Marketplace Comparison
If you sell handmade, vintage, or one-off inventory, your fees directly decide how much room you have for margin. This page compares Etsy and eBay with simple price-point examples so you can quickly see which marketplace keeps more of each sale before product costs.
Assumptions: US seller, no shipping charged, Etsy offsite ads shown as separate column, eBay shown with a common 13.25% + $0.30 benchmark.
| Item price | Etsy | Etsy + offsite ads | eBay benchmark | Lowest fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $10.00 | $1.40 | $2.90 | $1.63 | Etsy (no offsite ads) |
| $25.00 | $2.83 | $6.58 | $3.61 | Etsy (no offsite ads) |
| $50.00 | $5.20 | $12.70 | $6.92 | Etsy (no offsite ads) |
| $100.00 | $9.95 | $24.95 | $13.55 | Etsy (no offsite ads) |
Etsy is often stronger when your products depend on search discovery inside a marketplace built for crafts, custom work, and gifts. For many sellers, those buyer-intent advantages can offset similar fee math.
Etsy also gives you clearer pricing controls for handmade and personalized listings. If your goal is stable margin on niche products, Etsy can be easier to optimize listing by listing.
For the full breakdown of listing, transaction, and payment fees, read the Etsy fees guide.
eBay can be attractive for collectibles, refurbished items, and categories where auction or established buyer demand matters more than handcrafted branding.
The exact answer depends on category-level final value fees, store subscription status, and promoted listing usage. Use this page as a quick baseline, then validate with category-specific numbers.
Need category-level eBay math? Use our sibling tool: eBay Fee Calculator & Profit Estimator.
Start with unit economics, not opinions. If your average order value is low, fixed payment components matter more. If your items are higher ticket, percentage fees dominate. Running 3 to 4 real product examples will show you whether Etsy or eBay is better for your exact catalog.
Next, include your real costs and expected ad exposure. The difference between a standard Etsy order and an Etsy offsite-ads order can materially change margin, especially on lower-priced products.
When you are ready to set profitable listing prices, use the Etsy fee calculator first, then review how to price on Etsy for a repeatable pricing workflow. You can also compare Etsy against a storefront model in our Etsy vs Shopify fees guide.
It depends on your item price and ad exposure. Etsy is often competitive on standard sales, while eBay can be close or lower in some categories and account setups.
Yes. Etsy transaction and payment processing fees apply to the combined item price and shipping charged to the buyer.
No. eBay rates vary by category, seller status, and store subscription. This page uses a common benchmark to compare marketplace economics quickly.
Use the Etsy fee calculator with your exact item price, shipping, cost of goods, and offsite ads scenario to see net profit and margin.