E-commerce business decision
When does Shopify cost less than Etsy?
Etsy combines marketplace discovery with fees on listings and sales. Shopify adds a recurring store subscription and payment fees, while you build your own traffic. The cost crossover depends on what you sell, your basket size, and the cost of acquiring customers.
Use the tipping-point slider to compare the same volume on both platforms, then add realistic marketing and app costs. Lower platform fees alone do not guarantee more sales or higher business profit.
How to use this tool
Use your actual order value
Include customer-paid shipping and gift wrap. Enter collected sales tax separately for payment processing.
Check advertising attribution
Use the share of orders actually attributed to Offsite Ads and the rate determined by your shop history.
Budget for your own storefront
Add apps, a domain, and additional customer-acquisition spend to the Shopify scenario.
Test several sales volumes
Move the slider and compare monthly costs and the first cheaper whole-order volume.
Worked example: 50 orders at $50 each
Using the default US standard-card example, one item per order, no collected sales tax, no ads and no extra costs, Etsy costs $260 per month. Shopify Basic with monthly billing costs $126.50. Shopify costs $133.50 less per month, or $1,602 across 12 identical months.
The modeled per-order difference is $3.45. A $39 fixed subscription divided by $3.45 gives a crossover at about 11.30 orders; Shopify first costs less at 12 whole orders, or $600 in monthly sales.
Advertising can change the tipping point
If acquiring each order on Shopify costs an additional $5, its variable cost exceeds Etsy in the default example. The subscription plus that extra spend means Shopify does not become cheaper simply by increasing volume.
Etsy Offsite Ads apply only to attributed orders. The calculator holds the selected 12% or 15% rate constant; it does not infer eligibility from a single month of sales.
Monthly versus annual subscription
The US Basic example uses $39 with monthly billing or $29 per month when paid annually. Annual billing means a $348 subscription commitment paid upfront. The calculator compares monthly cost equivalents; it does not model payment timing or temporary trial offers.
Choose based on more than fees
- Marketplace discovery versus your own audience and repeat customers
- Conversion rates, product fit and average basket size
- Store setup, support time and brand control
- Marketing budget, migration costs and cash available for subscriptions
Sources and further reading
Frequently asked questions
Is Etsy or Shopify cheaper for a small seller?
There is no universal answer. Etsy can have lower fixed costs at low volume, while Shopify can have lower per-order fees. Order value, advertising, apps and payment methods determine the crossover for your shop.
Does Shopify charge transaction fees with Shopify Payments?
Payment processing still applies. The additional third-party transaction fee defaults to zero for Shopify Payments. If using another provider, enter both the applicable additional fee and the provider’s own processing charges.
Do Etsy Offsite Ads fees apply to every order?
No. They apply to attributed orders, subject to Etsy’s attribution rules. The calculator uses your entered attributed-order share and caps each modeled attributed order fee at $100.
Are sales after fees the same as profit?
No. These amounts still need to cover product costs, fulfillment, labor, setup costs and taxes. The calculator compares modeled platform and acquisition costs at equal sales volume.