Starting e-commerce can be very complicated: online stores are one of the most complex websites to be designed and built. Lucky for us, today there are tons of tools that allow users, even with no experience and even if they can’t write a line of computer coding, to build their e-commerce in a quick and easy way. Platforms like Shopify and Etsy allow you to start selling items with ease, but which one to pick?
In this article, we will compare Shopify vs Etsy so that anyone can choose the most suitable for their needs.
Shopify vs Etsy: Which Is Better for Online Business?
Shopify is an e-commerce website builder that allows you to create your own online store by providing templates, payment modules, and many other features that you can exploit to customize your web pages.
Etsy is a marketplace where anyone can sell their products. It is focused on crafty and artsy items, and - since it’s already well-known - it can give you great exposure especially when you’re at the beginning of your career.
Let’s now focus on the main parameters that can make you choose to start selling on Shopify VS Etsy. These parameters are product categories, customization, fees, and customer base.
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Shopify vs Etsy: Product Categories
When you make your choice, consider first the category of items you’re going to sell. As we’ve mentioned Etsy is focused on craftsmanship and art, but you can easily use the platform if you’re in the vintage, stationery, jewelry sectors, or others. On Shopify, you can instead sell anything you want since your online store will be 100% customized to your needs and tastes. The choice between the two, here, depends on the niche you want to fit in.
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Shopify vs Etsy: Customer Base
This is where Etsy can give you a great advantage compared to Shopify. With Shopify, you can create an online store that is - almost - independent. You can sell anything you want, you can pick your templates, you can do anything you like. With Etsy, you may be limited in your choices, but - since it’s an already established marketplace - it already has a worldwide customer base that you can have access to. In simple terms, with Etsy, it is easier to get new customers to know your products, brand, and online store.
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Shopify vs Etsy: Customization
This is a point in favor of Shopify. Etsy lets you upload your logo, your store name, and a few other details, but this is it. When you sell on Etsy, it is like - sort of - having an account on the platform. With Shopify, you can instead create your own e-commerce website exactly how you want it. Shopify puts no limit to customization.
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Shopify vs Etsy: Fees
Comparing Shopify fees VS Etsy fees is highly important since fees affect your income and profit. The two platforms handle this aspect in a very different way.
Etsy doesn't have a monthly cost, and this can be a great advantage for beginners. However, Etsy charges:
√ 0,20$ on each product sale, to cover the costs of publishing your listing.
√ 5% transaction fee, on every item you sell.
√ 3% + $0.35 fee for payment processing
This can help you when you’re starting selling online and you have just a few sales any month. But when your business starts growing these percentages can lower your profit.
Shopify has several options available and they all have a fixed monthly cost (they offer a 14-day trial, but it’s more meant to learn how to use the platform rather than start selling in 14 days…)
√ Basic Shopify: For $29 a month, you can build your e-commerce with unlimited customization and products; you can also have a blog section - which is very important for SEO purposes - and register two staff accounts. You also have access to 24/7 support provided by the Shopify team through many channels.
√ Shopify: for $79 a month, you can also have up to 5 staff accounts. Your e-commerce can also be upgraded thanks to the possibility of having gift cards, lower credit card rates, and professional reports.
√ Advanced Shopify: for $299 a month, you can have 15 staff accounts, a more advanced report builder, even lower credit card rates, and also third-party calculated shipping rates.
Even though the Shopify fees can be higher than Etsy’s at the beginning, as your business grows, Shopify becomes more convenient in terms of costs and fees.
Try Dropshipping on Shopify and Etsy!
Did you know that you can sell online and run a business without having to own, store, or personally ship any item? It’s called dropshipping and even before picking one between Shopify vs Etsy, you should consider this opportunity. Why?
With dropshipping, you can have many advantages, the first of which concerns your product offering. When you start a business you’re very limited: you may not have a huge budget to start with, you may not have a large warehouse, you may not have a team that helps you manage all the different aspects, so you often need to start little, with only a small range of products in your e-commerce web pages. All of these depend on whether you can find the right dropshipping platform.
SaleYee, as a global dropshipping and wholesale platform, specializes in the development and trends of the cross-border e-commerce industry. With a free sign up and no membership fee, you can access the following benefits:
√ Backed by years of in-depth market research and big data, it can source and dropship the most profitable niches for you, as sellers on Shopify and Etsy, from worldwide to worldwide. With over 30,000 hottest items of different categories, you can enrich your store to attract more customers easily.
√ With SaleYee, you can offer many other premium services to your customers, among which, one of the most important is fast and free shipping.
√ It has a wide coverage of global warehouses in the US, UK and other European countries. When an order is placed, the expedition starts from the closest warehouses and it can fast reach its receiver.
√ Whether you have a question about the products, service, partnership or anything else, its professional customer support team is always happy to hear from you and responsive for problem settlement.
Hurry to register for free and seize its membership benefits at zero cost NOW >>
Conclusion
As we’ve seen, there is an absolute best between Etsy VS Shopify. The choice between the two should depend on your needs: what are you going to sell, how scalable you want your business to be, and what level of independence you’d like to have.
