How Much Does Etsy Take? Etsy’s Take Rate Analysis

In 2021, Etsy’s take rate was 17.26%. It means that on each sale that happened through the platform, Etsy was able to retain over 17%. Indeed, on a total Gross Sales Volume of $13.5 billion in 2021, Etsy generated over $2.3 billion in revenues.

YearTake Rate
201916.4%
202016.8%
202117.26%
Etsy’s Accelerating Funnel
Active Buyers88.3M
Repeat Buyers35.5M
Habitual Buyers7.6M

Ket Highlights

  • Etsy’s Take Rate:
    • In 2021, Etsy’s take rate, which represents the percentage of each sale that Etsy retains, was 17.26%.
    • This indicates that Etsy was able to retain over 17% of the value of each transaction that occurred on its platform.
  • Revenue Generation:
    • Based on the take rate of 17.26%, Etsy generated significant revenue from its platform.
    • With a total Gross Sales Volume of $13.5 billion in 2021, Etsy’s revenue amounted to over $2.3 billion.
  • User Engagement Funnel:
    • Etsy’s user engagement funnel reflects the progression of user activity on the platform.
    • The platform had 88.3 million active buyers in 2021, representing the total number of individuals making purchases.
    • Among these buyers, there were 35.5 million repeat buyers who engaged with the platform more than once.
    • Additionally, Etsy had 7.6 million habitual buyers, indicating users who regularly and consistently made purchases on the platform.
  • Yearly Take Rate Trends:
    • Over the years, Etsy’s take rate has shown an upward trend:
      • In 2019, the take rate was 16.4%.
      • In 2020, it increased to 16.8%.
      • In 2021, it further rose to 17.26%.

Etsy’s marketing strategy explained.

etsy-marketing-strategy
In 2022, Etsy had 88.3 million active buyers, over 35 million repeat buyers, and 7.6 million habitual buyers. Etsy’s funnel is skewed toward enabling active buyers to become habitual buyers, which is critical for long-term sustained growth in a two-sided digital marketplace.

Building a long-lasting advantage for a digital platform requires a company to combine product/engineering, marketing, and distribution to enhance a growth funnel.

In the case of Etsy, its funnel is focused on ensuring that sellers list unique items on the platform while buyers become repeat first, then habitual buyers.

This is the Etsy marketing strategy in a nutshell.

Etsy business model explained

etsy-business-model
Etsy is a two-sided marketplace for unique and creative goods. As a marketplace, it makes money via transaction fees on the items sold on the platform. Etsy’s key partner comprises sellers providing unique listings and a wide organic reach across several marketing channels. Etsy generated over $2.3 billion in revenues in 2021; it counts 88.3 million active buyers and 5.3 million active sellers as of 2022. 

For that matter, Etsy’s business model is focused on the two sides of its network, sellers to list unique items and buyers to transition from first-time to habitual buyers.

That is where technology, marketing, and distribution come together.

To enable a customized journey for users to be prompted to purchase continuously to Etsy while providing enhanced trust through the platform.

Read Next: Etsy Business Model, Etsy Flywheel, Etsy Marketing Strategy.

Related Visual Stories

Etsy Revenue

Etsy Revenue
Etsy generated $2.75 billion in 2023, compared to $2.56 billion in 2022, $2.33 billion in 2021, and $1.72 billion in 2020.

Etsy GMS

Etsy GMS
Etsy generated $13.16 billion in Gross Merchandise Sales (GMS) in 2023, compared to $13.32 billion in 2022, $13.49 in 2021, and $10.28 billion in 2020.

Etsy Active Sellers

Etsy Active Sellers
Etsy had 9.03 active sellers in 2023, compared to 7.47 million in 2022, and 7.52 million in 2021.

Etsy Active Buyers

Etsy Active Buyers
Etsy had 96.48 million active buyers in 2023, compared to 95.07 million in 2022 and 96.33 million in 2021.

Etsy Employees

Etsy Employees
Etsy had 2,420 employees in 2023, compared to 2,790 in 2022, and 2,402 in 2021.

Etsy Revenue Per Employee

Etsy Revenue Per Employee
Etsy generated $1,135,693 per employee in 2023, compared to $919,753 in 2022, and $969,656 in 2021.

Is Etsy Profitable?

Etsy Profits
Etsy is profitable as it generated $307.56 million in profits in 2023, compared to a net loss of $694.29 million in 2022, and $493.5 million in 2021.

Etsy vs. Shopify

etsy-vs-shopify

Etsy Funnel

etsy-marketing-strategy
In 2022, Etsy had 88.3 million active buyers, over 35 million repeat buyers, and 7.6 million habitual buyers. Etsy’s funnel is skewed toward enabling active buyers to become habitual buyers, which is critical for long-term sustained growth in a two-sided digital marketplace.

Etsy Flywheel

etsy-flywheel

eBay Business Model

ebay-business-model
eBay’s core business is a platform business model that makes money from transaction fees through its marketplaces. In short, eBay primarily makes money by charging fees on successfully closed transactions. For instance, in 2021, on an $87 billion worth of gross merchandise value sold on eBay, the company generated $9.77 billion in transaction revenues at an 11.19% take rate (fee).

How Much Does eBay Take?

how-much-does-ebay-take
In 2021, eBay’s take rate was 11.19%. It means that eBay takes a cut of over 11% for each transaction happening through the platform. For instance, in 2021, on a total of over $87 billion in gross merchandise value on top of the platform, the company generated almost ten billion in transaction revenues.

eBay Bidding System

how-does-ebay-bidding-work
eBay bidding is a way for buyers to bid on a product whose sale price is decided by auction. The bidding process itself is automated, with eBay acting on the buyer’s behalf.

eBay Organizational Structure

ebay-organizational-structure
eBay was until recently a multi-divisional (M-form) organization with semi-autonomous units grouped according to the services they provided. Today, eBay has a single division called Marketplace, which includes eBay and its international iterations.

Depop Active Sellers

Depop Active Sellers
Depop had 1.8 million active sellers in 2023, compared to 1.8 million in 2022, and 2 million in 2021.

Depop Active Buyers

Depop Active Buyers
Depop had 3.6 million active buyers in 2023, compared to 3.3 million in 2022, and 3.7 million in 2021.

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