Where Amazon's EU and UK sellers are based
Published · Last updated · Data: The Sellers Index, Eldris's own seller database · Tables and charts: CC BY 4.0
Of the 54,325 sellers with a recorded country that The Sellers Index found on Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Amazon.it and Amazon.es, 66.9% had a business address outside the EU and 61.6% were based in China or Hong Kong. Only 21.2% were based in the country of the marketplace they sell on. On Amazon.co.uk, 30.9% of 4,104 sellers were based outside the UK.
Those are the sellers that the EU's rules on a locally established responsible operator, and the packaging, electrical and battery producer rules for businesses selling from another country, are written for. The figures say where sellers are based. They say nothing about whether any seller complies.
66.9%
of the 54,325 sellers found on Amazon DE, FR, IT and ES are based outside the EU
61.6%
of those sellers are based in China or Hong Kong
21.2%
of those sellers are based in the marketplace's own country
30.9%
of the 4,104 sellers found on Amazon.co.uk are based outside the UK
By marketplace
Share of sellers found on each EU marketplace, by where their business address is.
| Marketplace | Sellers | Same country | Other EU | UK | China or Hong Kong | US | Elsewhere | Outside the EU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.de | 20,806 | 24.6% | 9.0% | 2.5% | 62.0% | 0.9% | 1.0% | 66.4% |
| Amazon.fr | 4,982 | 21.0% | 20.1% | 4.7% | 51.2% | 1.3% | 1.5% | 58.8% |
| Amazon.it | 13,047 | 22.1% | 14.9% | 3.8% | 57.4% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 63.0% |
| Amazon.es | 15,490 | 15.7% | 10.7% | 3.3% | 68.0% | 1.4% | 0.8% | 73.6% |
| All four | 54,325 | 21.2% | 11.9% | 3.2% | 61.6% | 1.1% | 1.0% | 66.9% |
Outside the EU, the largest groups on the four marketplaces are China (59.6%), United Kingdom (3.2%), Hong Kong (2.0%) and United States (1.1%).
Amazon.co.uk
| Marketplace | Sellers | UK | EU | China or Hong Kong | US | Elsewhere | Outside the UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.co.uk | 4,104 | 69.1% | 10.2% | 8.2% | 7.2% | 5.4% | 30.9% |
By product category
The category is the Amazon category The Sellers Index files each seller under, grouped. Beauty is where most cosmetics sell; electronics and computers are where electrical and battery rules usually come in; toys are one of the product groups with their own EU rules.
| Amazon.de, .fr, .it and .es | Sellers | Same country | China or Hong Kong | Outside the EU |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty | 5,630 | 22.4% | 58.5% | 64.6% |
| Electronics and computers | 9,625 | 17.0% | 64.1% | 69.9% |
| Toys and games | 4,897 | 17.2% | 68.6% | 73.5% |
| All other categories | 34,173 | 22.7% | 60.4% | 65.5% |
| Amazon.co.uk | Sellers | UK | Outside the UK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beauty | 808 | 55.6% | 44.4% |
| Electronics and computers | 1,281 | 69.7% | 30.3% |
| Toys and games | 144 | 65.3% | 34.7% |
| All other categories | 1,871 | 74.7% | 25.3% |
Which rules apply to these sellers
Where a seller is based affects which of the rules below it has to deal with, along with what the product is. The full requirements, with the official texts, are in our EU and UK requirements guide.
Someone established in the EU
66.9% of the sellers found on the four EU marketplaces are based outside the EU. For a product covered by the General Product Safety Regulation and not by EU harmonisation legislation, the product may not be placed on the EU market unless an economic operator established in the EU is responsible for it, carrying out the tasks in Article 4(3) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020. For harmonised products, including cosmetics, and for the acts listed in Article 4(5) of that Regulation, the same requirement comes from the Regulation itself. Either way, an online offer from a manufacturer outside the EU must show that responsible person's name and postal and electronic address. Who can be the EU operator
Cosmetics
In Beauty, the category cosmetics are usually listed under, 64.6% of 5,630 sellers on the four EU marketplaces are based outside the EU, and 44.4% of 808 on Amazon.co.uk are based outside the UK. A cosmetic may be placed on the EU market only if a person within the EU is designated as its Responsible Person, and in Great Britain only if there is a responsible person established in the United Kingdom. What cosmetics need
Packaging
78.8% of the sellers found on the four EU marketplaces are based outside the marketplace's own country. Under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which applies from 12 August 2026, a business established in another Member State or outside the EU that sells packaged products directly to end users in a Member State counts as a producer there, and must appoint an authorised representative for extended producer responsibility there if it is not established in that Member State. Packaging registration
Electrical products and batteries
In electronics and computers, 69.9% of 9,625 sellers are based outside the EU. Under the WEEE Directive, as each Member State transposes it, a business in another Member State or outside the EU that sells electrical equipment at a distance directly to users in a Member State counts as a producer there. For batteries, including those inside appliances, a seller selling at a distance directly to end users in a Member State where it is not established counts as a producer there and must appoint an authorised representative there. WEEE · Batteries
The marketplace's own duties
Online marketplaces must give traders a way to provide the manufacturer's and responsible person's details for the listing, and a self-certification committing to offer only products that comply with the General Product Safety Regulation. Under the packaging rules, from 12 August 2026, a marketplace covered by the Digital Services Act's marketplace rules must also, before letting a producer use its services, obtain that producer's registration details for the Member State where the consumer is located. What a listing must show
Quick answers
What share of Amazon sellers in the EU are based outside the EU?
In The Sellers Index data, 66.9% of the 54,325 sellers with a recorded country found on Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Amazon.it and Amazon.es (last seen December 2025 to March 2026) had a business address outside the EU, and 61.6% were in China or Hong Kong. Only 21.2% were based in the country of the marketplace they were found on.
What share of Amazon.de sellers are based in Germany?
24.6% of the 20,806 sellers with a recorded country found on Amazon.de had a German business address. 62.0% were based in China or Hong Kong and 66.4% outside the EU.
What share of Amazon UK sellers are based outside the UK?
30.9% of the 4,104 sellers with a recorded country found on Amazon.co.uk had a business address outside the UK, and 20.7% were based outside both the UK and the EU.
Does a seller based outside the EU need someone established in the EU?
For a product covered by the General Product Safety Regulation, yes: it may not be placed on the EU market unless an economic operator established in the EU is responsible for it. Cosmetics need a Responsible Person in the EU under the Cosmetic Products Regulation.
Where does this data come from?
From The Sellers Index, Eldris's own record of Amazon third-party sellers. Eldris counted the 82,450 sellers it held, by the marketplace each was found on and the country of its recorded business address. Only totals are published; no seller is named.
How the figures were made
- Source. The Sellers Index, Eldris's own record of Amazon third-party sellers. The whole table held 82,450 sellers (450 of them with no date). The tables here are the 58,429 of those that carry one of these five marketplaces and a recorded country, last seen between 4 December 2025 and 18 March 2026. Eldris counted them on .
- Marketplace. The Amazon marketplace on which The Sellers Index found the seller (one per seller). Sellers found on other marketplaces, or with none recorded, are not in these tables.
- Based in. The country of the business address recorded for the seller. Sellers with no recorded country are left out: DE 65, IT 36, ES 1, UK 139.
- Categories. Beauty, electronics and computers, and toys and games are grouped from Amazon's category names, including their German, French, Italian and Spanish versions. Everything else is "All other categories".
- Privacy. Only totals are published. Counts of sellers by location under 10 are withheld. No seller is named or can be identified.
Limits
- This is the sample The Sellers Index collected, not a census of Amazon. Read the shares as "of the sellers found", not "of all sellers on Amazon".
- The marketplaces were not collected in the same window, so differences between them may partly reflect that: Amazon.de December 2025 to February 2026; Amazon.fr January 2026 to March 2026; Amazon.it January 2026 to March 2026; Amazon.es February 2026 to March 2026; Amazon.co.uk December 2025 to February 2026.
- The sample matters, and two Eldris samples disagree. In The Sellers Index's smaller set of 16,931 sellers enriched with contact details, which other Eldris pages cite, 14.3% of the 9,578 sellers on the four EU marketplaces are based outside the EU. The reason is the website: inside this same table, sellers that have one are 19.6% outside the EU (15,253 sellers), while those without are 85.4% (39,072). The enriched set is, in effect, the website-having subset.
- A seller can sell on several marketplaces; here each is counted once, on the marketplace where it was found.
- Where a seller is based says nothing about whether it complies. This page makes no claim that any seller does or does not.
Download the data (CSV) · Licensed CC BY 4.0: credit "Eldris (consult.eldris.ai)" and "The Sellers Index" (terms).
Sources
- The Sellers Index: Eldris's own record of Amazon third-party sellers
- What an EU or UK product launch needs, by product type (Eldris guide, with the official texts)
- Regulation (EU) 2023/988, General Product Safety Regulation (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EU) 2025/40, Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (EUR-Lex)
- Directive 2012/19/EU on waste electrical and electronic equipment (EUR-Lex)
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Batteries Regulation (EUR-Lex)
- Making cosmetic products available to consumers in Great Britain (GOV.UK)
- Schedule 34, Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (legislation.gov.uk)
- Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, Digital Services Act (EUR-Lex)