I would like to share with you what I have learnt through my personal experiences over the past 7 years working on Amazon Handmade and Etsy. The information provided I hope will be helpful in your decision on selecting what platform would work best for your business.

Getting started
Etsy founded in 2005 focused on handmade and vintage products. The platform created an opportunity for artisans to present their unique handmade arts and crafts. In 2013 Etsy changed its policy allowing sellers to hire as many people as they need to run their businesses and to partner with outside manufacturers to produce their goods. Although I appreciate the motive behind the change which was to provide an opportunity to launch and expand my business, it had an adverse effect. In 2013 my business slowed drastically and designs that were once unique to my shop now flooded the platform at much cheaper costs.

Amazon Handmade launched in 2015, is a microsite that sells handcrafted goods to consumers in 30 countries. In order to sell on Amazon Handmade you need to qualify by submitting an artisan application. I prefer this process because it encourages a more authentic artisanal space by auditing each shop prior to accepting them to ensure the items are genuinely handmade. In addition, Amazon Handmade does not allow listings that violate the intellectual property rights of brands or other rights owners.

Seller Customer Service
The most important aspect of any business is customer service. Most times we forget that we are customers as well as business owners when we decide to select a platform to host our businesses.

Based on my user experience I find Amazon Handmade to be more user friendly in terms of seller customer service.
Amazon Handmade provides sellers with a direct phone number to a live service associate for immediate assistance with general inquires and troubleshooting any issue that may arise while navigating the platform. This service has provided me with immediate assistance with customer relation issues (reporting erroneous feedbacks etc.), marketing/promotional tips, product listing guidance and much more.

Etsy provides sellers with a contact e-mail. In the words of a previous Etsy CEO Chad Dickerson “All commerce is about real human interaction,” which sums up why I believe Amazon Handmade wins over Etsy for the having better seller customer service. Being able to speak with someone directly provides a more real human interaction for me.

Fees
Amazon Handmade fees are slightly higher than Etsy.

Amazon Handmade offers free product listings. They deduct a 15% referral fee from each product sale + shipping cost.

Etsy charges $0.20 per item listing which expires every four months. In addition to the listing fee, Etsy charges 5% from each sale + shipping costs.

Amazon Handmade referral fee deducts only from each product sale and not your shipping cost.

Getting Paid
With Etsy all funds resulting from a completed transaction will be reflected as a balance in a seller’s payment account. Transactions are considered complete once the payment is approved by Etsy. Funds in a payment account balance are eligible for deposit (the “Available Funds”) into a seller’s bank account at the end of any applicable deposit delay, reserve, or hold period as determined by the seller’s bank. Sellers can select the frequency of disbursements for their payment within their account settings with the options of daily, weekly, biweekly, or monthly basis. Basically, Etsy funds are available to you immediately once the transaction is completed.

Amazon Handmade payment process is quite long and confusing for sellers. Completed transactions will not be reflected in the seller’s payment account until the item has been marked as shipped by the seller. The funds in a seller’s payment account balance are only eligible for on demand disbursement (should you qualify) to your bank account 7 days after the latest estimated delivery date. The delivery date is set up by you in your seller account within the shipping settings. Example, if the delivery transit time for your item is 2-5 business days Amazon Handmade will mark the item delivered on the 5th day and 7 days after the transaction becomes available for disbursement. Should you not qualify for on demand disbursement after the 7 business days for the available funds, Amazon Handmade automatically disburse the funds an additional 7 days after, which is wait time of 14 days for the completed transactions. Once the funds are disbursed by you or automatically by Amazon Handmade it takes an additional 3-5 business days to be deposited into your bank account. The total time if added up would be the (transit time for shipment + 14 days after delivery date + 5 days for deposit to your bank account) The minimum wait time for payment for 1 transaction we can then say is 24 days!

Obviously, it is clear Etsy wins this battle of how you get paid!

I would love to share more on what I have learnt about differences between Amazon Handmade and Etsy but that would make for quite a long read! These differences can greatly impact your business as I have personally experienced. I would encourage you to continue to learn more in order to make the right decision for your business.

Please leave a comment below with any questions you may have.

Thank you