5 Best Etsy Alternatives for Sellers (Updated for 2024)

Last updated: January 23, 2024

If you’re a crafter or small business owner selling handmade items, you might be familiar with Etsy as it has taken the online creative community by storm since 2005. Etsy has since become a place where people around the world connect to make, sell, and buy unique goods. Etsy sellers offer a wide range of items, from clothing and jewelry to art and home decor, and even digital products such as design arts, digital art, website templates, and more.

Although the website has become increasingly popular, this online marketplace isn’t for everyone. A few drawbacks turn sellers off from staying on the platform. Amongst other reasons, sellers have long cited increasing fees and low seller support quality as the reason why they are considering departing from the online marketplace giant in favor of an alternative site.

In this article, we’ll explore 5 top Etsy alternatives that might be a better fit for your business.

Quick list of best Etsy alternatives for your business:

• Payhip
• Amazon Handmade
• GoImagine
• Folksy
• Bonanza

What is Etsy used for?

Etsy is an online marketplace focused on selling handmade or vintage items and supplies, as well as unique factory-manufactured items. Etsy was founded in 2005 with a vision of bringing together buyers who are looking for unique goods with independent sellers around the world.

Today, Etsy’s sellers range from handmade artisans to digital creators who design and sell digital art, design assets, and more.

How Much Does Etsy Charge?

Etsy charges a listing fee of USD$0.20 per listing, plus 6.5% of the price you display for each listing plus the amount you charge for delivery and gift wrapping when an item sells.

Note that as an Etsy seller, you’ll automatically be charged a USD$0.20 listing fee every four months to maintain your listings. You have the option to disable the automatic renewals for a particular listing or for your shop.

5 Best Etsy Alternatives for Sellers (Free + Paid)

1. Payhip

There are many ways you can be more self-reliant and “break free” from the Etsy platform to become an independent business. One option is to create an online store via an ecommerce site. With Payhip, you can create your own online store or website within minutes for free. No need for any technical know-how or design skills.

Payhip is the perfect ecommerce platform for selling digital products. Whether you’re selling digital downloads, courses, coaching, or physical products, Payhip makes it easy for you to sell online anywhere.

PRICING:

There 3 pricing plan options to choose from:

• Free-forever: No monthly subscription fees + 5% fees per sale (excluding shipping fees)
• Plus: $29/month fees + 2% fees per sale
• Pro: $99/month fees + no fees per sale

The best part about Payhip’s pricing is that you get access to all of Payhip’s amazing features regardless of whether you’re on the free plan or one of the monthly options. Payhip’s pricing plans are created solely for the benefit of managing your transaction fees as your store grows in revenue.

If you’re just starting out, start on Payhip’s forever-free plan where you’ll only get charged 5% fees when you make a sale i.e. if you don’t make a sale, you pay nothing at all while still being able to keep your beautiful online store. Major win!

PROS 👍

• Most affordable option. Payhip is a cheaper alternative to Etsy and has a forever-free plan with a 5% fee for every sale. No monthly subscription fee, no listing fee, no hidden fees. If you’re selling physical products, the 5% fee only applies to the product price and not the shipping fees or taxes.
• Fully customizable website builder + themes
• Instant payouts through Stripe and Paypal
• Free store domain (and ability to connect custom domain if you want to)
• Unlimited number of products and unlimited order sales
• Automatic handling of UK & EU VAT
• Customer review feature with an approval system (say goodbye to headaches with unfair 1-star reviews)
• Sell various product types including digital downloads, online courses, coaching services, subscriptions/memberships, and physical merchandise
• Free complex marketing tools: affiliate marketing, referral system, coupon codes, upsell, cross-sell, email marketing, and more

CONS 👎

• Payhip is the perfect Etsy alternative for selling digital downloads. While you are also able to sell physical merchandise, bear in mind that the Payhip platform doesn’t provide an automated shipping label integration.
• No multi-account functionalities. You’ll have one online store per email.

2. Amazon Handmade

We will preface this by saying that Amazon’s fees are actually higher than Etsy’s. However, Amazon has over 8x the user base that Etsy has, so we’ve included them in this list as it might be worth exploring to increase your customer reach.

Amazon Handmade is a great alternative to Etsy for those looking for handmade goods. Amazon Handmade offers a wide variety of handmade products, from jewelry to home decor, and allows buyers to filter their searches by price, category, and seller. Additionally, Amazon Handmade offers free two-day shipping for Prime members, making it a convenient option for those who want their items quickly.

PRICING:

12.24% referral fee for every sale. For sellers with more than 40 product listings, Amazon charges a 15% referral fee and a monthly fee of $39.99/month. No listing fee.

PROS 👍

• Access to Amazon’s large user base. Amazon is one of the largest online retailers in the world, with over 300 million active customers. This gives you a much larger potential market for your products in comparison to Etsy
• Access to Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), which also means that your product is going to be available for Prime shipping

CONS 👎

• Amazon’s 12.24%-15% fees are higher than Etsy’s 6.5% (even though Amazon doesn’t charge listing fees)
• If you’re selling via FBA, you’ll need to have enough inventory to send off to the Amazon warehouse while still keeping enough inventory to sell elsewhere. This might not be financially feasible for smaller online businesses
• Though FBA may be convenient, it’s not always the best option for small businesses that are able to add an extra personal touch to their customers’ orders (e.g. thank you notes)
• Amazon’s large user base won’t mean anything to you unless your products are easily discoverable within the marketplace. With a saturated marketplace, you’ll need to fight hard in order to get visibility for your listings (sometimes that involves you having to invest quite a lot into advertising within the Amazon marketplace)

3. GoImagine

GoImagine markets itself as “the marketplace that cares”. This concept allows small businesses to run their online store like they normally would, while also providing an opportunity to make a difference in the world. GoImagine donates 100% of its profits to charity.

The best part is that the artists and creators are still able to earn their income like they normally would. And if you’re already selling on Etsy, they provide instructions on how to import your listings from Etsy to GoImagine.

PRICING:

There 3 pricing plan options to choose from:

• Starter: $2.50 per month + 5% Transaction Fee. You’ll get up to 25 Product Listings
• Growth: $5.00 per month + 4.5% Transaction Fee. You’ll get up to 100 Product Listings
• All-Star: $10.00 per month + 3.5% Transactions Fee. You’ll get up to 1,000 Product Listings

PROS 👍

• Great for sellers looking to sell handmade products and contribute to a good cause at the same time
• More specialized marketplace for handmade artisans. In comparison, Etsy has become saturated with many other kinds of sellers, which makes it difficult for you to gain visibility for your product listings

CONS 👎

• Much lower traffic and potential customers in comparison to Etsy and Amazon Handmade
• Store builder functionality is quite limited

4. Folksy

Established in 2008, Folksy is one of the UK’s largest online craft fairs/marketplace where you can find a wide selection of handmade gifts and original artwork, all sold directly by the artists and designers who created them. Folksy proclaimed itself as an Etsy alternative based in the UK and also has an importer to help you import listings from Etsy.

PRICING:

• Basic: a listing fee of GBP$0.15 + VAT per item. In addition, Folksy also charges 6%+VAT commission fees for every sale
• Folksy Plus: monthly fee of GBP$7.50 per month or GBP$75 per year. Unlimited listings. Folksy also charges 6%+VAT commission fees for every sale

PROS 👍

• Instant payouts via Stripe or Paypal
• Access to over 70,000 shoppers. Much lower than Etsy, but still worth exploring especially if you’re a handmade artisan. The platform focuses on the original handmade crafts niche.  In comparison, Etsy has become saturated with many other kinds of sellers
• Unlike Etsy, Folksy does not charge commission fees for your products’ shipping costs

CONS 👎

• Folksy is only available in UK, making it inaccessible for any other sellers and buyers from the rest of the world
• No vintage or second-hand items allowed
• Much lower customer reach in comparison to Etsy
• Listing fee and commission fees might be slightly less than Etsy, but it’s unclear as there is an additional VAT on top that might make it more expensive than Etsy

5. Bonanza

With over 25,000 sellers, Bonanza is an online marketplace that provides a platform for entrepreneurs to build sustainable businesses by encouraging repeat customers. Bonanza pride themselves in having no listing fees, no monthly store fees, no other hidden fees. They provide one-click publishing to all major buyer channels, and they will pay all advertising costs on your behalf until you make a sale.

PRICING:

• For items with Final Offer Value (FOV) under $500, you will be charged with $0.25 + 3.5% of FOV
• For items with Final Offer Value (FOV) above $500, you will be charged with $0.25 + 3.5% of FOV plus a flat fee of 1.5% added after the first $1000.

Minimum final value fee: $0.50. You can also opt into Bonanza’s advertising program and pay additional fees.

PROS 👍

• No listing fees and costs relatively less than Etsy
• Easy to print shipping labels that are presized
• Access to Bonanza’s network of affiliate publishers for marketing initiatives. Bonanza also provides optional advertising in case this isn’t an area that you’d like to take care of yourself

CONS 👎

• Poor webstore customizations. It is easy to create a webstore using Bonanza, but the platform still has a long way to go to turn this into a fully customizable store that can match your brands’ aesthetics
• Bonanza is a much smaller Etsy alternative. You might not be able to reach as many potential customers as you would on Etsy or Amazon Handmade

Final Thoughts

So, there you have it! Five Etsy alternatives that small businesses can use to sell their products online. All of the sites listed offer unique features and are definitely worth considering if you’re not satisfied with Etsy. Have you used any of these platforms before? What was your experience like? Let us know in the comments below!

And if you’re ready to start selling right away, sign up for a free account on Payhip— it takes less than 5 minutes to get set up, no payment info required.