Softwr

E-Commerce · head to head

Etsy vs Gumroad

Etsy logo

Etsy

E-Commerce

Global marketplace for handmade, vintage, and unique items

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Gumroad logo

Gumroad

E-Commerce

Hosted storefront for selling digital products, memberships and courses on a per sale fee

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Etsy transaction fees at 6.5% of sale price; Gumroad the fee is a flat percentage of every sale with no monthly plan to cap it, so a product that succeeds pays proportionally more forever, and past a certain monthly revenue a self-hosted cart plus a payment processor costs a fraction of it.
  • They diverge on capability: Etsy covers Shop setup, Gumroad covers Digital product delivery.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Etsy and Gumroad actually diverge.

Attributes where Etsy and Gumroad differ
AttributeEtsyGumroad
Founded2005Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (transaction), free tier (No), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (E-Commerce).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Etsy

  • Shop setup
  • Product listings
  • Payment processing
  • Shop customization
  • Order management
  • Shipping labels
  • Reviews & ratings
  • Shipping protection

Only in Gumroad

  • Digital product delivery
  • Memberships and subscriptions
  • Merchant of record
  • No monthly subscription
  • Discover marketplace
  • Hosted checkout
  • Licence keys
  • Email to customers

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Etsy

  • Selling handmade crafts and unique itemsnot Gumroad
  • Reselling vintage goods and collectiblesnot Gumroad
  • Marketing handpicked curated productsnot Gumroad
  • Operating storefront with secured payment processingnot Gumroad

Gumroad

  • An individual creator selling ebooks, templates or presets without wanting to run any infrastructurenot Etsy
  • A developer selling a small software product that needs licence key issuance and deliverynot Etsy
  • A writer or educator running a paid membership or course for an existing audiencenot Etsy
  • Anyone selling digital goods internationally who does not want to register for VAT across jurisdictionsnot Etsy

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Etsy

  • Transaction fees at 6.5% of sale price
  • Payment processing fee of 3% plus $0.25 per transaction
  • 15% offsite ads fee for sales from Etsy external advertising
  • No monthly subscription covers fees - all fees per transaction

Gumroad

  • The fee is a flat percentage of every sale with no monthly plan to cap it, so a product that succeeds pays proportionally more forever, and past a certain monthly revenue a self-hosted cart plus a payment processor costs a fraction of it.
  • Sales that come through the Discover marketplace carry a substantially higher cut, so marketplace-sourced revenue is materially less profitable than direct revenue and the two need tracking separately to know what the channel is really worth.
  • The storefront is a Gumroad-hosted page with limited layout and branding control, so the customer experience is recognisably Gumroad's rather than yours, and there is no template language to extend it.
  • Stored payment methods cannot be transferred to another platform, so migrating an active membership requires every subscriber to re-enter their card, and the churn that causes is the real exit cost rather than any contract term.
  • Acting as merchant of record means Gumroad, not you, is the party in the customer's bank statement and in the tax records, which simplifies compliance but weakens the direct customer relationship and limits what you can do with the transaction data.

Pricing, plan by plan

Etsy

On request
  • Seller Fees$0.2/listing
    • Listing fee per item for 4 months
  • Transaction Fee$6.5/percent
    • 6.5% of sale price including shipping
  • Payment Processing Fee$3/percent
    • 3% of sale price plus $0.25 per transaction
  • Offsite Ads Fee$15/percent
    • 15% of sale price when sale results from Etsy external advertising

Gumroad

On request
  • Direct Sales$undefined/mo
  • Marketplace Discovery$undefined/mo

Which should you pick?

Choose Etsy if

  • You need shop setup.
  • You also want product listings.
Etsy review

Choose Gumroad if

  • You need digital product delivery.
  • You also want memberships and subscriptions.
Gumroad review

Questions people ask

Is Etsy or Gumroad better?
Neither clearly leads. Etsy starts at On request and Gumroad at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Etsy or Gumroad?
Etsy starts at On request and Gumroad at On request.
Does Etsy or Gumroad run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Etsy best used for?
Etsy is most often used for selling handmade crafts and unique items, reselling vintage goods and collectibles, marketing handpicked curated products, operating storefront with secured payment processing. Of those, selling handmade crafts and unique items and reselling vintage goods and collectibles are not what Gumroad is typically brought in for.
What can Etsy do that Gumroad cannot?
Etsy covers Shop setup, Product listings, Payment processing, Shop customization. Gumroad covers Digital product delivery, Memberships and subscriptions, Merchant of record, No monthly subscription.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Etsy: What is the listing fee on Etsy?

Each listing costs $0.20 and is active for 4 months. You only pay transaction and payment processing fees when you make a sale.

Source
Gumroad: How does Gumroad charge?

A flat percentage of each sale rather than a monthly subscription, with a higher rate on sales it sources through Discover. Check the current pricing page for whether payment processing is included in or added to that percentage.

Etsy: What are Etsy's transaction and payment fees?

Etsy charges 6.5% transaction fee on the sale price including shipping, plus 3% and $0.25 for payment processing per transaction. If a sale results from Etsy's external advertising, an additional 15% offsite ads fee applies.

Source
Gumroad: When does it stop making financial sense?

When your monthly revenue times the percentage exceeds what a hosted cart subscription plus standard processing would cost. That crossover arrives earlier than most sellers expect.

Etsy: Are there monthly subscription costs?

No, Etsy does not require a monthly subscription. You pay per listing ($0.20) and transaction-based fees when you make sales.

Source
Gumroad: Does it handle VAT on digital goods?

Yes. It acts as merchant of record and takes on calculating and remitting VAT and sales tax on digital sales, which is the main reason solo creators selling internationally choose it.

Etsy: What types of items can I sell on Etsy?

Etsy allows items you made, designed, handpicked, or sourced that meet Creativity Standards. The marketplace focuses on unique, handmade, or vintage goods rather than mass-produced items.

Source
Gumroad: Can I move my subscribers elsewhere later?

You can export customer records, but not stored payment methods. Every active subscriber has to re-enter a card on the new platform, and some will not.

Gumroad: Can I sell physical products?

It is built for digital goods. Inventory, shipping and fulfilment are not what it is designed around, so a physical catalogue belongs on a store platform.

Share

Related pages

More on Etsy

More on Gumroad

Keep looking

Other head to heads