having your book priced too high will result in lower sales and less money made overall.
I have a Children’s picture book ready to go..I’m contemplating buying a 10 package of IBSN #’s for my hardcover thru Ingram (Global) and for Soft Cover and Kindle E-book thru CS (Standard)..I have to offer a hardcover though it seems like no money is made there which kills me…Am I thinking correctly?
Hi, Kimberly. I need your help. I am publishing my paperback, WESTMINSTER’S JEWEL, with LS. It’s a sociological essay on the history and culture of Barbados (Caribbean). Black and white, 298 pages, including photographs.
I am uncertain about what list price I should give them. Your advice would be much appreciated.
thanks.
Hi kimberly, I have just published a book via LSI and set my discount to 25% discount. On Amazon.com it says “In stock but may require an extra 1-2 days to process” but on Amazon.co.uk it says “Usually Despatched Within 2-3 weeks” which is a real sales killer. Do you think the “Usually Despatched Within 2-3 weeks” message is down to the 25% discount and is there any way to get the book showing as “in stock”?
Question, did you enable the contract for UK printing and distribution at Lightning Source? If not, then the books are being printed in the US and then shipped to the UK when someone there orders it. I do not think it is an issue with the 25% discount, but something else going on.
Thank you for this excellent analysis.
Am I right in inferring from it that there is no point in signing on to ‘Create Space expanded’ nor ‘Ingram Spark’ as neither is likely to persuade ‘Barnes and Noble’ et al to provide shelf space for POD books, and both would cause reduced profits for the author per book sold?
many thanks
I suggest either choosing the 40% wholesale discount option (not the 55%) at IngramSpark, or choosing the Standard distribution at CreateSpace which is also a 40% wholesale discount. IngramSpark will get you wider distribution for online book retailers, but likely not in the retail stores.
You may find the “CreateSpace or IngramSpark What is the Right Choice For Your Book” webinar I presented a few weeks ago helpful. You can find a recording at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KXpuzEOpTM
Hi Kimberly,
Really interesting! I already have an LS account and am looking to publish a second edition of a book I have already published via createspace, but this time in colour through LS, along with a whole load of other revision guides my team are currently working on. I am just interested to know if you have had any problems with Amazon at 25% wholesale discount as I have heard of loads of people saying that at 20% their book has a waiting time of 2-3 weeks to get dispatched? Also, do you know if Amazon will accept any book size in colour (mine is crown quarto) as on Createspace this is not listed as industry standard and so cannot be sold on Amazon.co.uk?… I think it’s probably fine with LS, but interested to hear what you think.
Thanks!!
Liam
Thank you for your informative blog. I’m about to self publish my novel and have all these variables running through my head. Your article helped to bring coherency to the process. Kent
LightningSource told me I had to go through Ingram Spark. It took them over a month to get back to me.
I have a 432 page (including all pages) fantasy novel and after pricing a hardback at 25.95, with their tool, taking into account shipping and the 55% discount, they estimate I will earn $0.06 on each POD sale.
So I have to make my book 29.95 to get 1.86. Honestly, I don’t think hardbacks should cost any more that 19.95, so this basically makes Ingram Spark a bust.
Jared,
Have you tried contacting Lightning Source to tell them that Ingram Spark does not meet your needs and that you would like a Lightning Source account? I am curious to see if you tried that and what their reply was. Hopefully Ingram Spark will offer more wholesale discounts in the future.
Hardbacks under 19.95 are mass market products. You’re printing books one at a time. There’s no comparison. POD is most suited for books up to around 200 pages or so. Even a paperback at 432 pages could be priced at 19.95.
Thank you so much for this helpful article. LS’ recent move (Oct. 2013) into turning away new self-publishing authors, directing them towards IngramSpark, has certainly changed my original plan. Also, wanted you to be aware that CreateSpace Members no longer pay $25 fee for Expanded Distribution. Obviously will affect your linked calculator, too. “Announcement: Free – Expanded Distribution Options for CreateSpace Members
We are excited to announce Expanded Distribution is now Free. You can make your books available through more channels including: online retailers, bookstores, libraries, and academic institutions within the U.S. at no cost. Enable these distribution channels today so you can reach a wider audience and increase the discoverability of your books.” – Createspace announcement Nov. 5 2013
Jill,
Thank you for your comments. Yes, I have had a few clients who have been getting the letter from Lightning Source pushing them to IngramSpark. I was able to give Lightning Source a call and get them to activate the accounts for my clients accounts however. It seems they are only activating the accounts on a case-by-case basis for self-publishers. Since I assist my clients throughout the application process and the title submission they seem to be more willing to activate the accounts if I will be providing support. I am assuming that is the real issue behind this move; too many self-publishing authors flooding their system and bogging them down with support calls and issues.
So right now getting a Lightning Source account with that 25% wholesale discount option is a bit tricky and may not be possible for some people. I have also heard from IngramSpark that they are considering offering more wholesale discount options. If that is true and they do start offering a short discount option, then they would be the way to go.
Otherwise, I may start advising authors to focus more on eBooks, and either use IngramSpark or CreateSpace (standard distribution) for the print versions.
These are all interesting facts. What I am more interested in, though, is the cost of each book to the author. In other words, If I have a 6X9, 250 page, black and white, perfectbound book printed, how much would an author pay to buy them for person-to-person sales or just to give as gifts? I know that CreateSpace is reasonable: about $3.90 per book. Shipping is also reasonable at less than $1 per book if you order 10 (and the more you buy, the less per book in shipping). And an unexpected bonus for me was that the books arrive within 2-5 days after I order them. The prospective client should also remember that LS and Spark have a set-up fee and a yearly fee, which the CS does not. That brings down the actual cost of each book considerably. And I have heard horror stories about slow turnaround, although I do not remember which company was involved.
Thank you for posting. In this case, if you are simply looking for printed books without the distribution, CreateSpace has a cheaper cost per book between the three. With your given specs it would cost $4.65 per book at Lightning Source. However, Lightning Source does also start to give volume discounts on the printed books. If you were to order from 1-99 copies (I don’t know why they consider “1″ volume) you get a 10% discount bringing the cost down to $4.185 per book. 100-249 copies gives a 15% discount bringing it to $3.95. Lightning Source also runs specials fairly often where they will waive title setup fees if you order 50 or 100 copies of the book.
The point is to always crunch they numbers and know the bottom line for YOUR book, and find the best option that suits your situation. There is no “one-size-fits-all” when it comes to self-publishing. What is best for one person, does not always fit the needs or goals of another.
Someone does not know how to run numbers. First, you won’t be selling as many books at 25% discount because the wholesaler takes 15%, so you are leaving just 10% for the retailer, so they will not be buying your book. Second, if your profit is only .35 per copy with Spark, then you raise the price so you do make a profit.
Thank you for your comment. Online retailers (Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com) will carry your book if you offer the 25% wholesale discount, but brick and mortar stores will not carry it on their store shelves. However, even if you set your book at a 55% wholesale discount, you are still not likely to have it show up on the shelves at large bookstores.
If you wish to set your book at 55% in the hopes that a brick and mortar store will carry it, you will likely end up selling less books due to the higher price, and end up making less money in the long run.
Really helpful information, Kimberly. Authors ask me questions along these lines regularly, and this helps sum the pros and cons of these choices.