On top of the final value fee you have to pay processing fees (that is what you use to pay Paypal) That is about 3% plus .30 per item (paypal was per transaction) that makes it 13% to 14% for most categories. It is about the same as when on Paypal they try to say you save but you do not. Plus if you promote your listing you will get charged for that extra % (that only shows up on you invoice at this point which is going away so I am not sure where it will show up next month)
Shipping, several years ago they started to collect on shipping because people would try and get out of paying fees by lowing the price of an item but charging huge shipping fees. Some people like to ship free and build it into price, partly because it is easier on accounting. If you charge for shipping here are some suggestions you can implement.
1. make sure you do not pass discounted shipping savings on to customer (it is a check box under preferences I believe). The customer will pay retail, but you will get a discount on shipping. Some classes of you get a minimal savings (as low as 1%) but most you will save enough to pay for most if not all of the fees.
2. You can add a handling charge when setting up your shipping profiles. you can add .25 or .5 to cover first class fees or the cost a mailer or $10 if the item is going to take a lot of extra packing or you want to add insurance or a signature This will be added on top of what ever shipping is charged. This only works on calculated shipping, not free or fixed shipping. You can also set domestic and international separately.
3. You can use a fixed shipping charge, this can be formulated how ever you want, enough to cover expenses and shipping or partial cost to reduce shipping for customer and build the rest into price of item (this is an option many sellers use instead of free shipping).
4. When listing items under a pound, up the weight to the next level to increase shipping cost to customers to make sure you cover your cost I.e. if it weights 6 oz. enter 9 oz. (breaks are at 5. 9. 13 oz. it adds a minimal to customers cost but varies to location like shipping. It should be enough to cover your fees and then some (on average)
Just be sure you account for this, a $10 shipping charge is approximately $1.3 in fees. And if you sell internationally where shipping can be $20 to $30 that can add up quickly if the margins are not accounted for somewhere.
