Interactive KDP formatting guide
Interactive release checklist
A pre-upload checklist to catch the reasons KDP rejects books.
Work through source cleanup, the print PDF, the EPUB, the cover, metadata, and the approved version. Each item should be backed by evidence in the real file, not by intention.
Checked:
✓16 concrete release checks✓Print and EPUB paths✓No account required
Interactive KDP formatting checklist
Mark only what you have verified in the final files—not what you plan to fix later.
0/16release checks complete
A checklist is the release gate, not the work itself
Checking a box does not repair a font, margin, navigation link, or metadata conflict. Each item should point to evidence: a clean DOCX scan, a visually proofed PDF, an EPUBCheck result, a cover calculation from the final page count, or a recorded approval of the exact file version.
If a replacement source arrives after approval, reopen the affected checks. Version changes can invalidate pagination, spine width, contents, samples, and store copy together.
Use stop conditions for complex books
Pause automatic production when the book contains image-dependent meaning, tables that must reflow, equations, footnotes, accessibility-sensitive diagrams, or intentional page composition. Route those titles to specialist review rather than marking generic checks complete.
What each public tool checks — and what still needs a human
This matrix lists exactly what ShipMyBook's public browser tools check today. It is not a standards-complete validation: none of these replace EPUBCheck, a full prepress application, visual proofing, or Amazon's own review.
Treat a pass as "worth re-testing after the next export", not as a guarantee that KDP will accept the file.
| Format | What the public tool checks | Reproducible failed signal | Pass / re-test condition | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOCX | Reads the DOCX package in the browser: heading styles, tracked insertions and deletions, embedded comments, and image inventory. | Tracked changes or comments still present, or chapter headings typed in normal body style instead of a heading style. | Accept or reject every tracked change, delete comments, and apply real heading styles; re-run the preflight on the saved file. | https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G201834260 |
| PDF (print interior) | Reads the PDF header, page-object count, visible MediaBox size, encryption markers, font-resource vs embedded font streams, and the final EOF marker. | Mixed page sizes, an encryption flag, or font resources declared without matching embedded streams. | Re-export with one intended trim, no encryption, and embedded fonts; re-check after every export change. | https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/GVBQ3CMEQW3W2VL6 |
| EPUB | Checks the application/epub+zip mimetype, META-INF container path, title/language/identifier metadata, and navigation/spine entries. | Missing mimetype, a broken container path, an empty spine, or absent title metadata. | Repair the package, then confirm with a standards-complete validator (EPUBCheck) and device proofing. | https://www.w3.org/publishing/epubcheck/ |
| Cover | Calculates spine width from page count × paper factor, 0.125 in bleed, full-wrap size, 300 DPI canvas pixels, and the 80-page spine-text boundary. | A spine built from a draft page count, or spine text placed on a 79-page or thinner book. | Recalculate after every pagination change and compare with KDP's official cover calculator. | https://kdp.amazon.com/cover-calculator |
| Metadata | Compares title and author text with the cover, and checks title+subtitle length, description length, keyword and category counts, and obvious policy-risk patterns. | Mismatched title or author text between cover and listing, or a field over the current KDP limit. | Correct the mismatch, read every field as a buyer, and re-check before copying into KDP. | https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G201097560 |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Should I use one checklist for print and ebook?
Use one release record with separate print and EPUB sections. The source is shared, but the outputs have different behavior and validation needs.
When should I recalculate the cover?
Whenever the final print PDF page count, paper, or trim changes.
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Replace manual claims with automatic checks.
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