Why You Might Not See Your Money for Weeks – Inside Seller Payouts on Amazon, eBay, Walmart & TikTok Shop

If you’re planning to start selling online – or you’ve just begun – understanding how marketplace payments work is one of the most important things you can do. The timing and mechanics of payouts directly impact your cash flow, business planning, and ability to buy inventory, pay bills, or service debts (like credit cards). Unfortunately, many sellers discover the hard way that the money they think they’ve earned isn’t actually in their bank account — sometimes not for weeks or even longer.
Let’s dig into how payments work on the big four platforms (Amazon, eBay, Walmart Marketplace, and TikTok Shop), including nuances like reserves, payout timelines, and why new sellers often get hit hardest.

1. Amazon: “Delivered + Reserve + Bi-Weekly Payouts”
Selling on Amazon is incredibly popular – but the payment timing is also one of the most complex and delayed.
How the Payout Cycle Works

• Amazon settles your account every 14 days, calculating your total sales, subtracting fees, refunds and reserves, then initiates a payout.
• After Amazon initiates the payout, it can take up to 3–5 business days to reach your bank account.
• On top of this, Amazon typically holds funds until 7 days after the item is delivered to the buyer – the “delivery date + 7” policy.

Example:

1. Buyer places order Day 0
2. Buyer receives delivery Day ~5–10
3. Amazon waits 7 days after delivery → funds released to payout pool
4. Next payout cycle occurs → + payout processing time

Total: ~14–21+ days between sale and seeing money in your bank account.
Newly Registered Accounts
For brand new sellers, the first payout may be postponed longer – sometimes four to six weeks or more – because Amazon builds up a reserve and payment history before releasing funds.
This means a scenario like this isn’t unusual:

You pay for inventory on a credit card on Day 0, make sales in two weeks, but you might not receive that revenue until Day 30+ – long after your credit card bill is due.

Account-Level Reserve
Amazon holds a portion of your balance as a reserve to protect against refunds, chargebacks, and claims.
 • Reserve Tier I: Holds 100% of funds for 7 days or unresolved claims – whichever is greater.
 • Reserve Tier II: After ~100 orders and 3+ months of history, reserve may be reduced to ~3% of daily processed payments (or unresolved claims).

That reserve is money you earned – but Amazon keeps it temporarily, slowing your cash flow until the risk window passes.

Deferred Transactions
Amazon also categorizes many recent sales as deferred transactions (when delivery date holds apply), meaning the money isn’t available to include in the next payout until the reserve period expires.

2. eBay: Managed Payments with Flexible Payout Timing
eBay’s system is less restrictive than Amazon’s, but still has nuances.
How eBay Payouts Work
eBay uses Managed Payments – all buyer payments are processed directly by eBay and then paid to the seller.

• Funds generally become available for payout within 2 business days of confirmed payment.
• Sellers can choose payout frequency: daily (each day’s available funds), weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.
• Once eBay initiates a payout, it can take 1–3 business days for your bank to show the deposit.

Unlike Amazon, eBay typically doesn’t tie payouts to the delivery date. Funds are eligible once the buyer’s payment is confirmed, and you can often use them immediately for things like buying shipping labels through the eBay interface.
Holds and Late Payment Edge Cases
While eBay’s system is generally faster, payouts may be held if there are unresolved issues or delivery tracking isn’t provided, similar to Amazon and other marketplaces.

3. Walmart Marketplace: Bi-Weekly Payouts + New Seller Holds
Walmart Marketplace pays most sellers on a bi-weekly cycle, but with important caveats.
Standard Payout Timeline

• Sellers typically receive payments every 14 days – like Amazon – based on orders shipped within that settlement period.

New Seller Payment Hold

• New sellers may experience a rolling delay (hold) on their payouts, typically up to ~14 days after shipment for the first ~90 days or until they’ve processed a certain threshold in sales.
• This additional hold means that new sellers often see their funds deferred longer than established sellers.

Reserves & Payment Holds
Walmart can impose payment reserves or even payment suspensions if there are disputes, chargebacks, or performance issues.

• Holds begin after shipment and must expire before funds are processed in the next settlement cycle.

While Walmart’s payout timing isn’t as tightly linked to delivery confirmation as Amazon’s, the payment holds and reserves for new sellers can delay cash availability, often impacting cashflow early in your business.

4. TikTok Shop: Delivery-Linked Holds + Tiered Settlement Levels
TikTok Shop has one of the most tiered and performance-based payout systems – and this is critically important for new sellers to understand.
How Payouts Are Triggered

• TikTok Shop generally initiates payouts after the order is confirmed as delivered – meaning the sale isn’t “cash” until the buyer gets the product.

Typical Timing

• New sellers often see payout roughly 8 days after delivery.
• Faster payout tiers (Accelerated or Express) can reduce this to as little as 1–5 days after delivery for high-performing sellers.
• Worst-case or probationary tiers may extend payout timing to ~31 days or more.

This means you could sell something and not get paid until more than a month later – especially as a new seller.
Reserve Levels: The Cash Flow Killer
TikTok Shop also applies reserve levels that withhold a percentage of your settlements for risk management:
Reserve Level % Held Typical Period
      Level 0                   70%           30 days
      Level 1                   10%           30 days
      Level 2                   5%             30 days
      Level 3                  0%              0 days
New sellers often start at lower “earnest” levels with large reserves, meaning TikTok holds a significant chunk of your money for a month, slowing your ability to reinvest or operate.
Sellers report that reserve evaluations happen monthly and that poor performance metrics or high dispute values often trigger higher reserves, even for seemingly compliant accounts.
Payout Methods
TikTok Shop payments are typically sent via bank transfer (ACH) and can take an additional few business days after initiation to appear in your account.

Putting It All Together: Cash Flow Reality Check
Payment Speed Comparison

Real-World Scenario to Illustrate
Let’s say you sell $1,000 worth of products and pay for inventory with a credit card.

• Amazon: You might not see that $1,000 in your bank until ~3–4 weeks – long after your credit card bill comes due.
• TikTok Shop: If you’re a new seller on a lower tier with a reserve, most of that $1,000 might be held for 30 days or split across several payouts.
• Walmart: You may not see some of it until after 90 days’ worth of holds and volume requirements are met.
• eBay: You could receive most of it in as few as 3–7 days if you set up daily or weekly payouts.

Tips to Manage Cash Flow
Track Deferred Funds and Reserves:
Amazon has a Deferred Transactions report; use it to forecast when sales will become available.
Choose Faster Payout Options:
Where available (eBay Express, TikTok Express if you qualify), these can help smooth cashflow.
Plan for Delays:
Assume your sales proceeds won’t hit the bank for at least 2-3 weeks on Amazon and up to 4-6 weeks on TikTok or Walmart when new.
Separate Bank Accounts:
Treat marketplace proceeds as working capital rather than operating cash in your main checking or credit accounts.

Final Takeaway
Online marketplaces do not pay you as soon as a sale happens – and new sellers are the most likely to feel the pain. Holds, reserves, and payout schedules are designed to manage risk and protect buyers – but they also throttle cashflow, especially early in your seller lifecycle.
If you’re planning to scale an online store, understanding these payout mechanics – and planning around them – is just as important as sourcing products or writing killer listings.