Where to Sell Handmade Products Online

There's no single right answer to where you should sell handmade products. The best platform depends on what you make, who you're selling to, how you want to spend your time, and what you want your business to look like in a few years. This guide covers each major option honestly, including the parts most reviews leave out.

Etsy: best for discovery

Etsy is the default recommendation for handmade sellers, and usually for good reason. Over 90 million active buyers come to Etsy specifically looking for handmade, vintage, and custom items. The buyer intent is perfect for makers.

What Etsy does well

• Buyer traffic is built in. You don't need to run ads or build a following to get found. Etsy's search algorithm routes buyers to listings. For new sellers, this is a huge advantage.
• Buyers expect handmade pricing. The Etsy buyer understands they're paying for someone's labor and skill, not factory costs. Higher prices are accepted more readily than on eBay or Amazon.
• Discovery by niche. Etsy's search is excellent for highly specific items. "Sterling silver constellation necklace aquarius" returns relevant results. Buyers know exactly what they want and find it.

What Etsy doesn't do well

• You don't own the customer relationship. Etsy owns the customer data. You can't email your buyers, you can't remarket to them, and if your shop gets suspended, you lose access to your entire customer history.
• Fees add up. Between the 6.5% transaction fee, 3% payment processing, and potentially 15% Offsite Ads, Etsy can take 25%+ of a sale. See Etsy fees explained for the full breakdown.
• Increasing competition. The number of Etsy sellers has grown dramatically. Standing out requires real SEO effort and strong photos.

Best for: Makers who want to find buyers without heavy marketing investment. Ideal as a first platform or alongside a Shopify store.

Shopify: best for brand ownership

Shopify lets you build a fully branded online store under your own domain. You own the customer data, control the experience, and don't share your customers with competitors. The tradeoff is that traffic doesn't come built-in. you have to drive it yourself.

What Shopify does well

• You own everything. Your customer list, your domain, your data. No algorithm can take that away.
• Lower fees on sales. Shopify charges monthly subscription fees ($29–$299/month) but has no transaction fees if you use Shopify Payments (2.9% + $0.30 payment processing only). On high-volume sales, you keep significantly more.
• Brand building. Shopify stores can look exactly how you want. Custom themes, your logo, your colors. You're building a brand, not a shop inside someone else's marketplace.
• Email marketing and retargeting. You can collect email addresses, send newsletters, run Facebook Pixel retargeting, and build repeat customer relationships.

What Shopify doesn't do well

• You start with zero traffic. No one comes to your Shopify store by accident. You need SEO, social media, ads, or another traffic source.
• Monthly cost before you've made a sale. Paying $29/month before you've made your first sale is a real commitment for hobby sellers.

Best for: Sellers who already have a customer base or social following, and are ready to build a lasting brand. Often works best alongside Etsy: Etsy drives discovery, Shopify captures repeat buyers. You can run both from one shared inventory.

Amazon Handmade: big audience, steep competition

Amazon Handmade is Amazon's marketplace specifically for handcrafted goods. It was created to compete with Etsy. In theory, it offers access to Amazon's massive buyer base. In practice, it's a more complex environment for most makers.

What Amazon Handmade does well

• Enormous traffic. Amazon has more monthly visitors than any other e-commerce site. If your product ranks well, the potential volume is significant.
• Prime eligibility. Products fulfilled through FBA qualify for Prime shipping, which dramatically increases conversion.
• Professional selling plan fee waived. Approved Handmade sellers don't pay the $39.99/month Professional plan fee.

What Amazon Handmade doesn't do well

• 15% referral fee with $1.00 minimum. Etsy's effective rate is closer to 9.5–10% before Offsite Ads. Amazon Handmade is more expensive per transaction.
• Application required. You must apply and be approved as a handmade seller. The process takes time and isn't guaranteed.
• Buyer mindset is price-driven. Amazon buyers expect competitive pricing. The willingness to pay a premium for handmade items is lower on Amazon than on Etsy, where that's the whole point of the marketplace.
• Competing against mass-produced products. Your handmade soap competes with factory-produced products at a tenth of the price.

Best for: Makers with high-demand products, the ability to scale production, and strong unit economics. Not recommended as a first platform for most makers.

Social media: Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest

Social media isn't a selling platform in the traditional sense, but it's become a significant sales channel for many makers. especially those who build audiences organically through content.

Instagram and TikTok Shop

Both platforms now offer native shopping features where buyers can purchase without leaving the app. Transaction fees are low (2.9% + $0.30 on TikTok Shop, similar on Instagram). The catch: you need an audience. Building an engaged following takes significant time and consistent content creation.

TikTok's algorithm, however, is more favorable to new accounts than any other platform. A video can go viral with zero followers. Many makers have gone from zero to full-time selling in a matter of months through a single well-performing TikTok.

Pinterest

Pinterest is less a social platform than a visual search engine. People on Pinterest are actively planning purchases. Pins have a long lifespan (months to years) compared to Instagram posts (hours). For makers who sell home decor, wedding products, crafts, or fashion, Pinterest drives consistent long-term traffic at low cost.

Best for: Makers who enjoy creating content and can show their process visually. Works best as a traffic source to Etsy or Shopify rather than as a standalone sales channel.

Local markets and craft fairs

In-person selling at farmers markets, craft fairs, and holiday markets gets overlooked in the rush toward online-only business. But for many product types, in-person selling has distinct advantages.

Why in-person still works

• No fees beyond booth cost. A $50 booth fee with $800 in sales is a 6.25% cost. No platform cuts, no payment processing fees beyond your card reader.
• Buyers can touch and feel the product. For makers of textiles, candles, ceramics, or food products, the sensory experience drives purchases that photos can't replicate.
• Immediate feedback. You see in real time what draws buyers in, what they pick up, what they set down, and what they ask about. This is market research you can't buy.
• Community and repeat customers. Regular market attendance builds a local customer base that comes back every week.

The limits of in-person selling

You can't scale infinitely. Your revenue is capped by your physical presence. Combine in-person with online selling: use markets to build your customer list, then invite those buyers to your Etsy or Shopify store for future purchases.

Best for: Early-stage makers who want to test products and pricing before investing in an online presence.

Platform comparison at a glance

Which one should you start with?

For most new makers, the answer is Etsy first. Here's why:

• No monthly fees to get started
• Buyers come to you without ads or social media
• You learn what products and pricing actually work before investing in a standalone website

Once you're making consistent sales on Etsy. say, $1,000–$2,000/month. consider adding Shopify to capture direct customers and reduce your dependence on Etsy's algorithm. Running both from one shared inventory eliminates the main operational headache of selling on multiple platforms.

Ready to open an Etsy shop? See our complete guide to starting an Etsy shop. Planning to sell vintage instead? Read where to sell vintage items online.