How to Format Your Amazon Book Description (HTML Guide)

Amazon allows basic HTML in book descriptions: bold, italic, line breaks, and headings. Use bold for your hook line, short paragraphs (2–3 sentences max), and bullet points for nonfiction. Never paste from Word — it adds hidden formatting that breaks on Amazon.

Allowed HTML tags for Amazon descriptions

Amazon KDP supports a limited set of HTML tags in book descriptions:

  • <b> and <strong> — Bold text
  • <i> and <em> — Italic text
  • <br> — Line break
  • <p> — Paragraph
  • <h4> through <h6> — Headings (h1-h3 are stripped)
  • <ul> and <ol> — Lists

Everything else — divs, spans, classes, inline styles — gets stripped out.

Formatting templates for fiction vs nonfiction

Fiction: Bold your hook line. Use line breaks between short paragraphs. Keep the whole description scannable on mobile. End with an italic tagline or review quote if you have one.

Nonfiction:Use a bold heading for each section. Bullet points for chapter highlights or “What you’ll learn.” Bold the author’s credentials. Readers buying nonfiction want to know what they’ll get — make it a list.

How to preview your description before publishing

KDP’s built-in preview doesn’t always render HTML accurately. Use the Kindle Direct Publishing description editor, paste your HTML, and check it on both desktop and mobile. Amazon truncates descriptions after ~300 words on mobile with a “Read more” link — make sure your hook is above the fold.

Tools that help format Amazon descriptions

Book to Blurbgenerates two ready-to-paste blurb variants that are already formatted for Amazon — no HTML wrestling required. The output is optimized for mobile readability and Amazon’s character limits.

Want all of this done for you? Upload your manuscript and get a complete Amazon KDP listing in 10 minutes for $9.99.