How much does it cost to start an Etsy store in 2023?

Learn what are the different types of costs and fees on Etsy

Just like any business operation, running an online store requires some form of investment, not just in time and effort but with actual money. The good news, though, is that it does not cost as much as leasing a physical store. Still, it comes with a cost, especially if you’re using an established marketplace like Etsy as your platform. 

Selling on Etsy as a newbie comes with a lot of built-in advantages, which is why it’s great for first-time digital entrepreneurs. The website is very user-friendly and intuitive, so it doesn’t take much to learn how to operate it.

Furthermore, Etsy is already an established name in the online world. It has a wide global reach which can help you get an audience if you don’t have one yet. So when you choose Etsy as your platform, you’re not just paying for a digital space; you’re also paying for all the advantages that the website can offer.

As you start your business, it’s important to get a grip on all the costs associated with it. This includes not just the material and manpower needed to produce your offerings, but all the administrative and other operational costs as well. This can help you come up with a pricing strategy that will eventually help you turn a profit. 

Intimidated by numbers? Fear not. In this article, we’ll answer all your questions about all things Etsy fee-related, like “what are Etsy transaction fees?” or “how much are Etsy fees?”. You’ll learn which fees are mandatory and optional, as well as tips on how to save on them.

 

What is Etsy?

 

Etsy is the world’s most popular e-commerce platform for all things creative. Think handmade, vintage, or custom.

Since it went online in 2005, Etsy has been the go-to for creative sellers who want to sell their goods. It has more than 90 million buyers from all over the world. In its initial years, Etsy was known for selling physical items – crafts, artworks, accessories, vintage pieces, ephemera and the link – but through the years it has expanded its offerings to printables and other non-tangible items.

You can sell almost anything on Etsy, as long as it fits their product categories and appeals to their discerning audience’s tastes.

 

How much does Etsy charge?

 

Etsy charges fees based on each product listing. In general, every seller is charged the Etsy listing fee, the Etsy transaction fee, and the Etsy payment processing fee.

Etsy charges a listing fee of $0.20 for each product you list on their site, plus a 6.5% transaction fee for every sale you make.

Etsy lists a product for 4 months or until it’s sold. When it’s sold, Etsy takes a 6.5% transaction fee computed based on the total cost of the sale, which includes shipping.

To process your payment, Etsy charges a set rate plus a percentage of the total sales. The computation for payment processing fees is different per region or location.

 

What are Etsy fees you should know about?

 

There are three general types of Etsy fees:

 

1. Mandatory Etsy fees

Include fees that every seller has to pay through an entire selling cycle: from listing on the site, making the sale, to processing the payment.

2. Optional Etsy fees

These are fees you pay for miscellaneous services like a premium subscription plan, ad fees, and others.

3. Location-dependent fees

These fees vary per region.

 

1. Mandatory Etsy Fees

 

Listing fees

Etsy charges a listing fee of $0.20 for every product listing. This ensures your listing stays up for a maximum of 4 months or until it’s sold.

 

Transaction fees

When you finally make a sale, Etsy charges a transaction fee of 6.5% of the total cost of that sale, including shipping. You will only be charged a transaction fee once you make a sale. 

 

Payment processing fees

Etsy payment fees are calculated based on a set rate plus a percentage of the total sale. Etsy charges a processing fee for every transaction. The numbers vary per country.

 

2. Optional Etsy Fees

 

Multi-listing fees

If you declare multiple quantities under 1 listing, Etsy will charge you for listing the quantities when you sell them. The listing automatically renews when a buyer purchases part of your quantity with some left over. You will be charged a renewal fee and your listing will remain for sale in your store.

 

Private listing fees

Private listing is for when you post a special listing in arrangement with a buyer through Etsy. Each private listing is charged a flat rate of $0.20 standard.

 

Auto-renew sold fees

The Auto-renew feature automatically re-lists your sold item once it’s sold so that it remains on your shop listing. You can choose to enable or disable this feature.

If you enable it, you will be charged $0.20 per renewal.

 

Subscription fees

Every Etsy seller is automatically enrolled to the Etsy Standard plan upon registration, which is completely free. It gives you access to all the basic features you need to sell on Etsy. If you want to level up, you can upgrade to the Etsy Plus plan, which costs $10 a month, billed in USD.

 

In-person selling fees

You can still sell with Etsy in in-person events like fairs and trade shows. For this, Etsy partners with Square Reader, a free credit card reader that allows you to accept payments on your mobile or tablet device. 

You won’t be charged Etsy’s transaction fee for this, because Square will apply its own transaction fee and percentage based on the total cost of your sale. If you ever sell an item via Square that is not synced with your Etsy shop listings, you will be charged $0.20 USD per transaction. You can find this on your Etsy bill as a ‘Square manual’ fee.

 

Shipping label fees

Etsy’s discounted shipping label service prints postage labels for your packages. It’s only available in certain regions. The charge will depend on your package’s origin, destination, and dimensions.

 

Ads fees

Onsite ads

Onsite ads are ads Etsy posts on their actual website, giving specific listings better visibility in different spots like catalogs, search results, and category pages.

There’s no set fee to Etsy ads, but every seller starts with a $25 maximum daily budget. 

Offsite Ads

Offsite ads are ads Etsy posts on partner sites like search engines, social media sites, and apps. You will only be charged when a sale is attributed to a click from one of these offsite ads.

The cost of the service will depend on your revenue on Etsy for the past 365 days:

• For shops that made less than $10,000 USD, the charge is a 15% fee of the cost of the sale made from the ad.
• For shops that made at least $10,000 USD, the charge goes down to 12%.

 

Pattern fees

If you want to host your store on your own ecommerce site, Etsy has a feature you can use called Pattern. Etsy’s Pattern allows you to create your custom store.

To get this feature, you need to pay a $15 monthly fee, after a free 30-day trial. Other fees that come with using Pattern include domain registration and protection fees as well as a separate Etsy payment fee. 

 

3. Location-specific fees

 

Currency conversion fees

Etsy Payments charge a 2.5% currency conversion fee when it converts your sales amounts into the currency of your payment account. This is automatically subtracted from your Etsy Payments sales amount before you receive the funds on your payment account.

 

Regulatory operating fees

Countries such as France, UK, Italy, Spain, and Turkey are required to pay regulatory operating fees. The fee is calculated based on a percentage of the item price plus the shipping cost. The percentage varies based on the seller’s country.

 

How do you pay your Etsy fees?

 

Sellers are required to set up their payment account through Etsy Payments if they’re in a country that’s eligible to use Etsy Payments (find out if your country is eligible here).

Through this system, your fees will automatically be deducted from your funds. Therefore, your current balance will be your sales funds minus Etsy fees incurred.

If you have a negative balance, you will receive a bill in your Payment account for the amount due. 

Everything you need to know about your finances on Etsy can be found in your Payment account.

To review your Payment account:

1. Go to Etsy.com and open Shop Manager. If you’re on the Sell on Etsy app, you can find it under More.
2. Click Finances.
3. Select Payment account.

Learn how to manage your payments on Etsy with this guide.

Note: Etsy sellers in India are required to enroll in India Payments to accept payment for local buyers and Paypal for international buyers.

Learn more about India Payments for Etsy here, including how to pay your Etsy fees.

 

Etsy fees explained in 3 examples

 

In these quick sample computations, you can get an idea of the basic charges Etsy applies to each listing.

The computations are based on Etsy’s mandatory fees: the flat listing fee of $.020 USD per listing, the transaction fee which is 6.5% of the total price (product price + shipping fee), and the payment processing which is 3% of total price plus $0.25 USD for US payments).

Note that the payment processing fee varies per location.

 

ITEM 1

Product Price	$10
Shipping	$3
Total (Product price + shipping)	$13
ETSY FEES
Listing fee	$0.20
Transaction fee (6.5% * total)	$0.845
US Payment processing fee (3% * total + $0.25)	$0.64
Total Etsy Fees	$1.685

 

ITEM 2

 

Product Price	$50
Shipping	$8
Total (Product price + shipping)	$58
ETSY FEES
Listing fee	$0.20
Transaction fee (6.5% * total)	$3.77
US Payment processing fee (3% * total + $0.25)	$1.99
Total Etsy Fees	$5.96

 

ITEM 3

 

Product Price	$450
Shipping	$50
Total (Product price + shipping)	$500
ETSY FEES
Listing fee	$0.20
Transaction fee (6.5% * total)	$32.50
US Payment processing fee (3% * total + $0.25)	$15.25
Total Etsy Fees	$47.95

 

 

Simplify your Etsy business practices with our free Etsy tools

 

 

 Here are some more easy-to-use Etsy tools to help you run your online shop with ease.

 

Etsy shop name generator

Having a unique and memorable shop name is important for any Etsy seller. Come up with a keyword-optimized name that matches your brand by brainstorming ideas with our Etsy shop name generator.

 

Etsy store bio generator

Crafting a friendly yet professional bio is essential to connect with your buyers. Churn out a great draft with the help of our Etsy bio generator so you don’t have to spend hours writing.

 

Etsy product title generator

A catchy product title helps you get clicks which can turn into buys. Make sure yours are all SEO-friendly and click-worthy with assistance from our Etsy product title generator.

 

Etsy product description generator

Create detailed yet succinct product descriptions that compels browsers to buy. If you have a lot of listings to upload, no need to write each product description from scratch. Use our Etsy product description generator to come up with drafts from your text prompts in seconds.

 

CF Spark Writer

Promote your Etsy store with offsite digital marketing.Craft social media posts or newsletter updates for your subscribers with help from CF Spark Writer for all your copywriting needs.

 

5 tips to save on Etsy fees

 

It’s no secret that Etsy charges quite a bit for its services. However, there’s still a way to save on fees without absolutely avoiding them.

Plus, if you want to operate on Etsy, you will need to abide by Etsy’s Fee Avoidance Policy, which stipulates that “​​Any action by a seller to avoid paying a fee is considered fee avoidance” and may be heavily sanctioned. 

Here are a few ways to cut down on Etsy fees:

1. Turn off Auto-renew

To avoid accidentally getting charged the auto-renewal fee, turn off Auto Renew by setting it to Manual. You can do this when you create each listing.

 

2. Limit listings

Offer limited goods for a duration so you won’t be charged several listing fees at a time. This can also help you manage your inventory better.

 

3. Create bundles

If you offer themed products, consider putting them in a bundle so you won’t have to pay separate listing fees for separate products.

For example, if you offer wedding-themed stationery and centerpieces, put them in one convenient themed bundle consisting of invites, stickers, logos, and paper crafts. You can also bundle items that buyers are most likely to buy in several pieces.

 

4. Learn SEO

If you can’t afford to get onsite and offsite ads, optimize your listings on your own by learning SEO. There are many free resources online to learn this digital marketing skill, like our full guide to Etsy SEO.

 

5. Set your price currency into your payment account currency

Save on currency conversion fee by making sure the price currency on your Etsy listing is set to the same currency your payment account is in.

 

The real cost of selling on Etsy 

 

Now that you have an idea of the different fees you can incur from running an Etsy shop, you’re probably wondering if it’s still worth it to sell on Etsy. It really is up to you to decide at the end of the day.

• On the pro side, Etsy’s established good reputation and built-in audience could be good for you, especially if you’re still in the process of solidifying your following. Its user-friendly interface and features are another boon to newbie sellers, especially those that have no experience selling online.
• However, the high cost of Etsy fees can be quite discouraging, as they take away your chance of earning higher profit. The lack of freedom to customize can also be quite frustrating for some sellers.

If you’re still on the fence, read our article “Is Etsy Worth It in 2023?” and make an informed decision before setting up shop on Etsy.

 

Grow your Etsy business and create with Creative Fabrica

 

Invested in building your business on Etsy? Find tools that help you create profitable products.

If you’re a crafter, graphic artist, or stationery designer, you can make your outstanding creative offerings with help from Creative Fabrica. 

Get our All-Access Subscription plan to get access to our library of digital resources, fonts, graphics, needle art patterns, and more.

Our resources are best used to help you produce in-demand themed stationery sets for weddings, birthdays, and other occasions, intricate paper crafts for decor and centerpieces, printable wall art, digital files for planners and calendars, and so many more.

If you want to create even more unique pieces, use our suite of AI generator tools, CF Spark: CF Spark Art for stunningly unique images, CF Spark Imagemix to create remixed versions of existing images, CF Spark Patterns for repeatable images for scrapbooking and digital file needs, and more.

At Creative Fabrica we also have Print-on-Demand assets which you can use to create items that you can then sell on POD sites such as RedBubble, TeeSpring, and others.

 

Get More Help and Inspiration from Our Ultimately Etsy Guide

 

Starting a new business is seriously challenging, but you don’t have to jump through hoops just to get a store up and running.

Bookmark our Ultimate Etsy Guide, a comprehensive page to be filled with all the resources you need to run your Etsy shop smoothly and more efficiently.

Need an easy-to-read run-down of how to open your Etsy shop? Read our guide on how to start a shop on Etsy, with tips and tricks to help you begin your journey with success.

Do you want to increase your chances of having a profitable Etsy shop? Learn how to make money on Etsy with tips and advice from our article.

If you’re still on the fence about what to offer in your new shop, read our article on what to sell on Etsy to learn all about the site’s popular top sellers. Plus, we’ll give you tips on how to sell better on the site.