Common KDP Warnings and Errors

What to do

Understand the most common warnings and errors KDP shows during file upload, so you know what they mean and how to fix them.

Why it matters

Most of these look alarming the first time you see them, but they usually point to one specific, fixable mismatch between your file and your settings, not a fundamental problem with your book.

Step-by-step

• "Trim size mismatch" or similar: your uploaded interior's page size doesn't match the trim size selected in KDP. Go back and confirm both actually match, this is the single most common upload error.
• "Margins too small" or "content too close to the edge": part of your text or an image sits closer to the trim edge than KDP's minimum margin allows for your trim size and binding. Revisit the Margins topic from the Formatting stage.
• "Bleed not detected" or "missing bleed": you selected Bleed in KDP's settings, but your interior file doesn't actually extend design elements to the bleed edge (or vice versa). These two need to match.
• "Low image resolution" warning: an embedded image is below KDP's recommended resolution for print size, it may look blurry when printed. This is often a warning, not a hard rejection, but is worth fixing if it flags a cover or a full-page image.
• "Font not embedded" warning: a font used in your interior wasn't embedded in the exported PDF. Revisit your PDF export settings from the Print-Ready Files stage; most export dialogs have a font embedding option that needs to be turned on.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Trying to fix a rejected PDF by editing the exported PDF file directly instead of going back to the original source document and re-exporting.
• Ignoring a resolution or font warning because the file still technically uploads, then discovering the problem after the physical proof arrives.

Completion checklist

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• I understand the common KDP warning/error messages well enough to know where to go fix them.

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