Online selling is one of the best ways to make money today. That’s true! It’s also true that it’s easy to start, but the major challenge is getting on the best-selling platform right for you.
It’s a challenge because thousands of online business platforms exist, and you might face a dilemma trying to choose the one best for you.
So, to help you out, we will discuss the two leading online marketplaces in this article: Etsy and eBay, which are among the best platforms that connect sellers with a world of buyers.
Statistics show that as of 2013, eBay boasted an active user base of over 112 million, while Etsy had 22 million members and generated nearly $900 million in sales. Although both are notable platforms with similar features, they differ in many areas.
Some of the areas are what we will talk about here. Just read carefully, as we will put them head-to-head across these areas so you can see exactly how they stack up for your business.
Remember, make sure your choice depends on what you want to sell and the level of commitment you want to put into it.
Table of contents
What is eBay?
eBay is an online shopping site that’s best known for its auctions and consumer to consumer sales. This site is mostly used by online merchants as a sales channel.
EBay is currently among the top leading online marketplace with competitors like PayPal, Kijiji, StubHub, and over 180 million active buyers.
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eBay Pros
eBay has so many advantages that make it stand out from Etsy and other online selling platforms. Some of them include the following:
- Listing products on the eBay platform is very simple for sellers.
- There is a variety of markets on eBay, unlike other platforms. On eBay, you can reach millions of buyers that want what you are selling.
- The platform is worldwide. This means all eBay users will see anything you place on eBay for sale across the globe.
- Moreso, with the wide variety of products available on eBay, you can sell anything you want to sell once it’s legal.
Despite the upside and benefits of eBay to sellers and buyers, it still has shortcomings known as its cons.
eBay Cons
Some of these cons include the following:
- High cost. Although fees on eBay depending on the products you sell, it’s expensive compared to other platforms. For instance, the site charges 10% for whatever you sell on the platform.
- eBay doesn’t have trustworthy buyers. That means a buyer can develop an interest in buying something and end up not paying for it.
- Another shortcoming of this site is that buyers benefit more than the sellers. This has been a major challenge on the platform.
What is Etsy?
Etsy is a global online marketplace where sellers connect with buyers to sell a variety of handmade or vintage products.
This platform gives traders the opportunity to search for and buy vintage products unique arts and crafts that are difficult to find anywhere else. On Etsy, you can sell or buy the following products” Arts, Crafts and crafting supplies, Jewelry, Paper goods, Housewares, Artisan foods, Small-batch cosmetics, Handmade personal care items, and Clothing.
Now let’s look at some of the pros of Etsy
Etsy Pros
- Setting up an Etsy store is also easy just like eBay. For instance, it will take you less than 20 minutes to get your Etsy store up and running with products for sale.
- A variety of payment options are available
- If you have a new store, Etsy will benefit you more. This is because Etsy is built in a way that traffic gets to new stores.
- The listing fees on Etsy are just $0.20 per item which is less than some other platforms.
- Large marketplace with approximately 40 million active buyers are specifically on the search for unique handmade products.
- It has more e-commerce Sellers who can quickly set up a brand and payment options and generate shipping labels for orders with no HTML or CSS.
- It also has forums and easy customer service options, making selling on Etsy a breeze.
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Etsy Cons
- Requires more time and resources as separate listings need to be created for each product.
- There are limited branding opportunities.
- Products can be replicated easily on Etsy.
- There is no room for customization because the listings are relatively unimaginative.
eBay vs. Etsy: Getting Started
No matter the platform you finally go for, the first step you must take is ‘getting started.’ This involves registering to become a user.
Both eBay and Esty have their own way of signing up to become a user which differs.
For eBay, follow the steps below
- Signing up for an eBay account
- Sell on eBay
- Creating a listing
- Pricing your items
- Setting up your shipping options
On the other hand, the following are steps to becoming a user on Esty:
- Opening a shop
- Complete shop setup
- Create and adding listings
- Marketing and promotion
- Manage your shop
Note, once the process is complete, your next step will promote your products, and after that, managing the store.
Selling on eBay vs Etsy
One thing that distinguishes eBay and Etsy is what has been sold on each platform.
On eBay, you can sell or buy anything as long as it’s legal. One of the world’s largest marketplace that allows a diverse array of buyers and sellers to transact. You can sell or buy anything, whether it’s handmade, used items, vintage items, antiques, or found objects.
On the other side, Etsy is a global marketplace that allows for selling and buying unique and creative products. You can sell or buy items like vintage, jewelry, clothing, art, furniture, home décor, toys, as well as craft supplies and tools.
eBay vs. Etsy: Sell fees
For eBay, the fees depend on whether or not you buy a store. And also on the plan you choose as a seller.
These fees can be monthly or annual automatically or through one-time payments.
For monthly payments, the cost ranges from $19.95-$299.95, depending on the plan you want. For annual payment, the cost ranges from $24.95-$349.95. And there are 50 free listings each month to help encourage sellers to sell more.
On the contrary, Etsy fees are more defined and better when compared with eBay fees. This is because there is no monthly fee or yearly plan to sell on Etsy. However, Etsy charges a $0.20 listing fee and a 3.5% commission fee on an item’s sales. Also, there is a 5% transaction fee on payments.
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eBay vs. Etsy: Performance
When it comes to performance, seller experience on both eBay and Esty to two different things.
Seller success contributes a lot to eBay’s progress. That is the more hardworking you are as a seller, the more reward you will get from eBay.
Therefore, you are encouraged by eBay to create a pleasant user experience and to make many purchases in return for eBay’s acceptance stamp-seller standard.
Once you get the acceptance stamp, you can easily earn buyers’ trust, which will, in return, help you make further sales on the platform.
To be among the high-ranked sellers on eBay, you must first have an account that has been on for at least 3 months, with not less than 100 purchases and $1,000 in global and U.S. revenue.
On Etsy, sellers’ performances are less critical and not as heavily scrutinized by the website. Customer views matter the most. Etsy Reviews allow customers to score their Etsy buying experience.
However, sellers are part of Etsy’s vast maker community. It allows sellers to provide feedback and supportive input to each other via Etsy’s community forums.
eBay vs. Etsy: Selling Tools
eBay
As a general platform, eBay provides various business management tools for its users. These tools aim at helping them expand their listings and thrive. Some of these tools include:
- Seller Hub. As a seller, this tool will enable you streamline their business operations and increase sales.
- Selling Templates. With these templates, you can create listings that are of high quality easily.
- The eBay App. With this eBay tools, you can work easily with other tools on eBay.
- Sales Reports. With these report tools, you can keep track of your business and make proper business decisions.
Etsy
On the contrary, Etsy does not provide any tools to simplify the sales process. However, Etsy has the benefit of being easy to access and does not require any in-depth experience of the e-commerce industry to be offered on this website.
These sellers’ platforms make eBay an outstanding forum for experienced online vendors.
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Etsy vs. eBay: Which is Best?
I can’t really tell you to go for anyone in particular because both are outstanding online marketplaces that can be of great help to your business. All you have to do is to choose based on what you intend to sell and who your potential customers are.
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