Etsy vs eBay Fees — Which Marketplace Costs Less?
Etsy stacks a $0.20 listing fee, 6.5% transaction fee, and ~3%+$0.25 payment processing. eBay charges one all-in final value fee (~13.6%) plus a small per-order fee. See exactly which wins for your sale amount.
| Sale amount | Etsy net | eBay net | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| $100.00 | $90.05 | $86.00 | Etsy nets $4.05 more |
| $500.00 | $452.05 | $431.60 | Etsy nets $20.45 more |
| $1000.00 | $904.55 | $863.60 | Etsy nets $40.95 more |
For low-price items (under ~$20), eBay's single all-in fee usually edges out Etsy, where the flat $0.20 listing fee eats a bigger share of a small sale. For mid-to-high price items, the gap narrows and can flip depending on whether Offsite Ads apply on Etsy. Neither platform is categorically cheaper — run your actual price through both calculators before deciding where to list.
Try your own numbers
Etsy
Etsy US standard seller. Offsite ads (when triggered) bill at 12–15% — toggle as needed.
Fee breakdown
eBay
Only categories with rates confirmed on eBay's own fee page are listed. Selling something else? Leave "Most categories" selected and verify your exact rate in Seller Hub for specialty categories.
Final value fee includes payment processing. Per-order fee is $0.30 for orders ≤$10, $0.40 above (a few categories are exempt — see category note). Accounts rated 'Below Standard' pay an additional 6% on the final value fee; a 'Very High' item-not-as-described rate in a category adds another 5% in that category — neither is modeled here, check your Seller Hub status.
Fee breakdown
FAQ
Common questions
Is Etsy or eBay cheaper?
It depends on the sale amount and whether Etsy Offsite Ads apply. At most typical prices the two land within a percentage point of each other — check your specific number above rather than assuming.
Does the $0.20 Etsy listing fee matter much?
On a $10 item, yes — that's 2% of the sale on its own. On a $200 item, it's close to rounding error. Etsy's fee structure is comparatively worse for cheap items and comparatively better for expensive ones.
Do Etsy Offsite Ads change the comparison?
Yes, meaningfully — Offsite Ads add 12–15% on top of Etsy's base fees when a sale comes through that channel, which can push the effective rate well above eBay's for that order.
Which has lower fees for high-volume sellers?
Neither platform publishes a volume discount on standard seller fees — both scale linearly with sale price, so the comparison above holds regardless of how many items you sell.
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