Etsy vs Shopify vs Your Own Website: What Is Best for a UK Small Seller?

For a UK small seller, Etsy is the easiest place to start if you make handmade or vintage goods, Shopify is the right call if you want to build a brand of your own and scale, and a standalone website (built on something like Next.js or WordPress) is rarely the right choice unless you have very specific needs. Most small sellers benefit from doing both Etsy and Shopify in parallel — using Etsy for discovery and Shopify for owned sales.

Etsy vs Shopify vs your own website at a glance

Why does this comparison even matter?

Because the platform you choose to start on shapes how your business grows. Etsy makes it easy to start but harder to ever leave — your reviews, your followers, and your discoverability all live on Etsy's platform, not yours. Shopify is the opposite: harder to start, but everything you build belongs to you.

Most small sellers get this wrong by either:

1. Starting on Etsy and never moving off, even when they could earn more elsewhere
2. Starting on Shopify or a standalone site and never getting any traffic because they have no audience yet

The right answer depends on what you sell, where your traffic comes from, and what you want the business to look like in three years.

When is Etsy the right choice?

Etsy is excellent if all of these are true:

• You make handmade, vintage, or craft items. Etsy's audience is specifically there to buy this kind of thing
• You are starting from zero with no existing audience. Etsy gives you a built-in audience of millions of shoppers
• You are happy paying ~6.5% per sale plus payment processing. That is the cost of using their audience
• You do not mind that Etsy owns the customer relationship. You cannot easily email your Etsy customers to tell them about a new product without going through Etsy's tools

If all of those apply, start on Etsy. Do not overthink it. You can always add a Shopify store later.

When is Shopify the right choice?

Shopify is the better choice if:

• You sell something other than handmade or vintage goods. Etsy's audience does not buy industrial parts, dog accessories, or wedding stationery in the same way they buy ceramics
• You are building a brand you want people to remember. Shopify gives you full control of your storefront, branding, and customer experience
• You have (or are willing to build) your own audience. Through social media, SEO, paid ads, or word-of-mouth — you bring the traffic
• You want lower transaction fees as you grow. Shopify's fees are roughly a third of Etsy's, which adds up fast at higher volumes
• You want to own your customer list. With Shopify, you can email your customers, run loyalty programmes, and build long-term relationships directly

When does a standalone website (not Shopify) make sense?

Almost never, for a small seller selling physical products.

A standalone website means building something on Next.js, WordPress, or similar — no e-commerce platform behind it. You handle the cart, checkout, payment integration, inventory, and everything else manually or through plugins.

This makes sense in maybe three cases:

1. You sell digital products only (downloads, courses, subscriptions) and platforms like Gumroad, Lemon Squeezy, or Payhip do not fit your needs
2. You have very specific functionality requirements that no e-commerce platform supports (e.g. unusual subscription logic, multi-step booking flows tied to physical products)
3. You already have a strong website built on something like Next.js or WordPress and want to keep it as the main site, with shop functionality bolted on

For everyone else, building a standalone shop from scratch is more work for less reward than using Shopify.

Should I do both Etsy and Shopify?

For a lot of UK small sellers, yes. The most common pattern that works:

1. Start on Etsy to get sales coming in and build a customer base
2. Open a Shopify store as soon as you have an audience (around the time Etsy starts feeling restrictive)
3. Use Etsy for new customer discovery and Shopify for repeat buyers and brand-building
4. Drive Etsy customers back to your Shopify store through inserts in packages, business cards, social media, and email (where Etsy's rules allow it)

Over time, more of your sales should come through Shopify and less through Etsy. The transition is gradual and never has to be all-or-nothing.

What does SME Shack recommend?

For UK small sellers we work with:

• Pure handmade/vintage/craft, just starting out: Start on Etsy. Skip the Shopify step until you are getting consistent sales.
• Selling anything else, or wanting a brand: Start on Shopify. We build them from £499 (Starter) or £1,999 (Standard). See services for what is included.
• Established Etsy seller looking to scale: Add a Shopify store on top, run both in parallel for a year or two, then gradually shift weight to Shopify.

We will tell you honestly which approach fits your business in a free discovery call.

Frequently asked questions

Q: How much do Etsy fees actually add up to?

A: For each sale, Etsy charges roughly: a $0.20 USD listing fee per item, a 6.5% transaction fee on the item price (plus shipping if you charge customers), a payment processing fee (usually around 4% + 20p in the UK), and an optional ad fee if you opt into Etsy Ads. For a £20 sale, expect to pay roughly £2.50–£3 in total fees. That is significantly more than Shopify's roughly 2% transaction fee.

Q: Can I sell handmade goods on Shopify, or is it just for retail?

A: Yes, Shopify works fine for handmade goods. The difference is that Shopify does not bring you an audience — you have to drive your own traffic. If you have an Instagram following, run paid ads, or rank in Google search, Shopify will outperform Etsy on margins. If you have no audience, Etsy's built-in shoppers are usually worth the higher fees.

Q: Is it worth moving from Etsy to Shopify?

A: Eventually, almost certainly yes — but only when you have enough audience and demand to justify it. The general rule: if you are getting 50+ orders a month consistently from sources outside Etsy (Instagram, word-of-mouth, your own marketing), Shopify will save you significant money on fees.

Q: Can I transfer my Etsy reviews to Shopify?

A: No. Reviews on Etsy belong to Etsy. You can ask happy customers to leave you Google reviews or testimonials you can display on your Shopify store, but the existing Etsy reviews stay where they are. This is one of the main lock-in risks of building a business entirely on Etsy.

Q: What about marketplaces like Amazon Handmade, eBay, or Not On The High Street?

A: All have their place, but each has tradeoffs. Amazon Handmade has lower visibility than Etsy for craft goods. eBay works well for vintage and pre-owned but feels less curated. Not On The High Street has high commission (~25%) but a more design-led audience. None of them are usually better than Etsy as a starting point for UK handmade sellers, though running both Etsy and one other can spread your risk.