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Short Answer
Most independent authors spend between about $1,000 and $6,000 to publish a novel professionally, and most of that goes to editing and the cover. Platform fees are small or zero. You can publish for almost nothing, but a book without editing and a professional cover rarely finds readers.
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Line By Line
The cost of each step
Step Typical cost Benchmark
Developmental edit (80k
words)
$2,400–$2,800 (fiction) EFA 2026 median 3.0–3.5¢/word Copyedit (80k words) $1,600–$2,160 (fiction) EFA 2026 median 2.0–2.7¢/word Proofread (80k words) $960–$1,600 (fiction) EFA 2026 median 1.2–2.0¢/word
Custom cover $625–$1,250 (average about $880) Reedsy, 2025 projects
Formatting $0 (software) to several hundred dollars Varies with complexity
ISBNs (US) $125 for one, $295 for ten Bowker
Copyright registration $45 (single application) or $65 (standard) US Copyright Office Platform fees $0 (KDP) to plans from $17/month
(BookMarket)
Platform terms
Audiobook narration about $860–$8,600 for an 80k-word book about 8.6 finished hours at $100–$1,000 per
hour
Footnote Nonfiction editing medians are higher (copyediting 3.0–4.0¢/word). Benchmarks checked October 2026; individual providers vary widely.
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