Artisans, crafters and jewelers everywhere are – literally – setting up shop on one of the many online handmade shop websites. The most popular handmade shop website is probably Etsy, but with the growth in this sector, Etsy is no longer the only prime possibility for your new store. Each online shop has its own features and set of pros and cons.
Etsy
On Etsy, shop owners can upload a branded banner, claim a vanity shop URL, complete a shop owner profile and list any shop policies.
- Listing fees are 20 cents per item, and a listing lasts 4 months.
- For every sale, you are charged 3.5% of the total sales price.
- Purchase payments are made via PayPal.
Big Cartel
Big Cartel boasts “indie” creations and caps the maximum number of items for sale at 300 to keep the focus on small shops. Payment options are the same as Etsy, though the shop & fee structure is different.
- There are 4 shop options, each with its own per month fee (from free to $29.99/month).
- All but the free option include full shop customization, inventory tracking, discount codes and a customized shop URL.
- There are no listing nor “per transaction” fees.
ArtFire
ArtFire considers itself the quickest way to get started with your online handmade shop.
- After a free first month, the monthly ArtFire shop fee going forward is $11.95.
- ArtFire does not charge any additional listing or per sale fees.
- Customers can pay via PayPal or Amazon payments.
- ArtFire shops use Google Analytics for shop tracking.
Where do you prefer to sell? Where do you prefer to buy?
If you’re in Australia, check out Madeit.com.au. I considered Etsy when I started my store earlier this year, but decided to stick with an Aussie company. The features are not as clever as Etsy (yet!) but the technical support is fabulous and friendly, and it is growing very rapidly.
Thanks for the insightful post. I was unaware of the other two venues. I will check them out.
I hope you’ll check out IndieMade, too!
We’re not a marketplace like Etsy or ArtFire; rather, we’re a website provider that offers an indie-friendly storefront, blog, picture gallery, and so on. Plans range from $4.95 to $19.95 a month, there are no transaction or listing fees, and most importantly you get your OWN site.
Please check us out!
I have been a seller on Artfire for over two years. In my own opinion, Artfire is really good online venue for selling handmade, vintage and supplies. I’m also using ListingDock.com on other hand, they also getting me good sales..