Why Sales Haven't Appeared Yet
If you've made sales but they're not showing in your dashboard, this is normal. Each retailer and distribution channel has different reporting timelines.
infoThis is Industry Standard
Sales reporting delays of 30-90 days are standard across the entire publishing industry. This is not a Shelf Indulgence issue—all distributors experience these delays because retailers report sales on delayed schedules.
Retailer Reporting Timelines
Here's when each retailer reports sales to distributors:
Apple Books
- Reporting delay: 30-45 days after sale
- Frequency: Monthly reports
- Example: December sale appears late January to mid-February
Google Play Books
- Reporting delay: 30-60 days after sale
- Frequency: Monthly reports
- Example: December sale appears late January to early March
Kobo
- Reporting delay: 45-60 days after sale
- Frequency: Monthly reports
- Example: December sale appears mid-February to early March
Barnes & Noble
- Reporting delay: 60-90 days after sale
- Frequency: Monthly reports
- Example: December sale appears early March to early April
OverDrive (Libraries)
- Reporting delay: 60-90 days after checkout
- Frequency: Quarterly reports
- Example: December checkout appears March to April
Subscription Services (Kobo Plus, Storytel)
- Reporting delay: 30-60 days after page reads
- Frequency: Monthly reports
- Payment model: Per-page-read, not per-book
Complete Sales Timeline
From sale to dashboard to payment:
| Month | What Happens |
|---|---|
| Month 1 | Reader purchases your book from retailer |
| Month 2 | Retailer processes sale internally (accounting, returns period) |
| Month 3 | Retailer reports sale to Shelf Indulgence → Appears in your dashboard |
| Month 4 | Retailer pays Shelf Indulgence → We pay you (if over $5 threshold) |
Why the Delay?
Retailers report sales on delayed schedules for several reasons:
- Return period: Retailers allow 14-30 day return windows
- Accounting cycles: Monthly accounting close processes
- Fraud prevention: Time to identify and process chargebacks
- Data aggregation: Collecting sales from multiple regional stores
- Industry standard: Net-60 to net-90 payment terms are universal in publishing
What You Can Do
Check Your Dashboard Regularly
Sales appear as retailers report them:
- Log in monthly to see new sales
- Sales are added as reports come in
- Different retailers report on different schedules
Track External Metrics
While waiting for official reports:
- Monitor Amazon rankings (if also on KDP)
- Check Apple Books author dashboard
- Track website traffic and direct sales
- Note launch dates and promotion periods
Be Patient
Expected wait times:
- First month sales: Expect to see them 6-12 weeks later
- Regular sales: Will always be 1-3 months behind
- Launch day sales: Won't appear for 30-90 days
When to Contact Support
Contact us if:
- It's been over 90 days since you know a sale occurred
- You have proof of purchase but sale never appeared
- Sales stopped appearing entirely for multiple months
- There's a significant discrepancy in expected vs reported sales
lightbulbPro Tip
Keep a spreadsheet of your marketing activities and launch dates. When sales appear 60-90 days later, you'll be able to correlate them with your promotional efforts and understand what worked.