Shopify vs. Etsy: Which Is The Better eCommerce Platform?

At $29/month, the basic plan is ideal for smaller businesses and new entrepreneurs. This plan is the most affordable and gives you access to a Shopify store, 24/7 support, shipping discounts, and more.

The Shopify plan is great for established businesses interested in moving their inventory online or expanding their digital reach. It costs $79/month and includes all features of the basic plan, plus standard reports, more inventory locations and staff accounts, and bigger discounts.

If you’re a larger enterprise and need more advanced analytics, the advanced plan might be right for you. For $299/month, you’ll have access to advanced reports, eCommerce automations, and third-party calculated shipping rates.

Before deciding which plan is right for you, check out my article on the pros and cons of the three Shopify plans. Now that you understand the basics of how Shopify operates and the pricing options, I’ll walk you through the advantages and drawbacks of using Shopify so you can get a better idea of whether the platform is right for you.

Your storefront will be the first thing customers see when they visit your shop, so making an excellent first impression is essential. With Shopify, you can customize your storefront to match your brand and style. Using the Shopify theme store, you can choose from dozens of paid and free themes. 

Shopify makes it easy to customize your store with simple drag-and-drop tools. Once you choose your theme, there are various elements that you can customize, including the layout, fonts, colors, and images. You can also add a logo, custom pages, and social media icons.

The best part is that you don't need any design experience or coding skills to make changes to your storefront. You can update your theme at any time and there is plenty of room for personalization when adding photos, videos, and even blog posts to your Shopify store.

Shopify has quickly become one of the most popular ecommerce platforms with small business owners due in part to the company's integrated checkout system. The Shopify checkout process is straightforward and efficient and makes it easy for businesses to process payments and track sales. 

Shopify offers a wide range of payment options, including PayPal, Apple Pay, and Shopify Payments. The variety of choices ensures that customers can find a payment solution that meets their needs without any hassle.

Shopify’s inventory management is a great feature for businesses of all sizes. It allows you to track inventory levels, set up alerts when stock runs low, and create purchase orders to restock your inventory. You can also manage your inventory by location, product type, or supplier. This tool makes it easy to keep track of what you have in stock and ensure you always have the products your customers need.

Migrating to another platform can be difficult for Shopify store owners. Moving your store to another site, like BigCommerce or Magento, can be complex and time-consuming, since Shopify makes it tricky for you to switch to their competitors. 

It would be best to consider a few things before making the switch, such as the cost of the migration, how you will transfer your data, and whether or not you will need to hire a developer to help with the transition. Additionally, you’ll need to make sure that your new platform can support all of the features and functionality of your old one.

Expenses can quickly add up for Shopify merchants. You’ll have to pay for Shopify's monthly subscription fee, which ranges from $29 to $299 per month, depending on the features you need for your business. There are also additional fees for processing credit cards and transactions. 

If you want to optimize your store, it’s also essential to consider that many Shopify apps are paid. While the app store is a great resource, integrating applications with your store can be an added cost.

A significant benefit of Shopify is that the platform is easy to use for beginners, and you don’t need any coding experience to get started. However, if you are more tech-savvy, you may find the platform limiting. For example, Shopify does not allow users to create their own themes. All of the themes available on the platform are created by Shopify, and users cannot make any significant changes to them, which means your storefront may look similar to other sites. 

Despite these limitations, Shopify is a fantastic option if you want to build an online business. If you’re ready to start your journey with Shopify, check out my article on how to sell on Shopify for beginners.

The listing fee is incurred every time you add a product to your Etsy shop. It is a flat fee of $0.20 per listing, and you have to pay the fee regardless of whether or not your product sells.

On Etsy, you’ll be charged a transaction fee whenever you make a sale. Etsy takes 6.5% of the order amount, including the product cost and shipping fees.

Payment processing fees vary by country but always include a set rate and a percentage of product’s price.

As you can see, the pricing for Etsy depends on how much you sell, the cost of your items, and what country you operate in. You can purchase an Etsy fee calculator online to get a better idea of what your monthly costs will look like. Now, let’s move on to the pros and cons of using Etsy. 

There are several pros to selling items through Etsy’s unique niche market. Because Etsy is a curated site, buyers know that the products are high quality and unique. The specificity of the market gives your products an edge over those sold on other sites. 

You can tap into trends and use your creativity to find an audience looking for customized, handcrafted goods. While the products you can sell are limited to artisan and vintage products, Etsy is the best-known site for these kinds of products—in fact, there are over 39 million active shoppers. Therefore, you benefit from a large customer base without being overwhelmed with competition selling the same product as you.

One of the best things about Etsy is its ease of use. The interface is straightforward, so you can have a store up and running in minutes, and there are no complex technical requirements. The easy set up makes Etsy a fantastic option for entrepreneurs who are just starting out. 

Additionally, Etsy offers a wide range of features that can help you grow your business once you launch your store. Additional perks include marketing tools, like Etsy Ads, access to analytics, and shipping integrations.

One of the most significant benefits of opening an Etsy store is the sense of community on the site. Etsy provides an online platform that is supportive and friendly for both buyers and sellers alike. 

Etsy Stats can help you track how well your shop is doing and what you can do to improve your sales. You’ll be able to see metrics, like the number of visits and orders on your site, to see how your store is growing over time. You’ll also be able to access information on how shoppers found you to see how your marketing and SEO efforts are performing.

When it comes to advertising your Etsy shop, you can use a few different methods. One of the most popular methods is through Etsy ads. Here are a few pros of using Etsy ads:

As I mentioned, starting an Etsy store is free, but sellers need to keep fees and commission costs in mind. In order to list an item for sale on Etsy, sellers are required to pay a $0.20 listing fee and a 6.5% commission of the total sale price. This commission fee is in addition to the cost of shipping and handling, which Etsy also charges. 

While this may seem like a small price to pay for the exposure that comes with being part of the Etsy marketplace, you may find that the fees are too high to make a decent profit.

Although the popularity of Etsy is ideal for attracting a large customer base, some sellers may find that the market is too saturated.  With such a large number of sellers, it can be difficult for individual shops to stand out, leading to a lot of competition and making it difficult for sellers to attract buyers. 

Additionally, because so many shops are competing for buyers’ attention, you may find that advertising on Etsy is essential to bring traffic to the site. These marketing costs can discourage sellers who don’t understand how to navigate the advertising aspect of business, or don’t want to pay additional fees. 

One drawback of using Etsy is the lack of options to customize your shop. If you want more freedom in designing your store, you’ll have to pay for Etsy Plus, which gives you access to more features. With Etsy Plus, you’ll be able to edit your shop with advanced banners, add more images, and advertise featured products. However, these benefits come at the cost of $10/month.