Etsy vs eBay Fees: Compare Completed Orders and Listing Costs

Compare a defined order, not platform headlines

Etsy's baseline combines listing, transaction and country-specific payment-processing charges. Here it is 9.5% plus $0.45 for one US listing unit and one payment. Etsy fee overview, US processing rates.

For eBay US sellers without a Store, most-category orders within the first fee band use 13.6% plus $0.40 above $10, or $0.30 at $10 or less. Category, Store and other exceptions apply. eBay selling fees.

The worked comparison assumes eBay listings are within their applicable insertion-fee allowance and all products are permitted on both platforms.

Fees are rounded in cents. Etsy's $100 example is $6.50 transaction + $3.25 processing + $0.20 listing = $9.95. Avoid dropping one percentage component as order value increases.

Listing inventory changes the comparison

Consider an illustrative newly listed cohort of 100 unique $30 items. Exactly 30 sell during the comparison period. Assume no relistings, renewals, multi-quantity stock or optional upgrades, and eBay allowance eligibility for all 100.

The Etsy selling-and-processing amount is 30 × $3.10. Its listing cost is already in the separate $20 row, so adding another $0.20 to each completed order would double-count it.

This is a cohort calculation, not a recurring monthly bill. Etsy listings have a four-month term; creating or renewing them triggers charges. eBay Good 'Til Cancelled renewals count toward its monthly allowance. Model the actual listing events in the period. Etsy listing terms, eBay insertion and renewal rules.

Taxes and ads can change the gap

In a worked US $30 order with $2.40 buyer sales tax, Etsy's processing fee increases by roughly $0.07. eBay's percentage fee increases by roughly $0.33. Buyer tax collected and remitted is not seller revenue. Different jurisdictions and shipping arrangements need their own treatment.

For an eligible US $30 Etsy order attributed at 15%, add $4.50 in Offsite Ads fees. That turns the $3.30 baseline into $7.80 before fulfillment. This is why a comparison that ignores attribution can rank orders incorrectly. Etsy Offsite Ads terms.

Compare the proceeds your inventory can actually achieve

For each product, record expected selling price, charged and paid shipping, category fees, ad costs, listing activity and product cost. Use your own completed sales to estimate demand and time to sale. An extra $2 of achieved selling price can outweigh a modest fee difference, while a discount or seller-funded label can erase it.

Start with the marketplace comparison. The eBay calculator has limited category coverage and no actual-postage-paid or sales-tax input; adjust those separately before treating the remainder as profit. Use the Etsy calculator for its supported shipping, quantity and ad scenarios.