Read the specific production requirement
KDP’s paperback-font help states a minimum of 7 points. That is a platform requirement, not a recommendation to set every book’s body at the minimum. Its guide suggests simple readable body families and judging complete sample pages rather than only display headings.
Compare complete reading pages
Use several paragraphs with punctuation, dialogue, italic words and numbers at the actual trim width. Compare size and spacing together. A short paragraph in a wide desktop window cannot show how a chapter will feel on a narrower printed page.
Know what the formatting tool controls
KDP’s Kindle Create paperback help says its workflow does not allow customizing font size and line spacing and points authors to Word for those changes. A tool’s automatically selected typography is a workflow constraint, not proof of one universal book-font standard.
Keep the page system reproducible
Record body family, size, spacing, trim dimensions and heading treatment. Avoid shrinking all text only to reduce page count. The book-font collection supports family comparison, while the PDF embedding guide explains how font resources are carried into a fixed-page file.
Your questions, answered.
Is KDP’s 7-point minimum a recommended body size for every book?
No. It is a stated platform minimum. Reading design still depends on the family, page and audience.
Can Kindle Create customize paperback font size and spacing?
The cited KDP guide says those choices are not customizable in that paperback workflow and directs authors to Word for that control.
Sources & background
Sources supporting this page’s explanations. Practical examples are our editorial suggestions.