Etsy has dominated the hand-crafted boutique market, and its name is synonymous with crafty, home-based sellers and small-town shops. However, Etsy is now so big and powerful that some creatives are looking for alternatives to Etsy that suit them better.
What is Etsy?
Etsy is one of the most well-known storefronts for independent sellers. Etsy is known for fostering relationships between sellers and shoppers. It's the go-to marketplace for custom, vintage, and handmade items. Etsy is synonymous with hand-crafted goods.
Etsy has robust marketing that drives ready-to-buy customers to your store. It features an effortless setup. Shoppers know and love Etsy and find it easy to connect with new brands and buy from boutique shops.
Why are Sellers Leaving Etsy?
Instead of just focusing on hand-crafted, high-quality goods, Etsy now allows mass-produced goods. This dilutes the focus on boutique stores and lowers prices. We all know it's cheaper to create mass-produced goods rather than create hand-crafted items one at a time.
Etsy has also been increasing fees. It charges extra for featured products, but you can't opt out if you don't have the marketing budget.
Some growing boutique stores prefer to set up their own online website and host their own storefront. This gives sellers total control over the look and feel of their storefront and user experience.
Etsy drew many sellers to Etsy because it felt like a small, supportive community of other boutique shops. Now that Etsy is a huge site, sellers are looking to recapture that small community feel. Boutique sellers often prefer the cosy, intimate Farmer's Market vibe to the huge Wal-Mart atmosphere.
Etsy Alternatives 2023
If you are thinking of leaving Etsy or looking to start your brand-new online boutique on a different platform, you have many options. The options include storefront sites that offer brands custom storefronts or marketplace sites.
Custom storefronts are best for sellers that want complete control over their storefront and are willing to attract their own buyers.
Marketplace options work well for sellers who want the marketplace's shared marketing power.
Best Alternatives to Etsy - Website-Building and Online Store
One Etsy alternative is to build your own website. Many different providers offer a variety of ways to get your custom storefront up and running. Setting up your own site is a great option if you want your website to reflect your brand perfectly. Here are 10 tips to make your online portfolio stand out.
These providers often give storefronts different professional templates to quickly build and customize their websites. Websites such as Shopify offer ways to collect payments, pay taxes, and organize shipping. Some of these providers offer inventory control options.
You will have to do some work to get your storefront set up just the way you like it. But, like choosing furniture and paint colours in a physical location, it's part of the fun. In addition, by having your own custom site, you set yourself apart from the competition.
When you build your own site, you will be in charge of your own marketing. While an Etsy shop drives customers to its website and your store, you will have to develop ways of attracting your own customers.
Pixpa
Pixpa is an all-in-one website builder and eCommerce site just for creators. Pixpa offers beautiful templates to get you started right away. Pixpa offers artists, photographers, designers, and creatives an easy way to build a website and show off their products.
With Pixpa, you can sell physical products, digital content, or services. For example, this is a great site if you sell music or downloadable art. Pixpa templates do a great job of showing off products with simple and elegant templates.
Pixpa doesn't charge listing fees or commissions. That means you can keep your profits and focus on growing your business. Customers can seamlessly order products with payment options such as Paypal and Stripe. Here are 25 reasons why photographers and creators choose Pixpa to build their portfolio website, complete with an online store, blog and client galleries.
Like other eCommerce sites, you'll need to organize your marketing to attract customers to your site. Check out these stunning examples of portfolio websites built on Pixpa.
| PROS | CONS |
| Great Support with 24X7 live chat | Can’t use the same photos on different galleries |
| Stripe, Paypal and similar payment gateways | No drag and drop website-builder editors like Wix |
| Can add more storage at any time | Can’t publish anything in the trial period |
| Can connect Shopify to Pixpa |
Shopify
Shopify is one of the web's best alternative to Etsy. Shopify allows entrepreneurs to create their own online storefronts, and over a million storefronts are active on the platform. Sellers can build and design their own website and create a unique brand experience.
Sellers will add their own images and text and tell their brand's story. Sellers can show off their items. Unlike Etsy, Shopify isn't a marketplace. You'll have to do your own SEO and find customers. Shopify provides you the tools to build your online storefront and take payments, but you'll need to find your own customers.
Shopify also has features that help you sell in person. For example, if you love selling at craft fairs, you can sell products in person with their payment and inventory options.
Shopify charges a monthly fee as well as transaction fees.
| PROS | CONS |
| Templates are attractive and fully responsive | The number of free themes provided is quite low |
| True multi-currency selling is possible | Key functionality requires installation of an app |
| Provides an email marketing tool | Shopify does not support email hosting |
| Abandoned cart saving function is sophisticated | Exiting from shopify is not satisfiable |
Big Cartel
Big Cartel is another eCommerce site and alternative to Etsy for sellers. With Big Cartel, you can create an online storefront. Big Cartel focuses on helping artists, entrepreneurs, and crafters sell their goods. They offer templates to make web design easy. In addition, a variety of marketing apps are available in Big Cartel to help sellers market their stores.
Big Cartel is a good site if you want to create your own brand and do your own marketing.
Big Cartel charges a monthly fee.
| PROS | CONS |
| The free plan is functional and generous | Limits the number of products you can sell to 500 |
| All the Big Cartel templates are free | The technical SEO setup is poor |
| Real-time stats and shipment tracking | There’s no weight-based shipping |
| Simple to add integrations like Google analytics | There’s no abandoned cart saving tool |
Squarespace
Squarespace is a popular website builder and eCommerce site. It features templates to help get sellers quickly set up. Squarespace also offers an inventory system and a variety of marketing tools.
If you have an Etsy storefront, Squarespace will import your products into the new system. In addition, Squarespace is easy to use with drag and drop website builder tools.
Squarespace charges a monthly fee and transaction fees. Squarespace is a good option for beginners looking to host their own storefront.
Check out other squarespace alternatives for building your online portfolio.
| PROS | CONS |
| User management and editing is easy | Hard to expand for larger scale online catalogs |
| Drag And Drop Interface is very intuitive | Limited check out integrations |
| Free SSL included with all plans | Customer service was email only |
| Great integration for marketing emails | Some templates are not responsive. |
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is an eCommerce platform that is free to download. However, it isn't a website builder, so you'll have to build your own website separately and then add on WooCommerce.
Sellers can take advantage of free and paid templates to customize their online store.
Because WooCommerce is free, there are no monthly subscriptions to pay. However, since you'll need your own website, this might be more challenging for beginners.
WooCommerce is a good fit for those who already have a website and want to add a free eCommerce option to their site.
| PROS | CONS |
| It has a large community of user | Difficult to use and manage |
| Very fast to implement with wordpress | Old outdated looking dashboard |
| Offers a well-rounded suite of tools | The UI/UX feels a bit behind when compared |
| Competitive pricing atrracts small businesses | Sometimes slows down websites when loading. |
Wix
Wix is a website builder that is a popular Etsy alternative with a variety of customers, from bloggers to sellers. Wix has easy-to-use templates and an eCommerce option. Sellers can set up their storefront to sell custom and handmade goods.
Wix allows sellers to collect tax, provide coupons, handle shipping, and track orders. Wix also offers payment gateways.
Wix has a tool to import existing Etsy listings. Unfortunately, this tool can be slow and hard to use.
Wix is limited to 100 pages, so if you have thousands of products, you might look for another eCommerce site.
Wix is a good option if you want a visual builder with easy-to-use templates. Wix charges a monthly fee and a transaction fee for each sale.
Check out other Wix alternatives for building your online portfolio.
| PROS | CONS |
| Templates not interchangeable | Visitor analytics not available on free-Combo plans |
| Free plan forces Wix branding | Storage limits on all plans |
| Tracking and analytics require a paid plan | Can’t change templates once your site is live |
| Premium Plans are single-site only | Extend your site features with Wix App Market |
IndieMade
IndieMade offers sellers the opportunity to build their storefront. However, they don't have extensive templates, so customization is more challenging than most website builders.
IndieMade syncs your inventory with Etsy, so you can easily keep both sites running at the same time. In addition, sellers can build their site by adding a blog, video, and audio content.
IndieMade charges a monthly subscription fee and lets sellers control their site and selling process.
| PROS | CONS |
| Organizes content in a structured manner | There are only 10 themes to choose from |
| Comprehensive online store setups | Mobile responsiveness of themes aren't impressive |
| All sites created has an SSL certificate | Logging into the dashboard is complex |
| There’s no blogging limitations on IndieMade | Paypal is the only payment option |
Weebly
Weebly is well known as a website builder and alternative to Etsy. In addition, Weebly has templates so you can quickly build your eCommerce site. Weebly offers inventory tracking, coupons, shipping tools, and gift cards.
Weebly is optimized for mobile, so visitors can enjoy browsing your store from the mobile phone.
Weebly offers a free basic site with eCommerce add-ons for a subscription.
| PROS | CONS |
| Competitively-priced premium plans | Site has Square ads for basic plans |
| No programming skills required | Limited customization options |
| Can build & manage from mobile device | Phone support only available on Professional plans |
| Analytics help you monitor your site | Limited blogging tools |
Zyro
Zyro offers sellers a way to set up their storefront quickly and start making sales. Zyro has templates that you can customize with your brand colors. Sellers can easily add products to their storefronts.
Zyro is easy to use and has excellent customer service. If you need help with your website, agents are ready to help you over live chat.
Zyro offers several payment processing options, shipping tools, and marketing tools. Zyro aims to make selling your products as easy as possible.
Zyro doesn't charge transaction fees or listing fees, so sellers keep more sales profits.
| PROS | CONS |
| Can Sell Products on Different Media Platforms | There Are Not As Many Templates |
| Multiple Payment Options for ECommerce | Cant Change template After starting Uploading |
| Your Website Will Work on Any Device | The Drag and Drop Editor Is Quite Limited |
| Your Site Will Be Optimized for SEO | There Is Not a Helpful FAQ Section |
Etsy Alternatives - Online Marketplaces
Online marketplaces offer sellers access to shoppers looking for homemade, vintage, and custom goods. Etsy is an online marketplace where sellers and buyers meet online.
If you are looking to sell on a marketplace instead of building your own store, there are many good options. However, you are selling on the marketplace's site, so you have less control over your brand image. You won't be able to fully customize your site like you would with an eCommerce site.
Amazon Handmade
Amazon Handmade is one of Etsy's most direct competitors. It is an artist-only community focused on selling artisan items.
Amazon Handmade offers sellers a marketplace to sell everything from artwork to handmade goods such as knitted pet sweaters. Amazon provides its fulfilment service, ads, and analytics. Sellers get access to Amazon's impressive market share and a marketplace of buyers.
First, sellers will need to get an Amazon Professional selling account. Then, they can apply to be a Handmade seller.
Amazon Handmade features an easily searchable storefront and brings in shoppers looking for the perfect item.
Amazon Handmade is more expensive than other options. Sellers pay a 15% commission per sale and a monthly membership fee. In addition, sellers will have to abide by Amazon's rules and be willing to be a part of their large retail site.
| PROS | CONS |
| Massive potential reach of global platform | Amazon competes with its own sellers |
| Offers an individual and a professional plan option | Higher selling fees |
| Amazon doesn’t charge product listing fees | Difficult to build trust with customer |
| High ROI (return on investment) for Advertising | Seller may need to charge sales tax |
Zibbet
Zibbet is a marketplace solution that lets you import your existing products from Facebook, Instagram, and Etsy. From Zibbet, you can manage all your sales listings. This can be a big time saver if you are selling on several different marketplaces.
Zibbet syncs your inventory across all your sales channels. For example, if something sells on Facebook, Zibbet will update your other sites. As a result, you won't have to manually and constantly update your inventory and make listing changes.
Zibbet is an ideal marketplace if you have unusual and one-of-a-kind items. It is a great site for artists that sell custom items.
| PROS | CONS |
| It is free to list the first 10 items | Hasn't been successful in getting traffic as its new |
| Data-based indicators are provided for efficiency | Paid plans may lead to loss of money |
| Allows to import products from existing store | More payment needed for more tools and features |
| Manage complete product inventory from dashboard | Paypal is the only payment option |
Bonanza
Bonanza offers sellers two options. Sellers can list their products on Bonanza's marketplace or create their own online storefront. Or, sellers can do both!
Buyers can then browse marketplace listings or find your branded store. Bonanza also offers sellers a way to connect with Bing Shopping, Facebook, and eBay.
Bonanza has several unique ways for sellers to market their products. For example, Bonanza offers sellers Google ads for an additional fee. In addition, sellers can get featured with Bonanza's marketing partners such as review sites and blogs.
Bonanza charges a final value fee for each sale but doesn't charge listing fees. Some buyers like to negotiate prices on Bonanza, so leave a margin on your pricing.
| PROS | CONS |
| Has lower fees for sellers | Possible scams and fraudulent activity spotted |
| Offers Better Business Bureau rating for users | Have to read reviews as shops are less trusted |
| Access to external promotions | Significantly less traffic |
| Setting up account is smooth and simple | No auction format |
ArtFire
ArtFire allows boutiques to create an online shop and list their products. ArtFire offers sellers a network of sellers and a network of shoppers. Sellers can connect with other boutique owners and discuss best practices and new ideas.
ArtFire is focused on artisan and handmade goods, so you'll be attracting the right buyers. If you are looking for a marketplace aligned with your artistic gifts, ArtFire might be right for you.
If you are looking for an easy-to-use platform, ArtFire lets you customize your storefront without needing to code.
ArtFire charges a commission fee on any non-unique items. They also charge selling and listing fees.
| PROS | CONS |
| Easy-to-understand & active user community | High bounce rate and low daily time on site |
| Assists sellers with marketing strategies | Little exposure of products to those outside community |
| Don’t have to set up an account to buy items | No option for store analytics |
Storenvy
Storenvy operates a social marketplace. It offers a free online storefront to set up your branded site and attract customers. In addition, you have access to their commission-based marketplace. So you can sell independently without a commission or get new customers from Storeenvy's marketplace.
Storenvy is focused on indie brands. Storenvy boutiques sell jewelry, books, music, beauty, housewares, and tech.
Storenvy is a good option for those who want a little of everything. You can have your own branded storefront and attract Storenvy marketplace shoppers. In addition, you won't have to compete with cheaper, mass-produced items like you would on Etsy.
Storenvy charges a commission for marketplace sales and a monthly fee for the store plan.
| PROS | CONS |
| Access to a large social marketplace | Need to pay high fees to show items on marketplace |
| A fully independent store can be built | Limited functionality compared to others |
| Provide to you a unique domain | The marketplace isn’t as large as others |
| Integrated Google Analytics | Provides 20 themes and only 2 free themes |
Wrap-Up - List of Alternatives to Etsy
We've covered many different sites to help you set up an online boutique and sell your creative items. To recap, here's a list of the best alternatives to Etsy for creatives in 2023.
Website Building - Online Store
- Pixpa
- Shopify
- Big Cartel
- Squarespace
- WooCommerce
- Wix
- IndieMade
- Weebly
- Zyro
Marketplaces
- Amazon Handmade
- Zibbet
- Bonanza
- ArtFire
- Storenvy
Conclusion
Etsy is the biggest marketplace for selling hand-crafted, vintage, and creative goods. Etsy drives buyers to its storefronts. It is easy for sellers to set up an Etsy shop and start selling. However, if you are looking to brand your own store or want a smaller, more boutique marketplace, there are many other options.
Website builders give store owners control over the look and feel of their website. This is a good option for stores looking to build a branded experience. Website builders and eCommerce sites work well if you are interested in doing your own marketing and driving your own sales. Here are some marketing tips to boost your online store sales.
Marketplace sites work well for sellers who want to take advantage of the marketplace's marketing efforts.
Do check out these articles
Frequently Asked Questions
- Where can I sell my prints besides Etsy?
You can sell your prints on your very own online portfolio website. With Pixpa, you can easily set up a professional portfolio website with built-in e-commerce galleries and an online store to sell prints, merchandise or even digital downloads. Pixpa is a more affordable alternative to Etsy when it comes to selling your prints because Pixpa charges no commissions on sales made through your website.
- How much percentage does Etsy take?
Etsy charges a listing fee of $0.20 for each product listed on your shop. Listings expire after 4 months after which they can be renewed by repaying the listing fee. If you list multiple quantities of the same item in a listing then the listing gets auto-renewed and you get charged $0.20 each time an item is sold from that listing. Etsy also charges a transaction fee of 5% of the price (including packing and delivery charges) of each item sold. This is in addition to other miscellaneous fees including marketing and promotion fees, subscription fees, delivery fees etc.
- Does Etsy have a competitor?
Etsy competes with other major online retailers including Amazon, Ebay etc.
You can also create your own online store where you can sell products of your own and avoid Etsy’s commissions and listing fees.