The pros of selling on Etsy

1. Easy to get started, minimal tech hassle

Starting an Etsy shop is very easy compared to setting up your own website. Etsy already has everything in place, from copyright laws to secure payments. You skip all the hosting, publishing, and payment complexities you’d deal with if building your own store from scratch.

That said, you still have a lot of work to do regarding your product design, photos, SEO, and titles…a lot of stuff that requires ongoing effort.

2. Low maintenance (mostly)

Once the basics are in place, you don’t constantly have to fix your website. Etsy takes care of the backend including updates, server maintenance, and security. Of course, you’ll still tweak listings, upload new items, and optimize, but you don’t have to worry about site crashes, server updates, or payment integration breakdowns.

3. Built-in audience + buyer demand

This is one of the biggest draws. Etsy already has millions of active buyers (over 80–90+ million) browsing for handmade, vintage, or custom goods. That means your items immediately gain exposure to people who intend to buy. You’re not starting from zero when it comes to attracting traffic.

But, and it’s a slightly big “but”, Etsy is a much bigger marketplace now than it used to be in 2020 (when it saw the biggest surge in its consumer base), and so is the competition. You will have to be very patient with your shop in the current Etsy environment, where it’s crawling with quick money shop owners. Etsy has also introduced a shop opening fee for the same reason, to ensure that only sellers serious about their business enter the platform.

4. Instant credibility & trust

Buyers often trust marketplaces more than standalone shops. Etsy’s reputation gives you instant legitimacy. People are more comfortable clicking “Buy” when it’s under Etsy’s umbrella versus on a brand-new website with no reviews.

5. Integrated payments & transaction handling

You don’t have to set up a merchant account, deal with multiple gateways, or worry about PCI compliance. Etsy handles credit cards, refunds, and payouts, and that’s one less thing to worry about.

6. Education, tools, & support ecosystem

Etsy has seller handbooks, help articles, and internal resources. Outside of Etsy, communities, coaches, blogs, and apps (like Listadum) exist to help you. For many sellers, this network is a lifeline when you’re stuck or trying to grow.

But views on this aspect of Etsy are a little divided, as it might not end up helping 100% of sellers.

7. A supportive seller community

Forums, social media groups, and peer advice mean that when you run into trouble, there’s a big crowd out there who’s been there. It’s not just passive articles; it’s real talk from active sellers.

8. Great for testing / side hustles / small scale

If you aren’t yet ready to invest heavily in infrastructure or marketing, Etsy lets you dip your toes. You can test designs, gauge demand, and try different price points, all with relatively low overhead.

And you never know, your Etsy shop might end up making more than your main venture, as long as your ideas are original and authentic.

9. Print-on-demand & inventory-less options are viable

Etsy works well with print-on-demand setups or digital goods. You don’t always need heavy inventory. For many makers, that means less risk when scaling up or experimenting.

Some of the most common POD platforms used by Etsy shops are Printify, Printful, Gelato, and Teelaunch.

The cons of selling on Etsy

1. Loyalty often goes to Etsy, not you

One of the trickiest parts: buyers may remember “I bought this on Etsy,” not “I bought this from [Your Brand].” You’ll have to be intentional about branding, packaging, and gathering customer contacts if you want repeat buyers or word-of-mouth referrals.

So put some effort into your packaging and make the buyer remember your brand logo and your shop name through your packaging.

2. Ridiculous levels of competition

Yes, there’s demand, but there’s also a flood of sellers trying to tap into that same demand. Most niches are saturated. Standing out requires effort, differentiation, and ongoing optimization.

But if you are an authentic seller, an artist, and an individual with unique ideas, you will most definitely find your audience with some patience.

3. You’ll need to do marketing (don’t expect passive sales)

A myth many new sellers believe is “Just list and sales will come.” That’s rarely true. You’ll need to optimize with SEO, run ads, and drive external traffic (social, email, blogs) to supplement Etsy’s internal traffic.

4. SEO isn’t a guarantee

Even perfect keywords, great titles, and tag optimization don’t ensure visibility. You’re still competing with many other sellers doing the same. SEO helps, but you can’t rely on it exclusively to carry your shop.

SEO is a long-term game; you learn as you go. There’s no trick to it, and there’s no guarantee of what will work, so you have to stay on the lookout for what people are searching for and what they’re typing when searching for products in your niche.

5. Fees are many & they add up

Yes, there are listing fees, transaction fees, payment processing fees, advertising fees, offsite ads, plus possible Pattern or other premium features. On their own, many seem small. But over hundreds or thousands of sales, they chip away at your margin.

Make sure you actually run the math.

6. The “handmade” lines get blurry

Etsy’s definition of handmade allows sellers to outsource parts or partner with producers. That means you might compete with items that look handmade but aren’t truly made the same way. That ambiguity can undercut genuine makers.

People have complained about finding several Etsy handmade products on Alibaba and Shein, and have ended up disappointed.

7. Price wars & downward spirals

Competition often leads to price reductions. When one seller drops their price, others may follow to stay competitive. Before long, margins erode across the niche and everyone struggles to make a sustainable profit.

8. Lack of control over platform & policies

You’re essentially renting space. Etsy sets the rules, changes fees, updates algorithms, and rolls out new features, and you have to comply. You don’t get a vote. Changes may benefit large sellers more than smaller ones.

9. Pressure to offer free shipping

Etsy gives priority in search to listings with free shipping (or free shipping from in some regions). That forces sellers to absorb shipping costs or inflate product prices, which can squeeze margins further. Sellers end up getting confused between choice of using “product + shipping” combined prices or just the product prices so that buyers find listings more enticing in first glance.

10. Possible shop suspension or enforcement risk

One day Etsy may flag your shop, suspend you, or enforce a policy for reasons sometimes unclear. Sellers have reported abrupt shop closures or freezes, which can be devastating if Etsy is your main income source.

11. Sales & traffic volatility

Your shop’s performance may swing due to algorithm changes, seasonal demand, or shifts in Etsy’s own promotional behavior. What worked well one month might underperform the next.

12. Steep learning curve for real success

To thrive, you’ll need skills beyond your craft: product photography, SEO, copywriting, marketing, and analytics. Many sellers find that creating products is the easy part, while getting them seen and sold is harder.

What is Listadum and how it makes your Etsy journey easy

When you start creating your Etsy listings, you’ll quickly notice something frustrating. You have to copy and paste the same information again and again for similar products. It’s repetitive, time-consuming, and honestly, pretty exhausting.

That’s where Listadum comes in. It’s a powerful tool built especially for Etsy sellers to make the listing process faster, smarter, and easier. Using templates, variation profiles, and research tools right next to your listing dashboard, you can create dozens of listings in just a few clicks.

Listadum also lets you research keywords, titles, and descriptions, and even generate Etsy-rule-compliant content using AI that’s trained on real Etsy seller handbook data. That means no guesswork, no worrying about algorithm mistakes, just clean, optimized listings every time.

So instead of spending hours doing repetitive listing work, you can finally take that time back and focus on what truly matters: developing your products, improving your creativity, and growing your shop.

Don’t wait another second. Sign up for Listadum today, it’s free!