DSP Owner Guide
What Is an Amazon DSP (Delivery Service Partner)?
An Amazon DSP is an independent business that Amazon contracts to deliver its packages — you own the company, hire the drivers, run the routes, and Amazon supplies the volume. This guide covers how the program works, what it costs to start, what owners actually earn, and how stations run day to day. Written by operators who run DSP stations, not marketers.
What does DSP stand for at Amazon?
DSP stands for Delivery Service Partner. The Amazon DSP program lets entrepreneurs own and operate a last-mile package-delivery business inside Amazon’s logistics network. As a DSP owner you’re an independent contractor: you form your own company, hire W-2 employee drivers (delivery associates, or DAs), lease a fleet of Amazon-branded vans, and deliver packages out of a local delivery station.
Amazon provides the package volume, technology, training, and a business coach; you run the business and manage the profit and loss. There are over 3,000 Amazon DSPs operating worldwide. (Amazon Business)
How the Amazon DSP program works
Amazon owns the demand side; you own the operation. In practice it breaks down into four parts:
Amazon supplies the demand
Packages, routes, and a built-in customer base come from Amazon — you never hunt for clients. You’re paid fixed monthly rates based on the volume your team delivers.
You run the operation
Recruiting, hiring, scheduling, driver coaching, fleet management, and daily dispatch out of your assigned delivery station are all on you.
Amazon supports
A dedicated business coach, negotiated deals on vans, insurance, and devices, on-road assistance, and a two-week owner training program.
Performance is measured constantly
Amazon scores your station weekly. Your rating drives bonuses, growth, and whether Amazon keeps routing you volume.
Amazon DSP requirements
What you need to apply and get approved:
- $30,000 in liquid assets (proof required at application).
- A strong personal credit score, weighed in the financial review.
- An up-to-date resume and a fresh email not tied to any Amazon shopping, Flex, or DSP account.
- Willingness to be a hands-on, full-time owner-operator — not a passive investment.
- Availability in a location where Amazon is opening DSP capacity.
The application flow
- 1. Application (2–3 hours to complete).
- 2. Financial, background, credit, and motor-vehicle review (can take several months).
- 3. Interview, station visit, and business-plan submission.
- 4. Offer into Amazon’s Future DSP onboarding track.
Rejected applicants can reapply after 12 months. (Amazon Business)
How much does it cost to start an Amazon DSP?
Amazon markets startup costs as low as $10,000, based on the first five vehicles and Amazon-negotiated vendor discounts. Note the distinction: the $10K is the marketed startup floor, while $30K in liquid assets is the separate qualification requirement. Real-world budgets run higher once you add legal and entity setup, payroll setup, recruiting, background checks, and travel to training. (Amazon DSP Brochure)
Ongoing costs are dominated by employee wages and benefits; vehicle leases, maintenance, and insurance; devices and uniforms; and administrative services. For the full path from application to launch, see how to start an Amazon DSP.
How much do Amazon DSP owners make?
Amazon’s own program figures for fully-ramped partners (actual results vary) — see our full breakdown of Amazon DSP owner earnings:
$1M–$4.5M
Annual revenue potential
$75K–$300K
Annual profit potential
Operator note: those are projections for a well-run, fully-ramped station. Profit is highly sensitive to two things you control — labor efficiency (scheduling, retention, overtime) and scorecard performance. A station that leaks overtime and drops scorecard tiers lands well under the range; a tight operation holding Fantastic Plus earns a $5,000 bonus each period it hits it. (Amazon Business) (Nizod)
What is a DSP driver?
A DSP driver — officially a delivery associate (DA) — is a W-2 employee of the DSP owner’s company, not an Amazon employee and not a gig worker like Amazon Flex. DAs load their van at the station each morning, run an assigned route of roughly 150–250+ stops, take delivery photos (POD), and follow safety and service standards tracked by Amazon. Their individual behavior — speeding, harsh braking, missed photos — rolls up into the station’s scorecard.
The Amazon DSP scorecard, briefly
Every DSP is graded weekly across metrics that determine bonuses and standing. Tiers run Fantastic Plus → Fantastic → Great → Good → Fair → At Risk. For the full breakdown of categories, FICO, and the bonus, see the Amazon DSP scorecard explained. The metrics that move it most: (Nizod)
DCR — Delivery Completion Rate
Percent of assigned packages delivered. Dispatch-sensitive and recovers fast.
DNR — Delivered Not Received
Heavily weighted and slow to recover — misdeliveries and false completions.
POD — Photo on Delivery
Required delivery photos. Almost entirely a training and habit metric.
FICO — Netradyne safety
Fleet driving safety score. Tied directly to your insurance costs.
Customer escalations
Direct complaints routed to Amazon. Immediate weight and hard to dispute.
Run the station
How software like Sortd runs a DSP station
Running a DSP means juggling compliance, scheduling, hiring, driver comms, and scorecard recovery — most owners start in spreadsheets and drown. Sortd is the operating system for Amazon DSP stations, built by DSP operators: automated compliance, fairness and performance scheduling with call-out replacement, a driver mobile app, and performance coaching in one place. It’s read-only, stores zero Amazon credentials, and uses no unofficial API — so it stays on the right side of Amazon’s terms.
Frequently asked questions
What does DSP stand for at Amazon?
DSP stands for Delivery Service Partner — Amazon's program for owning and operating a last-mile package-delivery business. It is not the same as Amazon's advertising Demand-Side Platform, which is unrelated ad-buying software.
Is an Amazon DSP the same as Amazon Flex?
No. Amazon Flex is gig work where you deliver with your own car. A DSP is a company that employs W-2 drivers, leases a fleet of vans, and runs routes out of an Amazon delivery station.
How much does it cost to start an Amazon DSP?
Amazon markets startup costs as low as $10,000 (based on the first five vehicles and Amazon-negotiated vendor discounts), and separately requires proof of $30,000 in liquid assets to apply.
How much do Amazon DSP owners make?
Amazon projects $1M–$4.5M in annual revenue and $75K–$300K in annual profit for fully-ramped partners. Actual results vary and depend heavily on labor efficiency and scorecard performance.
What is a DSP driver?
A DSP driver — officially a delivery associate (DA) — is a W-2 employee of the DSP owner's company who delivers Amazon packages from a station. They are not Amazon employees or gig workers.
How do you become an Amazon DSP?
Apply online (a 2–3 hour application), pass Amazon's financial, background, credit, and motor-vehicle review, complete an interview and station visit, submit a business plan, and get placed into Amazon's onboarding track.
What is the Amazon DSP scorecard?
A weekly performance rating — from Fantastic Plus down to At Risk — across metrics like DCR, DNR, POD, FICO safety, and customer escalations. It determines bonuses and your standing with Amazon.
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