How to Make Money on Etsy: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide

Making money on Etsy is a great way to turn your creativity into a steady income. Whether you’re selling handmade goods, digital products, or vintage finds, the right approach can help you stand out and start making sales.

But with so many sellers on the platform, how do you actually make money on Etsy – and what steps can you take to boost your success?

Let’s break down the best strategies to help you start and grow a profitable Etsy shop.

How to make money on Etsy

The best way to make money on Etsy is, like any other store, to offer products that are in-demand, ensure they are attractive to potential customers and make it easy for these customers to find you on the platform. Balancing attractive pricing with the listing fees that Etsy charges is also important.

Let’s be clear upfront: Making money on Etsy is a really, really cool gig. If you want to be paid for your creativity, selling on Etsy is the way to go. It’s a safe platform, a fun one, and certainly an inspiration for everyone who has a creative side that they want to tap into. 

At the same time, there are some things to consider – that, honestly, are similar to any other store. That is, to put it simply, you’ll need to offer products your customers want and, importantly, that they can find.

One extra point to keep in mind when looking to make money on Etsy is making sure that your pricing takes into consideration the seller fees. Etsy charges $0.20 for each listing, which will stay active for up to four months. You’ll also be charged 3.5% of the selling price of each item you sell and there are extra fees for things like promoting your products in search results.

These are, overall, pretty reasonable though. So if you’re ready to dive in and find out how you can start making money on Etsy, let’s jump right in with both feet. Because there’s no time like the present to start earning money fast. 

How to make money on Etsy without making anything

Some people use a drop shipper to send out their products, meaning the seller themselves doesn’t have to lift a finger. Similarly, you can also sell digital products, which means not making any physical items. You can also sell digital products you bought (with an appropriate license) from someone who created them for you.

Wait – what? You can make money on Etsy without actually having to make anything? You bet. People do this all day long. As long as you can sell a product that people want, you don’t really have to be crafty or creative at all.

For example, are you looking to sell things without having to actually make them yourself or buy stock?

Printify lets you design your own products – while handling the entire manufacturing and shipping process for you!

Simply upload your own custom design to be added to anything from shirts, hoodies, bags, shoes, phone cases and more. Then, when a customer buys from your store, Printify does all the work for you – while you get the profit!

So if you’re not crafty, no sweat. Etsy isn’t just for crafters. Use your noodle and think of a few products that you can sell that are creative and fun as well. 

People are always searching on Etsy for unique gift ideas, not necessarily ones that are craft-related, This means that you can easily upload great gift ideas that require no crafting or creative skills at all. 

What sells really well on Etsy?

So. Many. Things. And while that might sound super vague, it’s the truth. Etsy is home to millions of items but there are a few things that tend to sell better than others. 

You may notice that when you look at the categories on Etsy when trying to figure out the best things to sell on Etsy there are quite a few to choose from. Take a deep breath and relax – the platform is big enough to make room for everyone. 

Digital prints

Topping the charts are customizable prints. People LOVE being able to have a digital print that showcases their personalities. If you have any graphic design skills, you can create your own digital download or prints to easily sell on Etsy. 

You can also create fun quotes, unique pictures, or other fun ideas such as that to load up and sell on Etsy. 

Stickers

Yes, stickers. Let’s be honest…no one ever gets too old for stickers, ever. And the best part about selling stickers is that you can easily create and sell your own designs – and even customizable ones, if you want to go down that route!

In fact, customized products are massive on Etsy right now, so offering an option for your customers to choose their own statements or designs to include on your stickers could be a great way to stand out from the crowd.

That said, it can be a bit hard to know where to start, especially if your last sticker experience was as a kid so you may not be sure how to target this at adults. Plus, you’ve got the added hassle of printing them (with the right cut-out shape around each one), stocking them, posting them…

So did you know you can also make and sell digital stickers on Etsy these days too? Check it out for a fun twist that makes for – at least in my opinion – a much easier side hustle!

Jewelry

Etsy has jewelry of all types, designs, and colors and makes it simple to find literally anything that you like. At the same time, this means that jewelry is perfect if you’re looking for things to make and sell online!

Hippie and boho jewelry fashion are plentiful as are unique one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry, too. You can also choose to sell vintage jewelry on Etsy if you’re not keen on making it yourself.

In fact, this can easily be one of the best things to buy and sell for profit on this platform!

Unique gifts

I know this is why I go to Etsy every single time. Doesn’t everyone need a customized shirt for their Grandma that says “Best Nan Ever” or an awesome coffee cup with attitude? Etsy is home to some of the best gift ideas because they’re literally straight from the brain of funny and creative people. 

I also think that when you buy someone a gift from Etsy, it really shows that a lot of thought has been put into that gift as well. It’s so much more than just heading to the store and buying whatever you can find on the shelf. 

Holiday gifts

This is easily one of the biggest sellers on Etsy. People are constantly on the platform any time a holiday is coming up. 

For sellers, this is great for exposure and a fun way to move products, too, especially given that there are plenty of ideas out there for Christmas crafts to sell for some extra cash. That said, anything related to Halloween, Easter, etc. is also going to be a huge selling time for products. 

Keep in mind that you’ll need to start a few months in advance to count for creation and shipping times, too. Also, don’t forget that every day people are always searching for fun birthday gifts, too! 

Cards

Everyone loves cards. Homemade cards are the best gifts to give but some people want to buy a homemade card and give that instead of actually taking the time to make a card at home. This is where you can come in! 

It’s no surprise that selling cards on Etsy can be a cash cow. This is because people love to give cards for literally every celebration happening. From weddings to graduations, the need for the perfect card never ends! 

Related: 34 Best Online Jobs for College Students With No Experience

Toys

Toys are a huge seller on Etsy. While, sure, you can go to your local toy store or jump on Amazon and buy something mass produced, people love to go to Etsy to get something with a bit more personality.

It’s also become a real haven for people who are trying to limit the amount of plastic toys their kids have (although you can certainly make those yourself to sell using a 3D printer). With things like handmade teddy bears, wooden puzzles and items to help your kids do their own crafts, Etsy can be a goldmine for things like this.

Planner accessories

Whether we’re talking digital or printed planners, Etsy has a huge range of items related to these to help people add to or personalize their planners.

I already mentioned digital stickers a bit earlier, but you can also buy new pages to build on your existing planner – or even the entire planner from scratch!

My personal favorite is the fact that you can buy fully customizable planners or individual pages and I know for a fact that these sell like hotcakes. That way, you can see a design you like and then change the colors or fonts to suit your personal preference or to fit in with the rest of your planner.

Décor

Home décor has always been massive on Etsy, especially for people who may be trying to get away from some of the more generic, Ikea-style items you see everywhere.

What’s great about this is that you can find something for basically any taste. Prefer rustic wood pieces? Etsy is your place. How about more minimalist, sleek items? You’ll definitely get them here.

And this is actually why, for those looking into how to make money on Etsy, home decor pieces are often their go-to.

Plus remember when I mentioned Printify before? You can also use Printify to design certain home décor pieces, like candles, wall art and more. All you do is create your design, upload it to their platform, and they handle all the actual making and shipping!

Sure, they take a small fee for it, but only once you actually sell an item. And the whole process is SO much easier than managing all that yourself!

Get started for free with Printify here.

Can you make good money on Etsy? 

Given that there were over 60 million buyers on the site last year, there is certainly good money to be made on Etsy and many people report earning a full time income. At the same time, there are also Etsy sellers making much less, with some only earning $100 or less per year.

Even just from a quick search on Reddit, you’ll easily find people talking about how they make money on Etsy, with amounts being well in excess of a full-time living just off what they sell on Etsy. 

But as with any online money making opportunity, not everyone gets to that point. While the opportunities to make big money are there, it’s really going to depend on your price point, the quality and quantity of items that you’re trying to sell and, let’s face it, probably a bit of luck. 

You can easily see how popular someone’s Etsy store is by how many sales they’ve had. Some people have just a few while others have tens of thousands of sales. Those are the people that are making a killing on Etsy and really raking in the cash. 

How much does the average person make on Etsy? 

The amount that the average person makes on Etsy is going to vary wildly but, on average, people will make anywhere from $200 up per month. Keep in mind that this is an average so you can easily make more or less than this amount. 

Remember – some people do this full-time and make a killing! 

When it comes to making money on Etsy, the amount of money that you’re going to earn will also depend on the time of the year and what you set your price points at as well. Don’t let the numbers fool you or scare you away because if you want to earn more than that $200 average, you absolutely can. 

Related: 22 Best Weekend Jobs To Earn Extra Cash

Average Etsy sales in the first year

In order to plan ahead and try to comprehend the amount of money you can make on Etsy, it’s important to have a realistic view of how much money you can make in the first year. On the low end, you can easily expect to make $100-$200 monthly which equates to $1,000 plus for the year.

But if you’re ready to crank out the sales, you can average way more than making $1,000 during your first year. Set your goals high and do your best to achieve them. You can always scale them back and readjust later. 

It also depends on what year you’re looking at for an average, too. There’s a very good possibility that the average sales during 2020 will be higher than a typical year and this is due to the fact that everyone was staying at home. Just know that you’ll have to take lifestyles and current events into perspective when you’re trying to realistically assume what you can earn on Etsy. 

Is it worth it to sell on Etsy?

Selling on Etsy is worth it if you’re getting appropriately compensated for your time, your resources, and your own payment of salary. The income you earn should also take into consideration the fact that it has to cover Etsy’s sellers fees and taxes, so profit margins will be important here.

Just think: If you’re spending $40 to make a blanket that takes 3 days to make and you’re only charging $100 to purchase it, then no – it’s not worth your time. 

But if you can find a way to create a product that is not only popular but can also make recurring customers, then selling on Etsy is going to be a super great choice to make. 

The biggest thing to remember about selling on Etsy is that you can do this in your spare time as well. It doesn’t have to be something that you just jump into with both feet and hope that you land firmly planted on the ground. If you have a few products that you can load up, this can be just the right amount to get started.

Once you get a bit of traction going with sales, you can then decide if it’s worth your time to spend even more time on the platform. 

Related: 29 Quick Tips on How to Make $300 Fast

How do you get noticed on Etsy?

This is where you have to “play the game” a bit and find out what Etsy likes of their sellers. Common sense will tell you that Etsy is going to reward those who get good reviews from past customers. But what happens if you don’t have any sales or customers?

Well, there are some things you can do to get found on Etsy:

1. Include high-quality, professional images. Make sure that you take great pictures of the item that you’re trying to sell. The brighter, clearer and more eye catching, the better. 
2. Add a title and description that are keyworded well. Since Etsy does have an algorithm, the more descriptive words that you can use, the higher the chance is that you’ll get noticed by a buyer on Etsy.
3. Include a detailed, informative description. Not only is this good for potential customers to find out more information about what you’re selling, but you’ll likely add a few more keywords in by doing this, even if you weren’t trying to target them.
4. Keep customer experience in mind at all times. If all your listings are just trying to game the algorithm, you likely won’t have much success. This is why you should also make sure to include things that customers want, especially information they’d likely want to know about such as return policies and more about you and your store in general.
5. Make your shipping prices competitive. It’s been shown that customers would rather pay a little bit more for an item with reduced shipping prices compared to a cheaper product price and higher shipping costs. While you should still be able to cover your own expenses, keep in mind that great postage costs can be the push that many customers need to ultimately purchase something.

Also, remember that your first sale is going to take time. The luck of striking gold fast isn’t likely so be patient. 

Finally, use social media (you can also combine this with making money on Pinterest, after all) and make people aware! 

How long does it take to get noticed on Etsy?

If you want to get noticed fast, you need to start building up your Etsy shop. Add in items and start adding in the descriptions of all the items, too. The more that you work on your shop, the quicker you’re going to get noticed.

This means that, ultimately, it’s going to be up to you. The more items that you have to describe, the more eyes that are going to stumble across your product. And if you can think of something unique and popular, you just might be able to find a niche and run with it. 

A good rule of thumb is to give yourself a few months to build up networking and sales on the platform. It’s always a good idea to set a benchmark that you can then look at to compare. This will give you a date range to see if you’re seeing success and if not, you can then formulate a new plan to try at that point in time. 

How do I make my Etsy shop successful?

You need to be certain that your Etsy shop has great pictures, as these are what will first catch people’s attention. However, they need to be able to find you in the first place and, for that, good SEO is critical for customers to come to your store.

Don’t forget to thoroughly and accurately describe your items, as if people aren’t sure about an item, they’re less likely to buy it. This includes things like adding in details such as size measurements and materials that the item is made from.

It’s also a good idea to have a wide variety of items in your shop, ready to sell at any given moment. This can help to diversify your traffic as well. 

At the same time, stores that are in a particular niche often do much better than those that sell all sorts of things. By having everything on broadly the same topic, a customer that finds your store may realize they actually need three items that you’re selling – and watch the money flow from there.

Is it hard to sell on Etsy? 

While it may not be hard to sell on Etsy, you will need patience. This is because, just like anything, it takes time. There are a ton of other sellers on Etsy that you’re going to be competing with, so giving yourself enough time to build up your store so that it’s able to be seen is needed.

You should actually make sure you remember this when you’re feeling as though you’re barely moving along. 

After all, if you have the mind frame that it’s going to be too hard, then it’s going to be too hard to do. Plain and simple. But if you’re ready to put on your boots and take Etsy by storm, you can easily do so and find success. 

The basics of selling on Etsy aren’t hard but finding the patience can be the difficult part. When you’re looking for ways to boost your efforts and attitude on Etsy, think back and remember why you started in the first place. Never let that fire and passion go because it’s what is going to fuel your sales and drive! 

Final thoughts on making money on Etsy

As you can see, it’s more than possible to learn how to make money on Etsy. With plenty of people doing this every day, many of whom do this as a stay at home job or even a side hustle as an extra income stream, there’s clearly money to be made here.

That said, it won’t happen overnight. Like any business venture, it takes some time to build your store and product range up to the point where you’re getting a steady stream of customers.

This is why it’s important to have some patience when working towards this goal. At the same time, with some hard work and by following some key strategies to help your products stand out, there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t be one of the Etsy success stories too!