KDP Margins and Gutter: Get Them Right
The minimum margins Amazon KDP requires, why the gutter grows with page count, and how to avoid rejections.
“Text is outside the margin” – many self-publishers know this message. KDP checks every print PDF for minimum margins.
Outside margins (top, bottom, outside)
- Without bleed: at least 0.25 in
- With bleed: at least 0.375 in
These are minimums; 0.6–0.75 in reads far more comfortably.
The gutter (inside margin)
The thicker the book, the more of the inside margin disappears into the binding:
- 24–150 pages: 0.375 in
- 151–300 pages: 0.5 in
- 301–500 pages: 0.625 in
- 501–700 pages: 0.75 in
- 701–828 pages: 0.875 in
Tip: add about 0.25 in to the minimum so nobody has to crack the spine to read.
The chicken-and-egg problem
The gutter depends on the page count – and the page count depends on the gutter. Papyrus Peak solves this automatically: it typesets, measures the page count and re-typesets with the right gutter if needed. Before export it checks every margin, and afterwards it checks the finished file again.
Mirrored margins
Left and right pages face each other, so the gutter is on the left of right-hand pages and on the right of left-hand pages. Make sure your layout uses mirrored margins.
Checklist before uploading
- PDF size = chosen trim size (with bleed: width + 0.125 in, height + 0.25 in)
- Gutter matches your page count
- No page numbers or running heads outside the margins
- All fonts embedded