The Best Sites Like Etsy: 20 Alternatives for Craft and Handmade Sellers
Etsy is the top marketplace for selling handmade items. However, due to policy changes in 2024, some sellers are seeking other options. It's important to understand the specific guidelines and potential for profits of other selling platforms in order to find the best fit for your business goals and model.
In this article, we'll highlight the top-20 Etsy alternatives and provide a brief overview of each.
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Why Look for Etsy Alternatives?
There are several factors prompting sellers to explore other marketplaces or selling sites. While the motivation behind seeking alternative options can vary for each individual, here are the most prevalent ones:
Fees: Etsy recently updated its fee structure, now charging $15 to open an account. There are also additional fees, such as $0.20/listing plus a 6.5% transaction fee.
Competition: Etsy is a highly competitive platform for clothes and jewelry, making it challenging for new sellers to enter the market. In order to differentiate themselves and gain a competitive edge, sellers must invest a lot in advertising.
Strict Policies: Etsy prohibits the sale of certain items and will suspend listings for policy violations without refunding listing fees. Their rules about product photos and community membership can be restrictive, leading sellers to look for other handmade sites with more flexible policies.
Customer Service: Etsy has received over 14,000 reviews on Trustpilot with an average rating of 1.5 out of 5. Many customers complain about having poor shopping experiences due to inadequate customer support, which can lead to a loss of customers.
Platform Limitations: Compared to platforms with more customization options, Etsy lacks advanced functionality. Few companies have developed Etsy integrations for shipping, dropshipping, and analytics, which limits its utility for sellers.
Due to these drawbacks, sellers are exploring similar platforms that are potentially better than Etsy for their business needs. Below are the best options worth considering.
Platforms That Are Similar to Etsy
Amazon Handmade
Amazon Handmade is a marketplace geared toward artists, offering access to a broad customer base as well as convenient services like advertising and Amazon FBA fulfillment services. Sellers must meet rigorous quality standards to join. Despite high fees (15% commission/sale and a $39.99 monthly account fee) and tough competition, Amazon Handmade maintains strong competition with Etsy due to its wide reach and brand credibility.
Selling on Amazon is convenient for numerous reasons, including:
Analytics data: Both Amazon and Etsy provide detailed selling performance reports, which tend to be overwhelming and challenging to analyze. Amazon sellers can benefit from numerous analytical tools like AMZScout, which streamline data collection and provide clear insights.
Fulfillment: Amazon offers FBA services, which frees sellers from handling any aspects of fulfillment and shipping, and allows them to focus on their businesses instead. On Etsy, sellers manage all storage and shipping on their own, which can take up much of their time and cost, while adhering to Etsy's strict shipping rules.
Finding trending products: Amazon offers lists like ‘Bestsellers’ and ‘New Releases’, which can help sellers gain an understanding about current demand. Tools like the AMZScout PRO Extension and Product Database further assist sellers with analyzing market trends and identifying high-demand items, and adjusting their product range.
![How to find New Products and Trending Products in the Product Database]( "New Products and Trending Products in the Product Database")
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Free listings: Etsy charges sellers for each listed item, while Amazon only charges sellers to open an account, which allows them to post an unlimited number of product listings. Amazon's listing process can be further streamlined by using AMZScout's Listing Builder, which generates compelling, AI-driven, SEO-optimized product descriptions in just seconds.
![AI Listing Builder dashboard blank]( "AI Listing Builder dashboard")
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Goods promotion: Both Etsy and Amazon support ad campaigns, though setup can be challenging for beginners. Amazon's process can be streamlined more easily by using tools like AMZScout's Keyword Tracker and Reverse ASIN Lookup. These help sellers identify effective keywords and help optimize ad campaigns for targeted traffic.
![Use AMZScout Reverse ASIN Lookup to increase sales]( "AMZScout Reverse ASIN Lookup")
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Broader audience: Amazon's audience is three times larger than Etsy's, which expands your potential reach significantly. Sellers can overcome tough competition with the help of AMZScout by monitoring their competitors' pricing and keyword strategies, enabling them to refine their own competitive strategies effectively.
Time savings: Unlike other Etsy’s alternative platforms where sellers must build their own websites, Amazon provides a ready-to-sell platform, saving time and effort.
As you can see, Amazon offers higher reach and efficiency, and is supported by numerous analytical tools like AMZScout. The toolkit provides comprehensive insights into market trends, competitor analysis, and product profitability, helping sellers refine their selling strategy and boost revenue effectively.
Shopify
This platform allows sellers to create craft sites for online stores at affordable prices. Unlike Etsy, Shopify offers numerous apps and integrations for image enhancements and more. However, you might need to hire a development team if you're not familiar with the world of e-commerce.
eBay
This website is well-known for selling vintage items, and provides access to 135 million users. This platform is a good starting point for sellers, with the cost of setting up an account starting at $5/month. However, many users come to eBay searching for discounted items, so if you plan to sell high-end products, consider other platforms instead.
Poshmark
This platform is ideal for selling clothes, accessories, and pieces of home decor. It's reputable, as many buyers trust Poshmark for clothes that were pre-owned by others due to their product authenticity verification process. However, Poshmark also takes a higher percentage (20%) from its sales compared to other platforms.
Big Cartel
Their free plan allows you to post up to five listings, with one picture per product, while the top-tier plan costs $30 and offers more features. However, this site lacks many advanced features for store customization and SEO strategies, making platforms like Shopify and Etsy more expensive, but better choices overall.
Society6
This website is ideal for artists who wish to share their designs for print-on-demand clothing, with over 70 types of products available. However, this platform also lacks performance tracking and competitor insights, making it difficult to understand market trends and adjust your strategy accordingly.
Redbubble
Setting up a free account here is user-friendly, which makes it ideal for beginners. However, despite being a major print-on-demand platform, seller accounts are often suspended without explanation, and their limited customer support tends to push artists to find other places to sell their work.
Storenvy
This is one of a few of the other sites like Etsy where sellers can create a handmade shop to sell on the marketplace. Storenvy's professional plan costs $24.99 and lets you build a personalized storefront without any commissions or need for coding knowledge. Keep in mind, however, that the cheaper plans offer fewer customization options.
Faire
Faire facilitates profitable wholesale orders and bulk selling opportunities for sellers. This platform is noted for its strong customer support and receives consistently positive reviews. However, it also charges high commissions of 15 %/sale, plus a $10 fee for new customer purchases.
Instagram boasts one of the largest active user bases and offers highly effective ways to engage customers and facilitate product discovery. Yet, its functionality is limited compared to full e-commerce platforms, often requiring additional expenses for third-party tools or integrations.
Ecrater
Ecrater offers several benefits to sellers including no listing fees and integration with Google Shopping. You can build a customized store on this marketplace, however Ecrater attracts fewer visitors compared to Etsy and Amazon, which can result in significantly lower sales levels.
Folksy
As the UK's largest online craft fair, most of Folksy's traffic comes from the UK, so plan your shipping and return policies accordingly. Unlike Etsy and Amazon, Folksy lacks promotional tools, requiring sellers to use other marketing strategies to attract customers.
Bonanza
Bonanza features low commission fees of 3.5% on orders under $500 and allows you to open a customized store. Although this platform offers excellent promotional and analytical tools, it’s still less prominent than Etsy or eBay.
Artful Home
Selling on Artful Home differs from other marketplaces. Here, you must apply and present your artwork for jury approval before it can be added to the catalog. You set your own prices and earn 50% of the retail price for each piece sold. There are no other fees, including shipping costs.
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace has a large user base and allows direct communication with customers. It's free to use and offers effective advertising tools. However, you will need to manage all aspects of shipping and payments on your own, as there are no integrated services as there are on Etsy.
Depop
This platform offers a large and engaged audience, providing ample opportunities for sales and exposure. Depop is a well-known place to find bargains, so expect customers to negotiate for lower prices, which may impact your profit margins.
Asos Marketplace
This platform has a stable customer base and is known for its reliability. However, it also charges high commissions of 20%, and enforces strict rules on sellers’ photo style and stock levels, making it a more suitable option for boutiques than individual sellers.
Pinterest Shopping
Pinterest Shopping offers easy integrations for Shopify and other platforms to upload their catalogs, making it accessible to a wide audience. However, Pinterest functions primarily as a storefront, so you still need to have an established store in order to fully benefit from its capabilities.
Mercari
This platform charges lower fees than Etsy and allows you to offer discounts to people who have liked your products, encouraging them to make a purchase. However, unfortunately it’s also notorious for scams, which makes customers hesitant to buy expensive items, resulting in generally low prices.
Icraftgifts
The main advantage of this platform is that it's free to use, with no selling or listing fees. However, its outdated website design results in lower traffic, making it challenging for sellers to achieve sales.
If you’re in the process of exploring more sites like Etsy, it's important to consider additional factors besides just their fees and seller policies. A credible platform with a strong customer base can ensure traffic to your store, ultimately resulting in more sales. By evaluating all of these factors carefully, you can choose the best platform for your business and maximize your sales potential.
FAQ
Is there a better alternative to Etsy?
There are several platforms like Etsy, but the best choice for you depends on your particular business model and goals. For example, if you want full control over the customer experience, you may want to build and customize your own Shopify website. Otherwise, consider marketplaces like eBay and Amazon to avoid paying development and promotion costs.
Who is Etsy's biggest competitor?
eBay and Amazon Handmade are major competitors of Etsy’s when it comes to craft selling. Many sellers opt to start their online stores on these platforms due to their extensive customer bases and user-friendly interfaces. However, the choice also depends on the type of goods you sell. For instance, for art pieces, other websites (like Artful) Home may be more suitable.
In which country is Etsy most popular?
Etsy's largest market is the USA, with over 50% of its traffic originating from there. The second and third most popular positions are shared by the UK and Canada, respectively. Additionally, more people in Europe are becoming increasingly interested in eco-friendly products and unique artisan designs, which helps to boost Etsy's popularity in that region.
Conclusion
Choosing a platform besides Etsy depends on various factors, like your budget and personal preferences. For instance, Amazon Handmade is a popular choice, with the AMZScout toolkit proving to be an invaluable asset for market research and product promotion. No matter which platform you choose, it's essential to identify high-demand items and set up an effective marketing strategy to ensure long-term profitability for your business.
