Data

Which months does Kindle Unlimited pay most?

The KENP rate for each calendar month compared with its year's average, across 10 full years (2016-2025). Comparing within each year removes long-term drift, so what's left is the seasonal pattern.

KENP rate vs its year's average, by calendar month (2016-2025)

January−4.0%

February+2.1%

March−1.8%

April−0.5%

May−1.8%

June−1.1%

July−4.4%

August−3.7%

September+1.4%

October+3.2%

November+6.7%

December+4.4%

KENP rate and Global Fund by calendar month vs yearly average
Month	Rate vs year avg	Years above avg	Fund vs year avg
January	−4.0%	2 of 10	−4.5%
February	+2.1%	7 of 10	−9.6%
March	−1.8%	3 of 10	−4.9%
April	−0.5%	6 of 10	−3.6%
May	−1.8%	3 of 10	−1.2%
June	−1.1%	5 of 10	−0.9%
July	−4.4%	0 of 10	+2.4%
August	−3.7%	1 of 10	+4.3%
September	+1.4%	8 of 10	+3.6%
October	+3.2%	10 of 10	+4.2%
November	+6.7%	10 of 10	+3.9%
December	+4.4%	8 of 9	+5.2%

Calculated from monthly US rates and fund sizes (Written Word Media, KDP Global Fund Payouts). Years with a missing month use the months available. Updated 2026-11-08.

Reading the pattern

The rate is the month's fund divided by pages read. When reading rises faster than the fund (holidays, long winter evenings, big promotions across the store), the rate tends to dip. When Amazon raises the fund ahead of reading, it rises. The "years above average" column shows how reliable each month's pattern is.

What it means for ads

The seasonal swing is a few percent: worth knowing when you set budgets, not a reason to stop advertising. If most of your ad-driven readers borrow through KU, a low-rate month trims what each click is worth by about the same share. Check your numbers in the break-even ACoS calculator, and see every month's actual rate on the KENP rate page.

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Questions

Which month has the highest KENP rate?

On average from 2016 to 2025, November (+6.7% against its year's average), followed by December and October. No month is highest every year.

Which month has the lowest KENP rate?

July on average (−4.4%), then January and August. Months with heavy reading tend to stretch the fund over more pages.

Should I time my launch around the KENP rate?

Not on its own. The swings are a few percent, much smaller than the effect of a good launch, a promotion or a strong cover. It's more useful for budgeting ads: expect page-read income per reader to dip a little in low-rate months.