Best Alternatives to Selling on Etsy in 2026

Etsy raised its transaction fee from 5% to 6.5% in 2022. It made Offsite Ads mandatory for sellers over $10,000 in revenue, taking another 12–15% off the top. Search visibility has become increasingly pay-to-play. And if Etsy changes its algorithm, suspends your shop, or shifts its policies, there’s not much you can do about it. You don’t own the relationship with your customers. Etsy does.

None of this means you should leave Etsy. For most makers, Etsy is still a useful source of traffic and revenue. But relying on it as your only channel is a business risk, and one that’s easy to reduce by opening a second one.

This guide covers the best alternatives to selling on Etsy in 2026: from building your own store to reaching entirely new audiences through wholesale and social commerce. For each option, we’ve laid out the fees, what it’s good for, and where it falls short.

Why diversify beyond Etsy?

Selling on multiple platforms protects your income from single-platform risks and reaches buyers you’d never find on Etsy alone.

Etsy still has real advantages: a built-in audience actively searching for handmade goods, strong SEO, and relatively low setup friction. The reason to add channels isn’t because Etsy is bad. It’s because any single platform is a concentration risk.

Beyond fee protection, opening a second channel often reveals new customers you’d never have reached on Etsy. A Shopify store targets people who find you through search or social. TikTok Shop catches impulse buyers mid-scroll. Wholesale platforms connect you with retailers who put your products on shelves. Each channel reaches a different buyer at a different moment.

The most important data point: makers selling on both Etsy and Shopify convert at 83.5% (versus 68% for Etsy-only sellers) and stay with inventory software 5 years on average. Multi-channel isn’t just a hedge. It tends to build a more durable business.

Marketing your handmade items on Facebook is also worth exploring as a traffic driver to whichever platforms you choose.

Quick comparison: all platforms at a glance

Standalone store builders

Building your own store gives you complete control over how you present your brand, what you charge, and how you handle the customer relationship. You’re responsible for driving your own traffic, but you keep far more of each sale.

• Shopify is the most popular e-commerce platform for makers going independent. Plans start at $39/month (Basic) with transaction fees of 2.9% + $0.30 per sale, which is lower than Etsy’s combined fees for many sellers. Use our Shopify fee calculator to compare the two for your specific price points. Shopify’s analytics, abandoned cart recovery, and marketing integrations are genuinely useful once you have regular traffic. Read more about how to sell handmade items on Shopify →. If you’re running both Shopify and Etsy, also check our guide to Shopify bookkeeping for product sellers. The trade-off: you’re responsible for driving your own traffic, so it takes longer to get momentum than a marketplace.

• Big Cartel is built specifically for artists and makers. The free plan supports up to 5 listings; paid plans start at $15/month for up to 50 products. It’s not as feature-rich as Shopify, but the simplicity is the point: you can be up and running in an afternoon. Inventory management is basic, so it’s best suited to makers with a small, stable product range.

• Squarespace combines a polished website builder with e-commerce capability. Commerce plans (required for selling) start around $36/month. The import tool that pulls your Etsy listings directly into Squarespace can save a lot of setup time if you’re migrating. Fewer e-commerce features than Shopify, but the design quality is hard to beat out of the box.

• Wix is a similar option to Squarespace at a slightly lower price point. Business plans for e-commerce start around $29/month. See our full breakdown of how much Wix actually costs before signing up, as there are a few extras to account for. One thing to know: you can’t switch templates after launch, so choose carefully.

• WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin that turns a WordPress site into a full online store. You pay for hosting (typically $10–30/month) but not for the software itself. A good fit if you already have a WordPress site or want full flexibility over your store’s design. The catch is the technical overhead: you’ll need to handle WordPress updates, plugins, and occasional troubleshooting.

• BigCommerce handles high sales volume well and has strong multi-channel selling tools built in. Plans start at $39/month. It’s overkill for smaller makers, but if you’re scaling fast across several channels it earns its place.

• Square has a free e-commerce plan with 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction. It integrates with WordPress, Wix, WooCommerce, and GoDaddy, and is geared toward businesses doing under $250,000 in annual sales. Craftybase connects directly with Square, syncing your orders in and pushing updated stock levels back out automatically. It’s particularly strong if you also sell in-person at markets or pop-ups.

Social commerce platforms

Social commerce (selling directly through social media rather than a separate store) has grown substantially. For makers with an engaged following, it can convert far better than a standalone store.

• TikTok Shop is the most significant new selling channel for makers in 2025–2026. If you make products that are visual and story-driven (candles, jewellery, skincare, ceramics), TikTok Shop’s video and live-stream format gives you a native selling environment that Etsy can’t match. No monthly fees: TikTok charges a referral fee per sale (typically around 8%, varying by category). The audience skews younger and more discovery-driven than Etsy shoppers, which makes it genuinely additive rather than just a duplicate channel. The catch is that it’s algorithm-dependent and requires consistent video output, and US access restrictions have fluctuated.

• Facebook and Instagram Shops let you sell directly from your social profiles and sync inventory with a connected Shopify or other store. If you already have an engaged Facebook or Instagram audience, the ability to check out without leaving the app removes a real friction point. Organic reach has declined substantially though, so reaching new audiences typically requires paid promotion.

Handmade marketplaces

If you want the marketplace model (a built-in audience, search functionality, and buyer trust) without building your own store, there are a few Etsy alternatives worth considering.

• Amazon Handmade is a curated section of Amazon for artisan sellers. The application process (usually 5–14 days) keeps mass-produced items out, which means you’re competing with genuine makers rather than factory drop-shippers. Amazon charges a 15% referral fee on sales, with no separate monthly subscription required for Handmade sellers. The scale of Amazon’s audience is unmatched. The trade-off is less brand identity and more price sensitivity from buyers. Amazon shoppers comparison-shop differently than Etsy shoppers. Read the full guide on how to apply for Amazon Handmade →

• Pattern by Etsy is Etsy’s own standalone store builder, available for $15/month. It syncs directly with your Etsy shop so your listings, inventory, and orders stay connected, and gives you a custom domain and more design control. Pattern isn’t a marketplace: you’ll still need to drive traffic yourself. It’s best suited to established Etsy sellers who want a branded home base without rebuilding everything from scratch. For true independence from Etsy’s platform, Shopify is the stronger long-term bet.

• Aftcra focuses exclusively on American-made handmade goods. There are no listing fees and no monthly subscription, just a percentage of each sale. The audience is smaller than Etsy’s, but buyers specifically seek out American-made products, which makes it a high-intent channel for the right makers, even at lower volume.

• Storenvy hosts both a marketplace and individual branded storefronts for independent sellers and small brands. The community features and editorial picks give some organic exposure beyond search, though the platform’s scale is considerably smaller than Etsy or Amazon.

Wholesale marketplaces

Selling wholesale (directly to retailers who stock and resell your products) is a different model entirely, and it opens up revenue opportunities that direct-to-consumer platforms can’t. Read our complete guide to selling handmade products wholesale → for the full picture.

• Faire has become the dominant wholesale marketplace for artisan brands across North America, the UK, and Europe. Retailers on Faire include independent boutiques, gift shops, and specialty stores. Setup is free for sellers; Faire charges a commission on orders (15% for new retailer relationships, 25% for existing ones you bring to the platform, though their terms are worth checking their site for current rates). They also offer net 60 payment terms and fraud protection on wholesale orders, which removes a lot of the financial risk that comes with wholesale relationships.

• Tundra is a zero-commission wholesale marketplace with no fees on transactions, which means you keep your full wholesale price. Premium placement options are available as paid add-ons. It’s a strong alternative to Faire for sellers who want to avoid commissions entirely, though Faire’s retailer network is currently larger.

Managing multi-channel selling

The main challenge with selling across multiple platforms isn’t setting up the channels. It’s keeping your inventory, costs, and records coherent across all of them.

When an order comes in from Etsy, your Shopify stock needs to update. When you make a batch of products, your materials need to be deducted. When tax time arrives, your COGS needs to be accurate across every channel, not just one.

This is where spreadsheets stop working. A spreadsheet doesn’t know that you sold 5 units on Etsy and 3 on Shopify this week. You have to update it manually every time, which introduces errors and takes hours you’d rather spend making things.

Craftybase connects with Etsy, Shopify, Amazon, Square, and WooCommerce, pulling orders in from each channel and automatically tracking the materials and costs behind every sale. When you manufacture a batch, Craftybase deducts the materials and updates your finished goods stock across all connected channels. Your COGS report at year end pulls from the same system, so there’s no separate calculation required.

If you’re running or planning to run more than one selling channel, having a single source of truth for your inventory pays for itself quickly in time saved and errors avoided.

Frequently Asked Questions