Etsy vs your own website
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Is there a benefit to having your own website as an Etsy seller?
A dedicated brand website might feel like yet another thing for you to manage, but it’s a great option for many small businesses! In fact, lots of sellers choose to have both an Etsy page as well as a website, giving them ownership of their own store and their customers a choice of platforms to buy from.
There are plenty of differences to consider related to cost, security, updates, design control, payment options and analytics. So let's go through them, shall we?
1. Cost
Etsy
Opening an Etsy store is pretty cheap, as there's little up-front cost involved. Sellers pay listing fees, transaction fees, and a small commission on each sale.
As your business grows though, these costs start to add up! Think of it as minimal to list, but expensive to sell (particularly in volume).
A listing lasts for four months or until the item is sold. Once an item sells, there is a 6.5% transaction fee on the sale price (including the delivery price you set).
If you accept payments through Etsy Payments, we also collect a 4% + £0.20 payment processing fee when an item is sold.
Check the Fees & Payments Etsy page for more info.
Website
Creating your own website involves higher up-front costs. You can expect expenses for domain registration, web hosting, web design, and even maintenance fees.
The long-term costs can be a lot lower, however, especially when selling in volume and expanding your business.
A website can cost between a few hundred and a few thousand pounds to set up including designer fees, hosting, domain, email etc. depending on whether you choose to do it yourself using a builder or hire a professional.
You can opt-in for a few payment methods such as Stripe (Stripe only charges per transaction, at 2.9% plus 30 pence for each sale), Paypal, Apple/Google Pay, etc. It's up to you.
2. Design Control
Etsy Store design limitations (yellow bits)
Etsy
Etsy has lots of great pre-designed templates and options for customisation, giving you some design flexibility.
There are lots of limitations on full customisation though, meaning your store is unlikely to match your unique branding or vision.
Website
Creating your own website gives you FULL design control, meaning you can create a completely unique brand experience specific to your wants and needs.
You can tailor the design, user interface, and overall aesthetic to fit exactly with your brand vision.
3. Security
Etsy
Etsy provides a fantastic secure platform, handling security measures like encryption and payment processing so that you don't have to think about it at all. As a seller, you also benefit from the trust and security associated with a well-established marketplace, which is reassuring to customers.
Website
Running your own website means that you are in control of many security aspects. This may come with some responsibilities, as you may need to implement security measures, such as SSL certificates and secure payment gateways, to ensure that your customer's data is protected.
4. Payment Options
Etsy
Etsy handles all of your payment processing, giving your customers lots of options to pay like credit cards, PayPal, and Etsy gift cards.
As a seller, you're subject to Etsy's payment policies and transaction fees though, so get familiar with those.
Website
With your own website, you have the freedom to choose from loads of payment gateways and processor options.
This flexibility will allow you to pick the payment methods that work for you, in line with the processing fees you're comfortable with.
5. Updates
Etsy
Etsy manages all platform updates and improvements so that you don't have to worry about backend maintenance.
This means that you can focus more on making your products and customer service.
Website
Your website will need to be updated regularly to make sure it's functional and secure at all times.
While this means you may need to spend more regular time working on it (or professional help), you will have complete control over all updates and any customising you want to do.
When making your decision on the best platform for you, think about where you are in your small business journey, the funds you have available and the time you are able to dedicate to everything outside of order fulfilment.
And remember, you can always add to or change your decision later. You don't have to make the 'right' decision now.
Happy selling!
