How Many Books Do Self Published Authors Sell?

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Yes, self-published books sell, but the typical one sells little. In Josh Bernoff’s survey of published nonfiction authors, the median self-published book sold 1,100 copies and 8% passed 10,000. There is no reliable average, and the 250 copies you often see quoted has no study behind it. Below: what the data does show, how my own first book sold, and how I pick a hungry market and sell more.

What is the average number of copies a self-published book sells?

No one can give you a trustworthy average. The figure of 250 copies is repeated on many sites, but I could not find a study behind it, and the Scribe Media page it is sometimes linked to does not contain it, so treat it as a rumour.

The best figure I found measures books, not income. In a survey of 172 published nonfiction authors run by Josh Bernoff for his blog in 2019 to 2022, the median sales of the most recent self-published book, including ebook and audiobook, were 1,100 copies, 8% sold more than 10,000 and none sold more than 50,000 (Bernoff.com, 30-Jun-23). It is a small sample, it covers nonfiction only, and the page does not say how the sales figures were collected. It is also a few years old.

Why does the median matter more than the average?

Because a few books sell millions of copies, and they drag an average far above what most books sell. The median is the middle book: half sell less, half sell more. If you want to know what your book is likely to do, the median is the better guide, and it is also why a single average number tells you so little.

How much do self-published authors earn?

The other data measures authors, not books. The Alliance of Independent Authors’ previous income survey put the median author income at $12,749 a year (ALLi); ALLi opened its 2025 author income survey in September 2025. It only counts authors who spend at least half their time, or earn at least half their income, on writing and publishing (survey rules on Self-Publishing Advice), so it leaves out most hobby writers.

A Written Word Media survey of 1,346 authors, published on 02-Dec-25, found that 44% earn $100 or less a month from their books, while 13% earn more than $5,000 a month (Written Word Media). Written Word Media says its sample over-represents serious, prolific indie authors, so a typical first-time author is likely to do worse than these numbers.

Why do most self-published books sell so few copies?

Mostly because there are so many of them and most are never promoted. Bowker, which issues ISBNs in the US, counted 3,529,980 self-published ISBNs in 2025 (Publishers Weekly, 17-Mar-26). Each format needs its own ISBN, so that is more ISBNs than separate titles, but it is still a lot of competition.

A few huge bestsellers sell millions of copies, and many books sell only a handful. For what sales turn into in money, see how much a self-published book makes. For how many you need to sell to live on it, see how many books you need to sell to make a living, or put an income goal and your prices into my book sales calculator.

How did my first book sell?

Slowly. I started in 2015, and my expectations were low. I thought I’d sell a couple of books, and I told friends and family not to feel any need to buy.

I had followed a basic recipe for the book without really following any of the rules. I was getting advice from every direction, too many methods and styles, and it was confusing. That confusion is a big part of why I now try to break self-publishing down into simple steps for others.

The first sale, on my first book about achieving your goals, was a real surprise. Then came a year of a sale here and a gap of a few days there, with little money coming in because I didn’t know how to price. I wondered how many months or years it would take just to get back what I had spent on the cover and the editing. If that was as good as it gets, I couldn’t see how it would ever pay a salary.

Only when I took trainings and learned how advertising and optimizing books work did I see thousands and then tens of thousands of sales. Since then, with 230 books on the market, I’ve seen books reach 1,000 or even 10,000 copies when they are sold in the right market, in several formats and in several stores.

How do I choose a market where books sell?

Write for a hungry market: one where lots of people are buying, but there aren’t many books. Don’t try to create a market that doesn’t exist. That is how you end up with the average sales above, or below them.

I use KDSpy for this. It shows me all the books that come up in an Amazon search for a keyword, and how many of them are in the top 100,000 of Amazon’s sales rank, which means they sell steadily.

Then I compare the number of books for that keyword with the number selling well. If many are selling and few exist, the market is hungry. This method still works for me today. My exact cut-off numbers are something I go through with my coaching members, book by book.

If you pick the wrong market, it is almost impossible to make money, however good the book is.

What else do I do to sell more books?

Once the market is right, these are the steps that took my own sales from one or two copies here and there to more than 50,000 books sold. I can’t promise you the same result, because your market, topic and cover all change it.

1. Make the book well. The manuscript has to be clean, and I format with Atticus, which makes the ebook and print files from one manuscript.
2. Get a high-quality cover from a professional cover designer. It has to look as good as the top sellers in your market.
3. Run Amazon ads and check them daily. Pause or change any ad that spends more on clicks than the book earns from the sales it brings in, so you at least break even. My coaching members get my exact spend limit for each sale, and my guide to Amazon ads for authors covers the basics.
4. Publish in every format: Kindle, EPUB, paperback, hardback and audiobook. You don’t know which format a reader wants, so don’t guess.
5. Distribute to every store you can, so readers find the book wherever they shop.
6. Publish more books. Sales trickle in, a little here and a little there, and each new book adds to it.

When it works, it starts to jump. I was shocked when I saw how many mistakes I had made by listening to so much contrary advice. Most of the big programs I tried had dozens of modules and cost a lot, and I found them confusing and demotivating. Plenty of people who buy them never publish at all. Keep it simple instead.

What should I do if my sales are low?

Go through these in order on the book that isn’t selling:

1. Check your keywords and categories.
2. Compare your cover with the top sellers in your niche.
3. Read your description again as a buyer would.
4. Check your price against similar books.
5. Read Amazon’s ad report and pause the ads that do not sell.

If you want me to check these with you on your own book, see self-publishing coaching with Chris.

Wondering what a first book makes in its first months? Read what a first-time teenage author can expect in three months.

How many copies has your average book sold? Let me know in the comments. I answer every comment.

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