Amazon Account Health Rating (AHR) is a numerical score that measures how well a seller complies with Amazon’s selling policies and performance standards. The score ranges from 0 to 1,000, with higher scores indicating better compliance. Amazon uses this rating to determine account standing, and sellers whose scores fall below a critical threshold risk account suspension or deactivation.
What Is the Amazon Account Health Rating?
Amazon introduced the Account Health Rating to give sellers a single, transparent metric that reflects their overall compliance. Before AHR, sellers received individual warnings for policy violations without a unified view of where they stood. The rating consolidates all compliance data into one score visible on the Account Health dashboard in Seller Central.
Your AHR starts at 200 when you create a new selling account. It increases as you maintain compliance and build a positive selling history. It decreases when Amazon detects policy violations. An AHR of 200 or above is considered “Healthy.” Scores between 100 and 199 place you in the “At Risk” zone, and scores below 100 can trigger immediate suspension.
Factors That Affect Your Account Health Rating
Amazon evaluates three primary categories when calculating your AHR: customer service performance, policy compliance, and shipping performance (for merchant-fulfilled orders).
Customer Service Performance
- Order Defect Rate (ODR): The percentage of orders with negative feedback, A-to-Z Guarantee claims, or credit card chargebacks. Amazon’s target is below 1%.
- Customer feedback score: The ratio of positive to negative seller feedback over a rolling period.
Policy Compliance
- Product authenticity complaints: Claims that your products are counterfeit or inauthentic.
- Intellectual property violations: Trademark, copyright, or patent infringement claims filed against your listings.
- Restricted product violations: Selling items in gated categories without approval or listing prohibited products.
- Product condition complaints: Customers reporting that items arrived in a condition that did not match the listing description.
- Food safety and product safety issues: Violations related to recalls, safety standards, or regulatory compliance.
Shipping Performance (Merchant-Fulfilled Only)
- Late Shipment Rate: The percentage of orders shipped after the expected ship date. Target is below 4%.
- Pre-Fulfillment Cancel Rate: The percentage of orders you cancel before shipping. Target is below 2.5%.
- Valid Tracking Rate: The percentage of shipped orders with valid tracking information. Target is above 95%.
How AHR Scoring Works
Each policy violation deducts points from your AHR. The severity of the deduction depends on the type and severity of the violation. Minor infractions, such as a single late shipment, may deduct only a few points. Major violations, like selling counterfeit goods, can deduct 50 to 200 points in a single incident.
Amazon also factors in your selling history. Established sellers with years of clean performance receive smaller deductions for first-time minor violations compared to newer sellers. This means that building a track record of compliance acts as a buffer against occasional mistakes.
Points can be recovered over time by resolving violations, submitting successful appeals, and maintaining a clean compliance record. Most resolved violations stop affecting your score within 180 days.
How to Check Your Account Health Rating
Navigate to Seller Central > Performance > Account Health. Your AHR score appears at the top of the page, color-coded green (healthy), yellow (at risk), or red (critical). Below the score, you can see individual metrics and any active policy violations that are dragging your score down.
Amazon also sends email notifications when your AHR changes significantly or when new violations are detected. Make sure your notification email is monitored daily, as some violations require a response within 48 to 72 hours.
How to Maintain a Healthy Account Health Rating
Proactive account management prevents most AHR issues before they start. Here are the key practices:
- Audit your listings regularly. Check that product descriptions, images, and condition notes accurately represent your products. Mismatches between listings and actual products are a top source of complaints.
- Respond to buyer messages within 24 hours. Fast, helpful responses reduce negative feedback and A-to-Z claims.
- Monitor your Order Defect Rate weekly. If ODR trends upward, investigate the root cause immediately. Common causes include shipping delays, product quality issues, or listing inaccuracies.
- Use FBA for shipping performance. Fulfillment by Amazon handles shipping metrics for you, eliminating late shipment and tracking rate concerns.
- Stay current on Amazon policy changes. Amazon updates its policies regularly. Join Seller Central forums and subscribe to Amazon Seller news to catch changes early.
- Address violations immediately. When Amazon flags a violation, submit your Plan of Action or appeal within 24 hours. Delayed responses can result in additional point deductions.
What to Do If Your Account Health Rating Drops
If your AHR falls into the “At Risk” zone, take immediate action:
Step 1: Open your Account Health dashboard and identify every active violation. Sort them by severity and deduction impact.
Step 2: For each violation, determine whether you can resolve it directly (e.g., removing a problematic listing, providing invoices to prove authenticity) or whether you need to submit a formal appeal.
Step 3: Write a Plan of Action for each serious violation. A strong POA includes three parts: the root cause of the issue, the corrective actions you have already taken, and the preventive measures you will implement to avoid recurrence.
Step 4: Contact the Account Health Support (AHS) team directly. Amazon created a specialized team for AHR-related issues, and they can provide guidance on what documentation is needed to resolve specific violations.
If your account is at serious risk, consider working with an Amazon account management agency that has experience with suspension prevention and reinstatement. Professional agencies have established communication channels and proven POA frameworks that can accelerate resolution.
AHR vs. Account Health Assurance Program
Amazon also offers the Account Health Assurance (AHA) program for sellers who maintain an AHR of 250 or above. Enrolled sellers receive a warning before any deactivation action, giving them time to resolve issues. This is a significant benefit, as it effectively eliminates surprise suspensions for compliant sellers.
To qualify, maintain your AHR above 250, ensure your account has no unresolved critical violations, and enroll through the Account Health dashboard. Once enrolled, Amazon will attempt to contact you before taking any enforcement action.
Frequently Asked Questions
What AHR score is considered safe?
An AHR of 200 or above is considered “Healthy.” Scores above 250 qualify you for the Account Health Assurance program, which provides additional protection against sudden deactivation. Aim to keep your score above 250 at all times.
How quickly can I recover AHR points after resolving a violation?
Points are typically restored within a few days of Amazon accepting your appeal or confirming the violation is resolved. Some violations take up to 180 days to fully age off your record, but the point deduction is usually reversed much sooner.
Does using FBA improve my Account Health Rating?
FBA eliminates shipping performance issues (late shipment rate, valid tracking rate, pre-fulfillment cancellation rate), which removes an entire category of potential violations. It does not directly improve your policy compliance or customer service metrics, but it reduces overall risk significantly.
Can I see which violations are affecting my score the most?
Yes. The Account Health dashboard in Seller Central lists all active violations with their severity level. While Amazon does not show exact point deductions per violation, the severity labels (critical, high, medium, low) indicate relative impact. Focus on resolving critical and high-severity violations first.
Protect Your Amazon Selling Privileges
Your Account Health Rating is the foundation of your Amazon business. A suspension does not just pause your sales; it damages your organic rankings, inventory planning, and customer trust. Proactive monitoring and fast responses to violations keep your account safe. If managing account health alongside advertising, inventory, and listings feels like too much, Enso Brands provides full-service Amazon management that includes daily account health monitoring, violation response, and suspension prevention as core services.
