Etsy Seller Fees 2026: Every Fee Explained With Examples

Etsy's fees look small one at a time and add up quickly together. There is a listing fee, a transaction fee, a payment processing fee, and — on some sales — an advertising fee that can be larger than the other three combined.

For vintage sellers in particular, Etsy is often one channel among several. Knowing exactly what Etsy keeps on an item tells you whether to list it there at all, how to price shipping, and whether to opt out of Offsite Ads.

This guide covers every Etsy seller fee, works through three examples, compares Etsy with eBay and Depop, and lists the habits that protect your margin. For instant numbers, use the free Etsy fee calculator.

The $0.20 Listing Fee

Every listing costs $0.20 to publish and lasts four months or until it sells (as of 2026 — verify on the marketplace's fee page). If you have auto-renew on, Etsy charges another $0.20 when the four months are up, and another $0.20 each time a multi-quantity listing sells and renews.

For a single vintage item that sells in its first month, $0.20 is a rounding error. For a 2,000-listing shop full of slow movers, it is $400 every renewal cycle — enough to justify turning off auto-renew on listings that have not had a view in months.

The 6.5% Transaction Fee (Including Shipping)

Etsy keeps 6.5% of the total order amount, which includes the item price, the shipping you charge, and any gift wrap. That shipping detail is the one that catches sellers: the $8 you charge for postage is taxed at 6.5% even though every cent of it goes to the carrier.

The practical effect is that shipping is never a pure pass-through on Etsy. If a label costs $8, charging exactly $8 for shipping leaves you $0.52 short on the transaction fee alone, before payment processing.

Payment Processing: 3% + $0.25

Etsy Payments charges US shops 3% of the order total plus $0.25 per order. Other countries have different rates and fixed amounts. Like the transaction fee, processing applies to the full order including shipping.

Processing is also charged on sales tax Etsy collects in some cases, so the actual figure on your statement can be a few cents above a simple item-plus-shipping calculation.

Offsite Ads: The Fee That Surprises Everyone

Etsy advertises listings on Google, Facebook, Instagram and other sites. If a shopper clicks one of those ads and buys from your shop within 30 days, Etsy charges an Offsite Ads fee on that order: 15% for most shops, or 12% for shops that made more than $10,000 in the past 12 months.

Shops under $10,000 a year can opt out in their settings. Shops over that threshold are enrolled permanently at the 12% rate. Etsy caps the fee at a maximum dollar amount per order, but on a typical $40–$100 vintage sale the full percentage applies.

Worked Examples: $25, $40 and $120 Items

US shop, no Offsite Ads unless stated, sales tax ignored for simplicity.

Example 1: $25 item + $5 shipping ($30 order)

Listing $0.20 + transaction (6.5% of $30) $1.95 + processing (3% of $30 + $0.25) $1.15
Total fees: $3.30 — about 11% of the order

Example 2: $40 item + $6 shipping ($46 order)

Listing $0.20 + transaction $2.99 + processing $1.63
Total fees: $4.82 — about 10.5%
With a 15% Offsite Ads sale: add $6.90, total $11.72 — about 25.5%

Example 3: $120 item with free shipping

Listing $0.20 + transaction $7.80 + processing $3.85
Total fees: $11.85 — about 9.9%, before the label you now pay yourself

Etsy vs eBay and Depop

Fees on a $40 item with $6 shipping, US rates as of 2026:

Etsy sits between Depop and eBay on standard fees and becomes the most expensive of the three on ad-attributed sales. Its advantage is the buyer: people searching Etsy for vintage expect to pay vintage prices. Many vintage sellers list the same piece on all three — see our guides to Depop fees and eBay fees.

How to Keep More of Each Etsy Sale

1. Price shipping to cover the fees on shipping

Add roughly 10% to the label cost when you set shipping, or build shipping into the item price and offer free shipping — Etsy's search tends to favour free-shipping listings in the US anyway.

2. Decide on Offsite Ads deliberately

If you are under the $10,000 threshold, compare your margin on a typical sale with and without 15% taken off. Keep ads on if they bring buyers you would not otherwise reach; switch them off if they mostly tax sales you would have made anyway.

3. Turn off auto-renew on stale listings

Review listings with no views in 90 days. Either refresh the photos and title or let them expire instead of paying $0.20 every four months.

4. Cross-list your vintage

An Etsy listing and a Depop or eBay listing for the same item cost almost nothing to run side by side. A cross-listing app creates both from one set of photos and removes the others when one sells, so you never oversell a one-of-a-kind piece.

FAQ

What percentage does Etsy take from sellers?

Without Offsite Ads, Etsy's fees total roughly 10–11% of the order in the US: a 6.5% transaction fee and 3% + $0.25 processing on item plus shipping, plus the $0.20 listing fee. An ad-attributed sale adds 12–15% (as of 2026 — verify on Etsy's fee page).

Does Etsy charge fees on shipping?

Yes. Both the 6.5% transaction fee and the payment processing fee apply to the shipping you charge, so price shipping slightly above the label cost.

Can I opt out of Etsy Offsite Ads?

Shops that made less than $10,000 in the past 12 months can opt out in their settings. Shops above that are enrolled at a 12% rate and cannot opt out.

How often do I pay the $0.20 listing fee?

When you publish, when the listing auto-renews after four months, and each time a multi-quantity listing renews after a sale.

Is Etsy cheaper than eBay?

On standard sales, usually yes — about 10.5% versus about 14% on eBay. On sales that come through Offsite Ads, Etsy is more expensive.

Is there an Etsy fee calculator?

Yes — SECND's free Etsy fee calculator includes the listing, transaction, processing and Offsite Ads fees.