Managing your business while you are away is essential for Amazon sellers, whether you are enjoying a well-deserved vacation, pausing operations for personal reasons, or taking time off for the holidays. Fortunately, Amazon offers a useful tool called Vacation Mode that allows you to put your listings on hold for a short time, protecting your seller reputation while promising a seamless customer experience. If you are one of the sellers who want to take a break for a while without disappointing the customers, this blog is for you. We will walk you through the three easy steps of using Amazon Seller Vacation Mode, explain what it does and doesn't do, and provide some of the best practices to follow before you take that much-awaited vacation. Amazon Seller Vacation Mode is a feature available to sellers with either an Individual or professional selling plans in the FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant) model. When activated, it allows you to temporarily deactivate or hide your product listings, preventing new orders while keeping your account as it is. This feature is useful if: You are facing inventory issues You are travelling or on holiday You are planning a seasonal off You need to pause operations due to emergencies Your FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant) listings are hidden from Amazon search and unavailable for purchase. Your FBA (Fulfilled by Amazon) listings remain active, as they are handled by Amazon. Your Sponsored Products campaigns may continue running on active FBA listings, so review your advertising settings before activating Vacation Mode Your seller account remains active; you can still receive messages and manage returns or refunds. Your feedback and performance metrics continue to be visible and monitored. You are a seasonal seller with limited availability. You sell through FBM and can't fulfill the orders temporarily. You want to prevent or avoid taking any orders during your absence. You are just out for a day or two and can still process orders remotely. You are an FBA-only seller (since it doesn't affect the FBA listings). You want to shut down your account permanently. Step 1: Log In to Seller Central Start by accessing your Amazon Seller Central account. Visit sellercentral.amazon.com and use your seller credentials to log in. Once logged in, go to your account settings. On the top-right corner, click on the "Settings" dropdown menu. Select "Account Info". This will take you to your Seller Account Information page, where you can manage your listings. Step 2: Locate the 'Listings Status' Section Within the Account Info page, you will find "Listings Status". This tab is where you control the visibility of your listings on Amazon. To get started/enable vacation mode: Click on the "Going on vacation?" or "Listings Status" link. You will see a list of marketplaces where you are active. Each marketplace will have an option to mark your listings as inactive. Step 3: Set Listings to 'Inactive' for Vacation Mode In order to activate vacation mode, select your desired marketplace, and: Set your listings to 'Inactive' to activate Vacation Mode. This will remove your FBM listings from Amazon search results. Remember, your listings are not deleted; they are just hidden until reactivated. Note: When Vacation Mode is enabled, your listings are not removed. They are simply hidden from customer view and will retain their search rank and detail page settings when reactivated. How to Turn Off Vacation Mode Once you are back from your break and ready to get back on track, turning off the vacation mode is as easy as it was to turn on. All you have to do is: Go to Settings > Account Info > Listings Status Change your status back to "Active" for the relevant marketplaces. Once done, your listings will be visible again, and customers can begin placing orders. It's always better to be prepared for the time off to protect your reputation and minimize disruption. Here are some of the best practices that you could consider: Fulfill All Outstanding Orders: Vacation mode does not cancel existing orders. Ensure you fulfill all pending FBM orders before activating Vacation Mode. Leaving orders unshipped can affect your Order Defect Rate (ODR) and lead to account health issues. Update Your Store Message: You can set a temporary message on your Amazon storefront explaining your absence. This helps manage customer expectations. Turn on Auto-Responders: Use auto-responders to acknowledge messages and notify customers of delayed responses. This is necessary as you are still obligated to reply to buyer messages within 24 hours. Note that failure to respond to customer messages within 24 hours, even during vacations, can negatively impact your account health. Adjust Inventory: If you sell on multiple platforms or plan to ship a few select orders during your break,Brands using Amazon Marketing Cloud can review pre-vacation campaign performance data to identify which FBA campaigns need budget adjustments before going inactive, instead of deactivating your listings, consider managing your inventory levels to limit sales. Check the Settings: Double-check that your return settings, FAQs, and storefront message are updated in Seller Central Platforms like Hector Ai can automatically pause advertising on inactive FBM listings during Vacation Mode, preventing budget from draining against listings that cannot convert, to set accurate buyer expectations during your time off. To proceed with Amazon Vacation Mode, it is important to note how Amazon handles your listings based on the fulfillment method. If your orders are fulfilled by the Merchant (FBM), then in the Vacation Mode, the listings are hidden and unavailable for purchase. Whereas, if the order is fulfilled by Amazon (FBA), then the listing remains active and available for purchase. Amazon continues to pick, pack, ship, and provide customer service for FBA orders, even if your FBM listings are paused. Important: You should monitor FBA orders and returns even while on vacation, as those operations continue independently of your availability. However, if you sell both FBA and FBM products, you only have to set your FBM product listings on Vacation Mode. When planning your break, plan this accordingly, because FBA might still generate sales that require monitoring. Taking a break doesn't have to mean risking your Amazon business. With Amazon Seller Vacation Mode, you can hit pause on your FBM operations without compromising your seller reputation. To recap, the 3 simple steps are: Log in to Amazon Seller Central Navigate to the Listings Status section Set your listings to inactive for the desired/relevant marketplaces All you have to do is prep a few days before taking a break, thus helping you maintain peace of mind while stepping away from the market.What is Amazon Seller Vacation Mode?
What Happens When You Turn Vacation Mode On?
When & When Not To Use Amazon Vacation Mode
Use Vacation Mode When:
Do Not Use Vacation Mode When:
How to Use Amazon Seller Vacation Mode in 3 Simple Steps
Bonus Tips Before You Go on Vacation
Difference Between FBM and FBA in Vacation Mode
Quick Recap
How to Use Amazon Seller Vacation Mode – 3 Simple Steps
Frequently Asked Question
For FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant) merchants, Amazon Seller Vacation Mode allows you to temporarily hide your listings without terminating your account. When activated, your listings are taken out of Amazon search and become dormant, which stops new orders while maintaining your messaging and performance metrics.
Yes. Buyer messages are not disabled when in vacation mode. To keep your account healthy, you still have to reply within 24 hours. To control expectations and stay out of trouble, use auto-responders.
Of course. New orders are the only ones affected by Vacation Mode. Orders placed prior to activation must be completed in accordance with your delivery schedule in order to prevent late shipments or fines for Order Defect Rate.
You can use auto-responders for buyer messages and update your storefront with a temporary message. This enhances transparency and helps control expectations while you're away.
If you're completely stopping operations, especially for lengthy breaks, use Vacation Mode. Instead of adopting Vacation Mode, think about lowering inventory or manually regulating availability if you're still only taking one or two days off or fulfilling a small number of requests.