Shopify and Etsy have been around since 2000 and have earned great reputations for being leaders in the eCommerce industry. However, when it comes to deciding between them for your online business, there are certain factors that you should weigh before narrowing down your choice.
Because facts never lie, you may say that Shopify is better than Etsy. But this might not be true when considering certain factors. Deciding between them depends on how you plan to do your business, setting goals, budgeting, etc.
To get a clear picture, this post will compare these two platforms based on key features. That way, you can decide for yourself which one is better suited for your business needs. Let’s get started.
What is Shopify?
Founded in 2004, Shopify has been a favorite for many eCommerce businesses. It is a fully-hosted solution that makes it easy for you to set up and start your online store in no time. Shopify gives merchants unprecedented capabilities while providing a pleasant and smooth user experience.
If you are looking to create your website quickly without technical know-how, Shopify is the right choice for you.
What is Etsy?
Launched in 2005, Etsy is another popular marketplace, quite similar to eBay and Amazon. All you have to do is register an account and start displaying your products in your allocated space. For businesses that want to start small, Etsy is the best choice.
Etsy might be the best option when it comes to developing products, retaining customers, and working on promotions. Still, it cannot manage your online store and scale your business.
Key differences between Shopify and Etsy:
Now that you have a little idea about the platforms, let’s analyze them in detail and get to know more about them.
Shopify is an eCommerce platform where you can build your online store from scratch. Besides, the onboarding process is straightforward. But the overall process is time-consuming. You have to sign up to Shopify by providing important details.
Next, choose your desired subscription plan and your online store gets created. There are lots of customizations that you have to follow through. Although Shopify has a user-friendly interface, many users have found the editor a bit hard to use.
Etsy, on the other hand, is easy and quick to get up and running. Create an account by signing up. Choose �Sell on Etsy’, enter your store name and description, and upload a logo. List your products, price them, and start selling.
Shopify isn’t the right platform for users who take business as a side hustle. But if you are reluctant to run your business full-time, Shopify has the right tools to scale your business. Shopify comes with a few plans so that you can start and grow your business steadily.
When revenue starts to flow, you can upgrade to a new plan. With more than 3000 plugins and apps, Shopify help increase your online store’s functionality and run it effectively. You can bring traffic to the store and have a successful conversion.
Etsy is a well-established marketplace that helps attract consistent traffic regularly. The best part is that you don’t have to spend on marketing strategies because Etsy gives you access to huge traffic.
But your store on Etsy isn’t your own. Also, you just can’t sell anything on it. In addition, you have to pay charges for every sale that you make. The only way to scale your business is to opt for a plus plan.
Shopify comes with potential features equipped to help you create your online store effectively. You can easily manage and market your business while building a brand. In short, Shopify has the right tools and features for your eCommerce business.
With Shopify, you don’t even have to worry about hosting as well. Custom domain helps your business improve its recognition and builds trust at the same time. Moreover, Shopify comes with well-design themes, integrates with more than 100 payment gateways, and has a diversified app store.
Because Etsy has steady traffic, you can’t rely on traffic as your own. That’s why Etsy suits best for people who want to have a passive income source. It is not for people who are thinking about having a primary source of income.
On top of that, Etsy has a limitation on the type of products that you list on the store. Additionally, it comes with basic features that may not suit many businesses. Etsy is a marketplace with no options for inventory management.
Shopify integrates over 100 payment gateways including some of the major ones such as Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and so on. The transaction fees can be anywhere between 0.5% and 2%. However, the payment gateway integrated into your store may come with its pricing.
Etsy offers ten payment options. They accept payments from all debit and credit cards, Google Pay, PayPal, and so on. Etsy offers country-specific payment options as well. The fees come at 5% including a processing fee of 3% plus $0.25 for every transaction. While the charges might look a bit expensive, you don’t have to pay until you sell something.
Although you may not feel the heat of transaction charges when you have just started. But when your business grows, and you start to earn more money, the transaction charges might bother you if you choose Etsy. Paying a lot of money is a major problem with Etsy. Not to forget, Etsy has a $0.20 listing fee as well.
Conclusion
Both Shopify and Etsy are great platforms to start your eCommerce business. However, Shopify has a strong network that can impact your business to a great extent. Shopify has plenty of developers working around the clock to build apps while creating a robust ecosystem for effective integrations.
Still, wondering which one to choose for your eCommerce business? Perhaps, you should hire Shopify Experts Agency so that they can jumpstart your online store in style. Shopify Experts Agency helps businesses accelerate their online visibility using intuitive strategies and scale their businesses. Get in touch with them and get started now.
If you want a Free 14 day trial, click on this link.
Presently, Edwin is the Founder and Lead Design and Development Director of Rezolutions Design, a full-service digital agency based on Aventura Florida which works with fortune 500 companies.
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