July 2026 - Selling on Etsy vs Amazon: What It Really Looks Like for a Handmade Seller
“Etsy shoppers tend to browse. Amazon shoppers show up to buy.”- Amy Lineberry
Selling on Etsy vs Amazon: What It Really Looks Like for a Handmade Seller
What differences are there when you’re selling on Etsy vs Amazon? Quite a few.
I know, because I’ve done both. And the difference in revenue between the two platforms might shock you — it sure shocked me. The last full year I was selling on Etsy, I made $2,000. For the entire year. Not per month. Not per quarter. The whole year.
Fast forward: in 2024, I made almost $60,000 in gross revenue on Amazon Handmade. In 2025, that was around $45,000. And just in January 2026 alone, I brought in $6,200.
So yeah — there are some real differences here, and I want to give you an honest, no-fluff breakdown of what selling on Etsy vs Amazon actually looks like from the inside.
Why I Left Etsy
I didn’t leave Etsy because I was bored. I left because my sales were dropping, I was exhausted, and I realized I was running a hobby — not a business.
On Etsy, I felt constant pressure to post a new listing every day or two just to stay visible in search. I was also fighting against mass-produced and drop shipped items that were starting to flood the platform. It was pulling Etsy away from the true handmade marketplace I had originally loved.
I was also running Etsy ads with very little visibility into how they were performing. I didn’t know which ads were showing, when they ran, or what they were actually costing me. I genuinely couldn’t tell if I was making money or losing it.
On top of all of that — I work a full-time job. Posting to Instagram every day to drive traffic to my Etsy shop just wasn’t something I could keep up with.
The Biggest Mindset Shift: Browsers vs. Buyers
This is the thing that changed everything for me.
Etsy shoppers tend to browse. They have a birthday coming up, need some gift ideas, and start scrolling through Etsy the way they’d scroll through Pinterest. Sometimes they buy. Mostly they browse.
Amazon shoppers show up to buy. You know how it goes — you’re standing in the kitchen and realize you need something, and you pull out your phone and order it on Amazon because it’ll be there tomorrow and you don’t have to think about it again. Amazon buyers are ready to purchase.
That shift in perspective — realizing I was on a browsing platform when I wanted to be on a buying platform — is what made me take Amazon Handmade seriously.
What Amazon Handmade Does Differently
Built-In Traffic
Amazon already has millions of buyers. I didn’t have to build traffic from scratch, run social media campaigns, or constantly create new content to stay visible. If someone types in a relevant keyword, my product shows up. That’s it.
No daily posting. No algorithm-chasing. Just listings that are there, working for me, even when I’m at my day job.
Prime Changed Everything
When I first listed on Amazon Handmade, things were moving — but slowly. Then I switched to FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon), and everything changed.
I sent in my first batch — about 24 units — and they sold like crazy. Gone almost as soon as they hit inventory. I worked all weekend to restock, sent in double, and it happened again. That’s when I knew: I needed all of my products in Prime.
Prime buyers convert at a higher rate. They filter for Prime listings because they trust the shipping speed. They’re not second-guessing. They click buy.
And here’s the thing — there’s no way I could have fulfilled that volume by myself. FBA lets me batch my inventory, ship it in, and let Amazon handle the rest. I can mass-produce a batch, send it in over a weekend, and not touch those products for a month. That’s a level of scalability I never had on Etsy.
More Consistent Sales
On Etsy, my sales were sporadic — a couple here, a couple there, nothing consistent. On Amazon, once I had my listings dialed in and my inventory in Prime, the sales became steady. Consistent revenue is what lets you actually plan for your business, invest back into it, and eventually grow.
What Amazon Doesn’t Do Perfectly
I’m not going to tell you Amazon is magic, because it’s not. There are real downsides worth knowing about.
Seller Central has a learning curve. The back end of Amazon isn’t as pretty or intuitive as Etsy. It’s getting better, but if you’re used to Etsy’s clean interface, expect an adjustment period. Once you figure it out, it clicks — but it takes some time.
Nothing is truly set-it-and-forget-it. People love to say Amazon is passive income. It’s not. You still need to update keywords, improve photos, refresh titles, and stay on top of what’s selling seasonally. The difference is that Amazon requires less ongoing attention than Etsy — not zero.
You don’t control everything. When your items are in Prime, Amazon handles customer service for those orders. If they issue a refund, that’s their call. It doesn’t happen often, but it’s part of the deal.
A weak listing won’t sell. Amazon puts buyers in front of your products, but it can’t make them click. Blurry photos, vague titles, and thin descriptions won’t convert — no matter how much traffic Amazon sends your way.
The Handmade Category Is Actually Legit
One thing I genuinely appreciate about Amazon Handmade is that they vet their sellers. You have to apply, prove that your items are actually handmade in your home or studio, and get approved. You can’t just drop ship your way into the Handmade category.
That matters, because it means when someone finds your shop, they know they’re getting something real. That integrity is something Etsy has struggled with as the platform has grown.
Is Amazon Handmade Right for You?
Amazon Handmade is a great fit if you:
Want to scale your business without being chained to social media
Are willing to learn a new platform (and actually do the work to optimize it)
Want more consistent, predictable revenue
Are ready to treat your shop like a real business
It might not be the right move if you want a deeply personalized, one-on-one experience with every customer, or if you’re only interested in fully custom items (though Amazon Custom is an option for that).
The bottom line: Amazon changed the trajectory of my business. It gave me stability, scalability, and revenue growth I never saw on Etsy. Is it perfect? No. But it’s powerful — and I will never go back to selling exclusively on Etsy.
Ready to Set Up Your Amazon Handmade Shop?
If you’re done wondering whether Amazon Handmade could work for your business and you’re ready to actually set it up, Primed for Success is for you. I’ll walk you through every step — setting up your seller account, applying for Handmade, creating your Maker Profile, setting up shipping, and publishing your first listing — so your shop is ready to start making sales in 2 days.
👉 Join Primed for Success here
Not ready to dive in yet? Grab my free Amazon Handmade Getting Started Checklist — it covers your seller account setup plus the do’s and don’ts for getting your Handmade application approved.
