Should I sell on Etsy or my own site?
Etsy hands you a built-in audience actively searching for what you sell, but takes a cut on every sale and gives you little control over the buying experience. Answer the questions below and enter your price to get a recommendation, plus the exact fee gap between the two channels.
Frequently asked questions
What fees does Etsy charge that my own site wouldn't?
Etsy charges a $0.20 listing fee per item sold, a 6.5% transaction fee on the item price plus shipping, and 3% + $0.25 payment processing — roughly 10–12% of a typical sale before you factor in optional Offsite Ads. Your own site (via Stripe or similar) only charges payment processing, typically 2.9% + $0.30. The gap is the price of Etsy's built-in, high-intent search traffic — buyers actively looking for handmade, vintage, or craft items.
Is Etsy's Offsite Ads fee mandatory?
No, but it's not fully avoidable either. Etsy automatically promotes some listings on Google, Instagram, and other platforms; if a buyer clicks one of those ads and purchases within 30 days, Etsy charges 12–15% of the order on top of its standard fees. Sellers under $10,000 in trailing 365-day sales can opt out entirely; sellers above that threshold cannot opt out, though the rate drops to 12%. This guide's fee comparison excludes Offsite Ads — factor it in separately if you're above the threshold.
Why does "brand-building priority" matter so much to the verdict?
Etsy owns the customer relationship — you don't get the buyer's email address by default, can't easily remarket to past customers, and your shop exists inside Etsy's design and search rules rather than your own brand. If repeat purchases, an email list, or a distinctive brand identity matter to your business long-term, that's a structural cost Etsy's lower barrier to entry doesn't offset, regardless of the fee math.
Can I sell on both Etsy and my own site at the same time?
Yes, and it's a common progression — many sellers start on Etsy for discovery while building their own site in parallel, then shift weight toward their own site as their brand and email list grow. The "diversify" and "transition" verdicts below are built around exactly this approach rather than forcing an all-or-nothing choice.
What isn't included in this comparison?
This compares platform, transaction, and payment processing fees at your item price — it doesn't include Etsy's Offsite Ads levy, your own site's platform costs (Shopify subscription, app fees, or a self-hosted store), or either channel's advertising spend beyond what's built into the fee structure. It also doesn't quantify traffic value — Etsy's search traffic has real acquisition value that isn't captured in a pure fee comparison.
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