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E-Commerce · head to head

Etsy vs Heartland Retail

Etsy logo

Etsy

E-Commerce

Global marketplace for handmade, vintage, and unique items

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Heartland Retail logo

Heartland Retail

E-Commerce

Cloud point of sale and inventory management sold alongside Heartland card processing

From
$150/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Etsy transaction fees at 6.5% of sale price; Heartland Retail the software is sold as part of a card processing relationship, so the monthly licence understates the real cost and the processing rate is the number that determines what you pay over a year.
  • They diverge on capability: Etsy covers Shop setup, Heartland Retail covers Multi-store inventory.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Etsy and Heartland Retail actually diverge.

Attributes where Etsy and Heartland Retail differ
AttributeEtsyHeartland Retail
Starting priceOn request$150/month
Pricing modeltransactionsubscription
Founded20051997

Identical on both: 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 Heartland Retail

  • Multi-store inventory
  • Cloud point of sale
  • Purchasing and receiving
  • Customer records
  • Sales and stock reporting
  • Integrated card processing
  • E-commerce integrations

What people use each for

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

Etsy

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

Heartland Retail

  • A specialty retailer opening a third or fourth site that needs one stock position across all of themnot Etsy
  • Replacing a legacy on-premise till system that requires a server in the back office of every storenot Etsy
  • A retailer whose buying team needs purchase orders and receiving rather than just a cash registernot Etsy
  • An existing Heartland processing customer consolidating software and payments under one suppliernot 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

Heartland Retail

  • The software is sold as part of a card processing relationship, so the monthly licence understates the real cost and the processing rate is the number that determines what you pay over a year.
  • Leaving means changing till software and merchant account together, and since the payment terminals, the reporting history and the staff training are all tied to the same supplier, the switching cost is far higher than a software migration alone.
  • It is not an online store platform, so a merchant selling on the web still buys and maintains a separate e-commerce platform, and the stock and order integration between the two is an ongoing operational dependency rather than a one-off setup.
  • Historical sales and customer purchase history rarely migrate cleanly out of a point of sale system, so a retailer who switches typically starts with an empty history and keeps the old system read-only, paying for it, for years.
  • Heartland sits within Global Payments, a group that has repeatedly restructured its portfolio through acquisitions and divestitures, so which entity owns and invests in this specific product is not stable over a long contract term.

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

Heartland Retail

$150/month
  • Core$150/month
    • POS system
    • Inventory management
    • Customer management
  • Professional$350/month
    • All Core features
    • Omnichannel
    • Advanced analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Etsy if

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

Choose Heartland Retail if

  • You need multi-store inventory.
  • You also want cloud point of sale.
Heartland Retail review

Questions people ask

Is Etsy or Heartland Retail better?
Neither clearly leads. Etsy starts at On request and Heartland Retail at $150/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Etsy or Heartland Retail?
Etsy starts at On request and Heartland Retail at $150/month.
Does Etsy or Heartland Retail 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 Heartland Retail is typically brought in for.
What can Etsy do that Heartland Retail cannot?
Etsy covers Shop setup, Product listings, Payment processing, Shop customization. Heartland Retail covers Multi-store inventory, Cloud point of sale, Purchasing and receiving, Customer records.

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
Heartland Retail: Can I use it as my online store?

No. It manages the shop floor and stock. Selling online means a separate e-commerce platform and an integration to keep the catalogue and stock aligned.

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
Heartland Retail: Do I have to use Heartland for card processing?

The product is sold as part of a payments relationship, and that is where the supplier's margin sits. Ask explicitly what the software costs standalone before assuming you have a choice.

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
Heartland Retail: What should I negotiate hardest on?

The card processing rate and the contract term, not the software subscription. Ask for interchange-plus pricing in writing rather than a blended rate.

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
Heartland Retail: What happens to my sales history if I leave?

Assume products and current stock export cleanly and that years of transaction history do not. Budget for keeping the old system available read-only during any transition.

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