In this blog, we will be talking about selling on Etsy vs Amazon Handmade and elaborate on the difference between the two.
1. Overview of Etsy vs Amazon Handmade
What’s Etsy?
Etsy is an international ecommerce website started in the year 2005 that showcases second-hand and entirely handmade products and craft essentials. Often collaborating with artists, designers and other creative minds, Etsy is famous for focusing on individuality. The platform provides branding and customizations freedom to sellers that enables a personalized shopping experience for consumers.
What’s Amazon Handmade?
Amazon Handmade, launched in 2015, is a separate page on Amazon. com that has been developed exclusively for handmade goods. It enables artisans to access Amazon’s numerous customers as well as take advantage of Amazon’s sophisticated fulfillment solutions. As compared to sites like Etsy, Amazon Handmade offers a more limited amount of customization but comes equipped with the means to support the growth of your business.
What’s the difference between Etsy vs Amazon Handmade?
| Criteria | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Customer Insight | Niche, creative audience. | Broad, quality-focused customers. |
| Product | Handmade, vintage, craft supplies. | Exclusively handmade items. |
| Seller Fees | Lower fees; $0.20 listing fee. | 15% referral fee, higher overall cost. |
| Payment | Etsy Payments, flexible options. | Amazon Pay, longer payout times. |
| Inventory Management | Basic tools, good for small sellers. | Advanced tools, scalable. |
| Shipping & Fulfillment | Seller-managed, discounted rates. | Amazon FBA for streamlined shipping. |
| Ease Of Use | User-friendly, easy setup. | More complex, steeper learning curve. |
| Customization | Highly customizable shops. | Limited to Amazon’s templates. |
| Advertising & Marketing | Etsy Ads, external marketing. | Amazon’s powerful ad tools. |
| Seller Support | Strong community, resources. | Comprehensive support from Amazon. |
2. Etsy vs. Amazon Handmade: Detail Comparison
2.1 – Customer Insight
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Target Audience | Who are interested in purchasing items that are made by individual artisans and antiques. | Targets a wider audience, the one familiar with Amazon ecosystem and outlet’s choices. |
| Customer Behavior | Consumers usually look for unique and customizable products, which increases the chances of brand loyalty. | Consumers are attracted to the efficiency and speed of delivery of products provided by Amazon regardless of personalizations in a product type. |
| Purchase Frequency | Repeat purchase frequency due to consistent positive customer shopping experiences. | Good for sellers of popular products but customers could display less brand loyalty owing to a variety of choices. |
| Demographics | Creatives, artists, students, and occasionally individuals who are environmentally friendly, and are generally younger. | More ethnic diversity as well as young and old clients who shop with different objectives. |
2.2 – Products
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Product Range | Covers homemade, items that are more than twenty years old, and items used for making crafts. | Original works only – nothing can be bought at a craft store or bought pre-used. |
| Product Guidelines | Most kinds of handmade items allowed, moderate allowance for material and equipment. | Strict screening of products to make sure they are really handmade. |
| Product Customization | Allow for custom and personal arrangements to be made because many sellers provide unique products. | There are options for customization but are not as highlighted as they are on Etsy. |
| Product Categories | This range from jewelry, artwork, house decorations, wearables, and many more. | Smaller categories that contain the rules and regulation to ensure only legit handmade items are allowed. |
2.3 – Seller Fees
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Listing Fees | – $0.20 per listing, renewed every four months or upon sale. | – No listing fees. |
| Transaction Fees | – 6.5% of the total sales price, including shipping. | – 15% referral fee on each sale. |
| Payment Processing Fees | – 3% + $0.25 per transaction. | – Included in the referral fee; additional payment processing fees may apply depending on the payment method. |
| Subscription Fees | – Optional Etsy Plus subscription at $10/month for additional tools and benefits. | – Optional $39.99/month subscription for Amazon Pro Merchant account, providing access to more features and tools. |
2.4 – Payment
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Payment Methods | Accept most popular payment options such as Visa/Mastercard, PayPal, and even Etsy gift cards. | Credit/debit cards payment and payment through Amazon gift cards through Amazon Payments. |
| Payment Processing | Calculations and payments are made to the sellers on cost of sales within 3-5 business days. | Money is transferred between 7-14 days; some conditions may allow sellers to receive payments earlier. |
| Currency Options | Accepts various forms of payments to also support international transactions. | Mainly enables payment in local currencies of the countries in which Amazon is active. |
2.5 – Inventory management
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Inventory Tools | A low level of automation: mostly relying on manual inventory management. | Easy integration with Amazon’s vast fulfillment and inventory solutions like FBA. |
| Stock Tracking | Fundamental features of stock tracking that may not have reporting capabilities. | Improved stock management with features such as auto-restock and notification. |
| Scalability | Best for low-to-medium quantity of products; best used by small to medium enterprises. | Highly flexible with substantial growth potential for all types of organizations, especially growing ones. |
2.6 – Shipping & fulfillment
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Shipping Responsibility | Sellers are responsible for shipping, Etsy Shipping Labels allow for getting a lower price. | FBA can be used, or sellers can fulfill the order themselves; however, FBA provides faster shipping services. |
| Shipping Costs | Shipping prices are dependent on the location of the seller and the carrier of choice. | The FBA fees come into operation when sellers incorporate Amazon’s fulfillment services; otherwise, delivery is handled by the seller. |
| Delivery Speed | Delivery of products depends on the location of the seller and the shipping company; relatively slower than Amazon Prime. | Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) allowing for fast shipping and selecting the ability to offer prime delivery to the clients. |
2.7. Ease Of Use
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Onboarding Process | Easy to use and most recommended for first timers at the field. | More complicated, selling needs approval and sellers need to be familiar with a number of tools Amazon provides. |
| User Interface (UI) | Clean and minimalist design with most of the attention given to the layout and appearance of the application. | Business like but less creative, focused more on practicability than on customers. |
| Seller Support | Detailed seller guides and active forums with buyer and seller interaction available. | A lot of support is offered via the forum and documentation, but not as directly tailored. |
2.8 – Customization
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Storefront Design | Lots of branding opportunities so that shops can be customized with banners, logos, and policies. | Restricted to Amazon’s basic layout with little variation from the product details and images.Product Presentation |
| Product Presentation | Full control over product descriptions, using text, images, variants, and buzzwords to describe the products. | Has fewer options for the presentation of the product but is based on such a recognizable platform as Amazon. |
| Customer Interaction | Sellers interact more directly with buyers, providing unique products and participating in discussions. | The interaction is mainly via the messaging system provided by Amazon and not much query-specific interaction. |
2.9 – Advertising & marketing
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Advertising Tools | Includes Etsy Ads where sellers can advertise within the Etsy selling platform. | Primary access to Amazon Advertising such as Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands, and others. |
| Marketing Reach | The strategy is mainly deploying itself inside Etsy but syncing with social media. | Accessibility through Amazon’s vast market, thus expanding the reach of the product. |
| External Marketing | Sellers lean heavily on off-website marketing techniques such as social media, blogging, and partnerships. | Amazon offers many promotional instruments but their effectiveness is best seen at higher levels of investment. |
| Cost of Advertising | Usually cheaper, however efficiency depends on competing sellers on Etsy. | Higher cost but with the possibility of higher pay off as Amazon has a large pool of customers. |
2.10 – Seller support & resources
| Aspect | Etsy | Amazon Handmade |
| Seller Support | Has several resources on hand for support, these are the seller’s manual, forums, as well as customer service. | It has Seller University which is a source of information, and one or more account managers for very active sellers. |
| Learning Resources | There is a lot of educational material including tutorials, webinars, and an active community to support sellers. | Ability to engage with Amazon’s comprehensive materials, such as guides, webinars, and consultations.Community |
| Community | Good community aspect with social groups and sellers available for networking and assistance. | Less social, focusing more on the individual selling success provided for by the top-down support from Amazon. |
3. Which is Better: Etsy or Amazon Handmade?
Thus, the choice between Etsy vs Amazon Handmade is highly dependent on the goals and objectives of a particular seller as well as its target market. To make this decision easier, here is a pros and cons analysis.
| Platform | Pros | Cons |
| Etsy | – Strong brand identity and community feel. – High level of customization. – Lower fees for small sellers. |
– Smaller audience compared to Amazon. – Limited scalability. – Lower search engine visibility. |
| Amazon Handmade | – Access to a vast customer base. – Integration with Amazon’s logistics. – Advanced inventory management. |
– Higher fees, especially for small sellers. – Less control over branding. – Stricter product guidelines. |
Etsy is best suited for:
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- Artisans and crafters looking for a community-driven marketplace.
- Sellers who value creative control and customization.
- Businesses with a niche product line seeking a personalized shopping experience for their customers.
Amazon Handmade is best suited for:
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- Sellers aim to scale quickly with access to a global market.
- Businesses that can leverage Amazon’s fulfillment services for faster shipping.
- Sellers who prefer a streamlined, less hands-on approach to ecommerce.
Furthermore, you can dive deeper into the world of e-commerce by exploring Etsy’s competitors. Beyond Etsy and Amazon Handmade, you can also explore other marketplaces that may better align with your handmade store.
Conclusion
In summary, this essay has demonstrated that Etsy vs Amazon Handmade have their own pros and cons. Amazon Handmade has adequate support for sellers in terms of fulfillment services, while Etsy is the epitome of creativity. The decision is up to you – are you ready to define which platform is suitable for you?
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FAQs – Etsy vs Amazon Handmade
Can I sell on both Etsy and Amazon Handmade simultaneously?
Yes, there are various sellers that post their products to both of the sites in order to secure more clients and, therefore, sales.
Is it better to sell print-on-demand products: Etsy vs Amazon Handmade?
Etsy is generally more suitable for print on demand because the platform caters to personalized merchandise and its customer base is more artistic. However, if you have the resources to accommodate the demand, Amazon offers a wider market.
What are the key differences between Amazon KDP vs Etsy?
Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) specifically targets digital products and in particular, eBooks and paperbacks, and Etsy targets handmade tangible products, vintage items and craft supplies. The two options depend on the type of product you are selling; digital or physical products.
