What Etsy really takes
Selling on Etsy costs more than the listing fee. Each order carries a transaction fee, a payment processing fee, and sometimes an offsite ads fee, a regulatory fee or a currency conversion fee. On top of those sit your own costs: materials, packaging, the shipping label and the hours you spent making the piece. Many sellers price by feel and only find out later that a best seller barely pays.
This Etsy fee calculator puts all of it in one place. It shows every fee on the order, your real profit and margin after your time is paid for, what an offsite ads sale would do to that profit, and the break-even price. The second mode works backwards and gives the item price you need for a target profit or margin.
How to use it
- Enter the item price, the quantity, and the shipping and gift wrap you charge the buyer. Add a coupon percentage if one applies.
- Enter your costs: materials per item, packaging, the shipping label you buy, and the time each item takes with your hourly rate.
- Check the fee boxes. They are filled in with Etsy’s US rates; change them to match your country or your shop.
- Read your profit, the fee breakdown and the break-even price, or switch to Price I need and enter a target.
The fees, one by one
order total = price × quantity − discount + shipping + gift wrap
listing = $0.20 × items sold; transaction = 6.5% × order total
processing = 3% × (order total + sales tax) + $0.25 (US rate)
offsite ads = 15% or 12% × order total, up to $100; profit = order total − fees − your costsThe transaction fee is charged on shipping and gift wrap too, not just the item, which is why free shipping and shipping charges both need care. Offsite ads are charged only on sales that come from Etsy’s ads on other sites. Shops under $10,000 a year can opt out; above that, the 12% rate applies to every such sale. The regulatory operating fee applies only to shops in some countries, and the currency conversion fee only when your listing currency differs from your bank account’s.
Worked example: a $25 item with $5 shipping
- Order total: $25 + $5 shipping = $30.00
- Fees: listing $0.20 + transaction $1.95 + processing $1.15 = $3.30
- Your costs: materials $6 + packaging $1 + label $4.50 + half an hour at $15 ($7.50) = $19.00
- Profit: $30.00 − $3.30 − $19.00 = $7.70, a margin of 25.67%
- Break-even item price: $16.49
Etsy takes $3.30, about 11% of the order, and you keep $7.70 after paying yourself $7.50 for your time. If the same sale came through an offsite ad at 15%, a further $4.50 would go, leaving $3.20.
How fees change with price
| Item price | Order total | Fees | Fee share | Profit | Fees with a 15% ad sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $15 | $20.00 | $2.35 | 11.8% | −$1.35 | $5.35 (26.7%) |
| $25 | $30.00 | $3.30 | 11% | $7.70 | $7.80 (26%) |
| $40 | $45.00 | $4.73 | 10.5% | $21.27 | $11.48 (25.5%) |
| $60 | $65.00 | $6.63 | 10.2% | $39.38 | $16.38 (25.2%) |
The fixed parts, the listing fee and the 25 cents of processing, weigh most on cheap items, so the fee share falls as the price rises. At $15 this item loses money once your time is counted, even though Etsy’s fees alone look small.
Pricing so it pays
- Always count your time. If profit only appears when your hourly rate is 0, the price is too low.
- Price for the offsite ads case if your shop is over $10,000 a year, since those sales cannot be opted out of.
- Bundle low priced items: one listing fee and one fixed processing charge spread over more value.
- Coupons come off the item price, and every fee still applies to what is left.
- For margins and markups outside Etsy, see the profit margin calculator and markup calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Etsy take per sale?
For a US shop, Etsy charges $0.20 to list each item sold, 6.5% of the order total including shipping, and 3% plus $0.25 for payment processing. On a $30 order that comes to $3.30, about 11%. An offsite ads sale adds 15% or 12%, capped at $100 per order.
Does Etsy charge fees on shipping?
Yes. The 6.5% transaction fee applies to the shipping you charge and to gift wrap, as well as the item price, and payment processing is worked out on the whole amount the buyer pays. That is why raising shipping to cover costs also raises your fees a little.
What are Etsy offsite ads fees?
When a buyer clicks an ad Etsy runs for your item on another site and then buys from your shop, Etsy charges 15% of that order, or 12% for shops that made $10,000 or more in the past year. The fee is capped at $100 per order. Smaller shops can opt out.
How do I price my items for profit on Etsy?
Add up materials, packaging and a fair wage for your time, then make sure the price covers those plus Etsy’s fees with something left over. Choose Price I need above, enter the profit or margin you want, and the calculator works out the item price that delivers it.
Are the fees the same in every country?
No. Payment processing rates differ by country, some countries add a regulatory operating fee, and a currency conversion fee applies when your listing currency differs from your bank account’s. The boxes above start with the US rates; change any of them to match your own fee schedule.
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