inventory management

Etsy Spreadsheets — The Guide to Better Organizing Your Business

Looking for a spreadsheet to track your Etsy store? Whether you're an Etsy newbie or an experienced seller, this guide will show you how to use spreadsheets in your business and why it is important.

Etsy Spreadsheets — The Guide to Better Organizing Your Business

Are you an Etsy seller looking to get a little better organised? An inventory spreadsheet can be a great way to do that — especially when you’re just starting out.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to set up your own spreadsheet, what to track, and how to use it to manage your Etsy inventory and orders. We’ll also be honest about where spreadsheets start to break down, and what to do when that happens.

Last updated: March 2026.

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Why is important to have a spreadsheet tracking system in place?

Etsy spreadsheet

Let’s cover why you need some sort of inventory tracking system first. As a craft business owner, it’s hugely important to be able to track your materials, costs, and orders.

Why? Because without knowing this information, you run the risk of running out of materials, not being able to ship products on time, and losing track of your costs.

By having a tracking system in place, you can avoid these potential problems and keep your business running smoothly. There are a number of different ways to do this, from basic pen-and-paper solutions to more advanced inventory management systems that integrate with Etsy.

For this article, we’ll cover how you can best use spreadsheets to keep better track of your Etsy business.

Remember that whichever method you choose, make sure it’s something that you’re comfortable with and that will work for your particular craft business. An inventory and tracking system will be a valuable asset to your business and will help you keep on top of everything — so you can continue to provide high-quality handcrafted products and focus on providing outstanding service to your customers.

Why should craft sellers use spreadsheets?

Most people who are interested in starting a craft business have a passion for creativity. But the nitty-gritty details of running a business? That’s where many start to feel a bit lost — if you are one of these, don’t fret. It’s completely normal.

Spreadsheets may not sound like the most glamorous part of starting a business, but they can be incredibly helpful in getting your business organised from the start.

You can use spreadsheets to track your inventory, calculate your costs, and determine your pricing. They also help you keep tabs on sales and expenses so you can see where your business is making and losing money. In short, spreadsheets are an essential tool for any new handmade craft business owner.

See also: How to price handmade items →

What should I look for in an Etsy spreadsheet?

There are many different ways to set up a spreadsheet for your Etsy business. But there are a few things that all good spreadsheets have in common. First, they should be easy to understand and use. Second, they should be able to track all of the important information about your business. And third, they should be able to grow with you as your business grows.

You can consider buying or downloading a pre-made spreadsheet. Here are some examples of ones you might like to take a look at:

Some examples of Etsy seller spreadsheets include the following. (For a full, side-by-side look at the best free Etsy inventory spreadsheets, check out our 2026 guide that reviews each template and explains what it does well.)

Choosing the right Etsy seller spreadsheet will depend on your specific needs. All of these spreadsheets can help you better manage your business and keep track of important information.

Making your own Etsy Spreadsheet

Now that you know what to look for in a good spreadsheet, let’s talk about how to set one up yourself.

If you like to be in control and know your way around Excel or Google Sheets, creating your own seller’s spreadsheet is the way to go. You can tailor the spreadsheet to fit your own unique circumstances, and adapt it when the needs of your business change.

When creating an inventory spreadsheet, there are a few key columns and data points that you’ll need to include as a starting point:

Product Tab

First, you’ll need a place to list your product item’s name and, ideally, its SKU. This will help you keep track of what you have in stock.

You’ll also need to include the item’s current quantity, price, and any low stock limits that apply. This will help you track stock levels and keep an eye on trends.

Materials tab

You’ll also need to create a tab with all the materials you have on hand, their current quantities, unit cost, and the reorder points (this will allow you to see which ones are running low on stock and need to be reordered).

For each, you might also like to track the location. This helps make sure items are stored correctly and can be found quickly when needed.

Make tab

This tab should contain a list of all the times you create a new batch of your product. You’ll want to list the date, what was made, and how many were made. Ideally, create a unique code to represent the batch so you can cross-reference this if need be for any future recalls. Lot numbers representing each of the materials you used to create the batch is also a handy thing to track here.

Expenses tab

Each time you purchase a new material, you’ll want a place to document this in your spreadsheet. This will allow you to see your expenditure at a glance and keep tabs on your spending.

Orders tab

Tracking your sales is also an important part of the inventory tracking puzzle, as this will show you how many you are selling of which of your products.

Once you have the basics in place, now it’s time to start entering data into your spreadsheet. As you add new products, buy new materials, or make sales, be sure to update your spreadsheet so that it always reflects the most up-to-date information about your business.

Why spreadsheets may not be the best option for your craft small business

Spreadsheets are a popular tool for tracking inventory, but they also have several disadvantages:

Spreadsheets can be difficult to keep updated.

As inventory levels change, you need to manually update the spreadsheet, which can be time-consuming and error-prone. If you have a lot of products, it can also be difficult to keep track of all the different spreadsheet cells that need to be updated.

That’s doubly true if you didn’t build your spreadsheet from scratch — downloaded templates or someone else’s setup may have formulas that are hard to follow, which makes updating the data even more error-prone.

You also need to be careful about formulas and cells that reference other cells in the spreadsheet — if you move or delete a cell, it can break the formula and cause errors.

Spreadsheets have limited inventory features

Spreadsheets also have limited features when compared to inventory management software. For example, you can’t set up alerts to notify you when inventory levels are low, or automatically create purchase orders based on your sales data.

Spreadsheets are difficult to share

Spreadsheets can be challenging to share with others. If you need to collaborate on inventory management with someone else, you’d need to send them a copy of the spreadsheet. This can lead to version control issues, as different people may have different versions of the file.

Spreadsheets do not scale as your business grows

Finally, spreadsheets can be difficult to use for complex inventory management tasks. Martin from Miller Lights experienced this firsthand — after years of pen-and-paper tracking that led to late orders and missing parts, he switched to Craftybase and has been using it successfully for over 12 years across multiple sales channels. Jeff from Spade to Fork transitioned away from a complex network of custom spreadsheets to prevent costly errors in formula logic as his organic gardening supply business expanded into brick-and-mortar retail. And Kasia from Rustic Maka has been using Craftybase for over a decade after her spreadsheets failed under the growing complexity of SKUs and batch sizes — her two-person team now manages natural body care inventory across four sales channels.

If you need to track a large number of items, or if you need to track multiple types of information about each item, a spreadsheet can quickly become unwieldy. Features that you may start to need as you grow — such as lot tracking, expiration date tracking, and product variants — are not possible with a spreadsheet. At that point, you’ll need to start looking for purpose-built inventory management software.

When spreadsheets stop working: signs it’s time to move on

Spreadsheets are a great start. Here’s when you know you’ve outgrown them.

Most makers don’t switch tools the moment their spreadsheet gets unwieldy. They push through. They add new tabs, patch broken formulas, and build workarounds. And then one day something goes wrong — a stockout, a mis-priced product, a tax return that doesn’t add up — and they realise the spreadsheet has been holding them back for months.

Here are the clearest signals that it’s time to upgrade:

  • You’re manually copying data from Etsy into your spreadsheet. If every sale requires you to open a browser, copy an order, and paste it into a cell, you’re doing work that software can do automatically.
  • You’ve had a stockout because you didn’t notice a material running low. Spreadsheets won’t tell you when you’re running out — you have to notice yourself. That’s a problem when you’re busy.
  • You can’t quickly answer “what did this product actually cost me to make?” If calculating your real cost per unit requires opening multiple tabs and doing mental maths, your pricing decisions are based on guesswork.
  • You’re selling on more than one channel. Managing inventory across Etsy, a website, and markets in one spreadsheet is genuinely painful. Version control becomes a nightmare.
  • Tax time is a scramble. If you dread the end of the year because it means reconstructing COGS from patchy records, a purpose-built tool will save you hours — and errors.

If two or more of these sound familiar, it’s worth looking at what dedicated Etsy inventory software can do for you.

Moving from a spreadsheet to purpose-built inventory management software

If you’ve decided that a spreadsheet is no longer the best solution for managing your inventory, you may be wondering what the next step is. The good news is that many purpose-built inventory management software solutions are available to help you.

When choosing inventory management software, the first thing to do is think about your specific needs. For example, if you sell perishable goods, you will most likely need a solution that can track expiration dates. Or, if you sell products in multiple colors and sizes, you will need a solution that can track product variants.

It’s also important to choose a solution that is easy to use and that can grow with your business. Look for a solution that offers a free trial so that you can try it out before committing to a paid plan.

Craftybase is purpose-built inventory management software for small businesses

Craftybase is inventory management software that has been purpose-built for small Etsy businesses. It offers all the features you need, including lot tracking, expiration date tracking, and product variants.

Craftybase is easy to use, with a clean and user-friendly interface. It’s also scalable, so it can grow with your business. Plus, it offers a free trial so that you can try it out before committing to a paid plan.

Craftybase is the complete package for any successful Etsy seller, featuring raw materials and finished product tracking, manufacturing, COGS, bill of materials, pricing guidance, and consignment. Try Craftybase for free for 14 days >

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I include in an Etsy inventory spreadsheet?

A solid Etsy inventory spreadsheet should cover at least four areas: products (name, SKU, quantity, price), materials (stock on hand, unit cost, reorder points), orders (what sold, when, and for how much), and expenses (every material purchase with the date and supplier). Most sellers start with products only and add the rest as their business grows — but tracking materials from the start makes a big difference for calculating real product costs.

Is there a free Etsy inventory spreadsheet I can use?

Yes — Craftybase offers a free Etsy inventory spreadsheet at /etsy-inventory-spreadsheet that you can download and use straight away. It's built for Etsy sellers specifically and covers products, materials, and basic COGS tracking. There are also paid templates on Etsy itself from independent sellers if you want something more customised to a particular craft type.

When should I switch from a spreadsheet to Etsy inventory software?

The clearest signs are: you've had a stockout because you didn't notice materials running low, you can't quickly calculate what a product actually costs to make, you're manually copying Etsy orders into your spreadsheet, or tax time is a scramble because your COGS records are patchy. If two or more of those sound familiar, a dedicated tool like Craftybase will save you far more time than it costs — especially once you connect it directly to your Etsy shop so orders sync automatically.

Can I use Google Sheets to manage my Etsy inventory?

Google Sheets works well for early-stage sellers — it's free, accessible from any device, and easy to share with a collaborator. The main limitations are that it won't automatically pull in your Etsy orders, it can't calculate COGS dynamically as you make and sell products, and it doesn't have built-in low-stock alerts. For sellers doing fewer than 50 orders a month, a Google Sheets template is often enough. Once you're past that, the manual data entry tends to outweigh the benefits of keeping it free.

How do I track both materials and finished products in a spreadsheet?

Use separate tabs for materials and products, and create a third "Make" tab to record each production run. When you make a batch, log the materials used (type, quantity, cost) and the finished goods produced. This lets you calculate a cost per unit for each product — even if it changes over time as material prices shift. The tricky part is that this has to be done manually, and the formulas can get complicated. If you find yourself spending more time maintaining the spreadsheet than it saves you, that's the signal to look at purpose-built tools.

Conclusion

A spreadsheet can be a great way to keep track of your Etsy business, at least initially.

Remember that an Etsy spreadsheet is just a tool. Regardless of the way you choose to track your Etsy inventory, the real key to success is staying organised, implementing good procedures, and keeping good records.

With a little bit of effort, you can make sure your Etsy business is running like a well-oiled machine!

Want to learn more about Etsy Inventory Management? Etsy Inventory Management - The Ultimate Guide here.

Nicole PascoeNicole Pascoe - Profile

Written by Nicole Pascoe

Nicole is the co-founder of Craftybase, inventory and manufacturing software designed for small manufacturers. She has been working with, and writing articles for, small manufacturing businesses for the last 12 years. Her passion is to help makers to become more successful with their online endeavors by empowering them with the knowledge they need to take their business to the next level.
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