Introduction – The difference between Shopify and Etsy
Shopify and Etsy are two giants in the world’s online shopping market. According to Burst, Shopify will have more than 2 million sellers and 4.6 million live websites by 2024. Of these, Etsy will have nearly 7.5 million sellers and more than 97.3 million active buyers worldwide in 2023. According to Statista, Global e-commerce sales are forecast to explode, reaching a staggering $8.1 billion by 2026.
Rapidly developing a business’s online sales channel is extremely necessary. So the question is how to find the right sales platform for your business? Let’s dive into this article: Etsy vs Shopify: Which is better? Analyze Pricing and Fees, Ease of Use, App and Integration, Marketing Tools, and Customer Support to see which platform is suitable for your business.
| Features | Etsy | Shopify |
| No listing fees | No | Yes |
| Unlimited products | Yes | Yes |
| HTML and CSS editing | No | Yes |
| 24/7 support | Yes | Yes |
| Buyer facing app | Yes | With shop |
| Customizable | No | Yes |
| First-party POS system | No | Yes |
| Custom domain name | No | Yes |
| Subdomain included | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app for merchants | Yes | Yes |
| Detailed reporting | No | Yes |
What is Etsy?
Etsy is a global online marketplace, where people come together to make, sell, buy, and collect unique items. In particular, Etsy is a marketplace specializing in handmade products, vintage products, and craft supplies. With 500 million monthly visitors, Etsy is one of the leading e-commerce marketplaces worldwide.
In addition, Etsy also offers Etsy dropshipping services, although it is a niche market, it is loved by many sellers and artists, who just focus on their expertise in design and creativity. The rest have Etsy drop shipping, taking care of the logistics.
What is Shopify?
Shopify is one of the world’s leading e-commerce platforms. As of September 2023, the market value of Shopify was $85.57 billion. Shopify is a suitable platform for many sizes of businesses in different industries. Allows sellers to freely customize and design stores with many supporting Marketing tools.
Shopify’s ecosystem includes many software and features such as Shopify POS, Shopify payments, Shopify Shipping,… helping sellers easily expand their scale on the online platform.
With Shopify dropshipping, it’s simple to establish connections with numerous suppliers, enabling you to provide a large range of goods without maintaining inventory. Anyone looking to profit from popular things, such as clothing or electronic gadgets, and offer the newest items in a variety of categories would find this method of marketing excellent.
Pricing and Fees – Etsy vs Shopify
Etsy Plans
Etsy offers seven different types of fees:
- Listing fees
- Shipping Label fees
- Transaction fees
- VAT
- Pattern
- Advertising fees
- Etsy Payments and deposit fees
Listing fees
| Fee name | Description |
| Listing | – $0.20 per listing. – Fee is added to your Payment account when an item is listed. – Has to be paid regardless of resulting sales. – A listing expires after 4 months. |
| Auto-renew expired | – $0.20 per listing. – Fee added when a listing is auto-renewed. – Has to be paid regardless of resulting sales. – A listing expires after 4 months. When a listing is auto-renewed, the 4-month listing period starts over. |
| Auto-renew sold | – $0.20 per each additional quantity. – If you sell multiple quantities of a listing in one transaction you’ll owe a multi-quantity fee for each additional quantity. – If you sell more than one (1) item in an order, you’ve already been charged for listing that first item. We only charge you $0.20 each for the extra quantity you sell. |
| Private listing fee | – $0.20 per private listing. – Fee is added to the Payment account if the specified buyer purchases the item. |
Shipping label fees
Shipping labels
- It depends on your selections when purchasing Etsy Shipping Labels.
- Etsy Shipping Labels are available to sellers in certain countries.
Transaction fees
- 6.5% of the total order amount in your designated listing currency. This fee applies to shipping and gift wrapping (if you charge your customers for those). The fee amount is converted to your Payment account currency at the market rate where your listing and Payment account currencies differ.
- Different from the Etsy Payments processing fee.
- Doesn’t include transaction fees incurred with Pattern.
- Charges for shipping and gift wrapping fees will be itemized separately on your Payment account.
Payment processing fee
3% + $0.25 (in the US; varies per country).
Additional fees
Depending on the country and operation (Pattern, Advertising fees, Regulatory Operating fee, Currency conversion, regulatory
Shopify Plans
Shopify offers four different plans:
- Basic Shopify (This is the most popular plan for solo entrepreneurs): $25/month – 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
- 10 inventory locations
- 24/7 chat support
- Localized global selling (3 markets)
- POS Lite
- Shopify for small teams: $65/month – 2.7% + $0.30 per transaction
- 10 inventory locations
- 24/7 chat support
- Localized global selling (3 markets)
- 5 additional staff accounts
- POS Lite
- Advanced as your business scales: $399/month – 2.5% + $0.30 per transaction
- Custom reports and analytics
- 10 inventory locations
- Enhanced 24/7 chat support
- Localized global selling (3 markets) + add markets for $59/mo each
- 15 additional staff accounts
- 10x checkout capacity
- POS Lite
- Plus for more complex businesses: Starting at $2,300/month
- Custom reports and analytics
- 200 inventory locations
- Priority 24/7 phone support
- Localized global selling (50 markets)
- Unlimited staff accounts
- Fully customizable checkout with 40x capacity
- 200 POS Pro locations with Shopify Payments
- Sell wholesale/B2B
Etsy does not charge a monthly fee for users to create online stores on their marketplace, in contrast to Shopify. However, listing an item has expenses, and the total of all transaction fees could take up to 25–25% of the sale price.
Ease of Use: Etsy vs Shopify
Ease of use is important when deciding on a platform to sell. But don’t worry because both platforms are highly rated for their user-friendliness and ease of use in the battle between Etsy vs Shopify.
Shopify is an easy-to-use platform, once you complete your registration, you will immediately receive a guided process to explore all the features of the platform.
As for Etsy, this is a pretty easy platform to use because you just need to create an account and add products. All knowledge about the platform is fully provided on the website.
App and Integration: Etsy vs Shopify
Applications and Integration are extremely necessary for any eCommerce or Marketplace because, through them, you can expand many features to operate your business more smoothly. The same goes for Etsy and Shopify, and the apps that power Shopify and Etsy directly impact everything from customer experience to back-end logistics. In this context, the variety of applications and integrations the platform offers becomes an important factor in your decision-making process.
Shopify
Thousands of apps covering a broad range of operations, from shipping and inventory management to marketing and sales, are available in the Shopify App Store. Through this ecosystem, sellers may increase the functionality of their Shopify site to better serve customers, adapt to changing needs, and expedite processes.
Etsy
Meanwhile, Etsy has a limited number of apps and integrations with Shopify, because it is essentially a marketplace platform, focusing on the market rather than the store’s features.
Etsy’s integration includes tools for store management, marketing, and analytics. In addition, Etsy also supports integration with Printful, helping sellers and artists focus entirely on their expertise without worrying about logistics.
Marketing Tools: Etsy vs Shopify
In the battle between Etsy vs Shopify when it comes to Marketing Tools, Shopify is the winner. Simply because Etsy is a Marketplace, according to statistics about 500 million people visit Etsy every month so Etsy does not need Marketing tools.
Meanwhile, Shopify has many powerful Marketing Tools including:
- Shopify Forms
- Shopify Inbox
- Shopify Email
- Segmentation
- Automation
A plus for Etsy is that the platform allows you to create and share social media posts, a feature you can access from your Store Manager. You can choose from six different social post types and share your finished product on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Pinterest.
Customer Support: Etsy vs Shopify
Customer support is an important factor that sellers need to keep in mind when choosing a platform. Because 24/7 support in many different channels helps all problems be resolved quickly.
Here are some ways to contact Shopify for merchants when you need support:
- Shopify Help Center
- 24/7 via phone, live chat, and email support
- Forums/Community
Etsy offers the following support channels:
- Etsy Help Center
For Etsy and Shopify, you can find help in forums, communities, or on the websites of those platforms in the knowledge categories.
Alternatives to Shopify and Etsy
If you’re looking for different options besides Shopify and Etsy for your online store, there are several alternatives to consider, below are the top 11 alternatives to Shopify and Etsy.
- Amazon (Or Amazon Handmade)
- eBay
- Wix
- Big Cartel
- WooCommerce
- Squarespace
- Walmart
- BigCommerce
- Ecwid
- Shift4Shop
- Sellfy
Each platform has different advantages and disadvantages, the choice depends on your business needs.
Which is better Etsy or Shopify?
Choosing Etsy or Shopify depends on your business.
- What products do you sell?
- How much budget do you have?
- Business scale and ability to expand?
- What customer profile do you need to reach?
Etsy is suitable for businesses selling handmade and vintage products. It is suitable for beginners because of its low cost and millions of users accessing it every month. Shopify is a platform suitable for many small and large businesses that need to expand in the future. Shopify has Marketing tools to help customize the store and increase attraction, and with many apps and integrations, help to enhance user experience.
With the above comparison of Etsy vs Shopify, hopefully, you can choose the right platform for your business.
