10 Etsy Alternatives for Selling Print on Demand in 2025

Even if you are a print on demand seller or just starting to learn about selling online, you might have heard about Etsy. This platform stands out with its larger buyers around the world and is the golden land for POD sellers. It’s the causes why more and more people are joining this market. However, fierce competition, restrictions on policies, and platform fees have caused many sellers to start looking for more suitable alternatives.

In this article, Merchize will list and analyze the 10 most prominent Etsy alternatives, helping you evaluate and choose the most suitable one for your business. Read till the end to explore the whole article!

Why Look for Etsy Alternatives?

Etsy has long been a popular site for many print on demand sellers, particularly for niche, personalized products such as t-shirts, mugs, posters, and accessories. However, as the market becomes more competitive and Etsy continues to update its policies, many sellers are starting to ask: Is Etsy still the best place to grow their POD business? Or is it time to consider alternatives or expand to other platforms to reduce risk? Here are some reasons why many POD sellers are looking for another solution or switching to other platforms:

Fee 

Etsy doesn’t charge any monthly or account fees, which may seem like a good deal for new sellers. However, they do charge a variety of fees, including listing fees, transaction fees, and payment processing fees. As your shop starts to get more orders, these seemingly small fees can add up and have a significant impact on your bottom line.

The biggest concern is Offsite Ads, a program that Etsy automatically turns on when your sales exceed $10,000 in 12 months. You can’t turn it off, and you can be charged up to 12% in advertising fees for each order generated by the ad.

For POD sellers, this can be a challenge. In addition to Etsy’s fees, you’ll also have to pay for printing and shipping to your supplier. This erodes profits, especially if you don’t control costs and prices well. It can even happen that the more you sell, the less profit you make. Therefore, many POD sellers are now having to reconsider their business strategies: adjusting prices, optimizing costs, or opening more stores on other platforms such as Shopify, TikTok Shop… to be more proactive about profits and reduce dependence on Etsy.

Competition

More and more sellers are participating in the Etsy market due to the absence of monthly fees. They believe that Etsy is affordable and enables them to easily reach a wide range of customers. Therefore, this marketplace has become extremely crowded. Many sellers are offering the same products, especially in popular niches such as t-shirts, mugs, and decorations. This results in a sea of similar items that makes it challenging for new sellers to stand out without a well-defined strategy. If you don’t invest in Etsy advertising or lack sufficient time to optimize your product titles, tags, and descriptions for SEO, your chances of gaining organic visibility are slim.

Customization 

One of the big drawbacks of Etsy is that there are a few options for customization. While you can add a logo, a shop name, a cover photo, or arrange a few featured listings, everything is limited to what Etsy allows. This makes it difficult for many sellers to express their own style or build a professional brand.

Suspended Account

Etsy is a closed platform with its own rules and regulations. This makes it easy for sellers to accidentally break a rule without even realizing it. The consequences can be severe: accounts can be suspended or even permanently terminated without warning.

Some POD sellers have had their accounts frozen simply because they were adding products from a print on demand service, or simply during the process of verifying their bank account information. These situations are not only time-consuming, but can also directly impact your business, especially if you have pending orders.

Although Etsy usually says it will send an email explaining the reason for the suspension, it’s not always clear. Besides, contacting support can also be a waste of time and frustrating, especially when you’re trying to build a reputable, serious business.       

10 Etsy Alternatives for Selling Print on Demand

After considering all the limitations and risks of selling on Etsy, if you are considering looking for a more effective alternative, here are 10 potential options that you can refer to to expand your print on demand business.

Online Marketplaces

Merch by Amazon 

Merch by Amazon or Merch is one of the most popular print on demand platforms, developed by Amazon. With this model, you only need to focus on design, and everything from printing to shipping is handled by Amazon. The main product on Merch by Amazon is T-shirts, but this platform also offers other popular items such as hoodies, sweaters, tank tops, etc. When there is an order, Amazon will print the product according to your design and deliver it directly to the buyer. The great thing is that you do not need to invest in purchasing goods in advance – the product is only produced after someone places an order. The profit you receive is the difference between the selling price and the cost Amazon collects for each product.

Since it’s directly integrated with the Amazon system, your designs will be exposed to millions of existing customers on the platform. This is a huge advantage if you’re looking for an alternative to Etsy with strong traffic and simple operations.

Pros: 

• Optimize production and shipping processes
• Huge customer traffic
• Amazon reputation
• Easy to use, less time and effort

Cons:

• Fierce competition with cheaper products
• Long registration process for new merchants and strict internal rules
• High fees

Fees:

Amazon does not charge registration fees or listing fees. When you sell a product, Amazon will deduct:

• Product manufacturing costs (base cost) – including printing, manufacturing, operating, and shipping costs.
• Amazon marketplace fees (included in base cost).

Suitable for:

Merch by Amazon is an ideal platform for POD sellers who want to minimize operations, don’t have much initial investment, and want to leverage Amazon’s huge traffic to sell their original designs sustainably.

Redbubble

Redbubble is a POD platform where you can sell your designs printed on a variety of products such as t-shirts, stickers, posters, tote bags, and more. Additionally, you don’t need to pay any fees to start selling on Redbubble. You just need to create an account, design a product, and then upload the design to the platform. When a customer places an order, Redbubble automatically takes care of the entire process from printing, manufacturing, to shipping.

Once the order is completed, you will receive a commission from Redbubble. The default commission rate is 20%, and you will be paid via your bank account or PayPal at the beginning of each month, when your account balance reaches at least $20. However, there is one important difference: Redbubble operates as a marketplace, meaning there is a large pool of buyers searching for products. This allows you to reach customers without running ads or building your own website. But at the same time, Redbubble does not support connecting to other e-commerce platforms like Shopify.

Pros:

• Automatically optimize SEO for your products to go to the top of Google search results
• Relatively large and stable traffic
• Fast and reputable payment
• Provide marketing documents to promote your products

Cons:

• Must promote products on social media channels yourself
• High risk of account lock
• Uploading designs might be slow and time-consuming
• Lower profit than Merch by Amazon

Fees:

There are no account creation or monthly fees. You only pay around 2.9% + $0.30 USD per order (depending on region and payment method).

Suitable for:

Redbubble is great for beginners, freelance designers, or anyone who wants to earn passive income from their designs without worrying about printing, shipping, or startup costs. However, it’s not ideal for those who want to build their own professional brand.

Walmart

Walmart is the second-largest retailer in the US and also owns a huge e-commerce platform. This is a potential option for sellers who want to expand their sales channels beyond Etsy, especially if you have experience and want to reach a large customer base in the US.

However, unlike Etsy, Walmart requires sellers to be legal businesses. You need to provide a tax identification number or business license along with other verification documents. In addition, your products must have international standard barcodes (GTIN/UPC from GS1) and comply with Walmart’s strict sales policies.

In addition, Walmart does not charge any registration or listing fees, but it does charge a referral fee for each order, averaging around 15%, depending on the product category. To start selling on this platform, you need to use integration tools such as API, official partners, or third-party software to manage your store.

Pros: 

• Approach to the second-largest market in the US
• No monthly or account creation fees
• High trust in the marketplace among customers and a developed structure

Cons: 

• Complicated sign-up process for sellers
• Not easy to customize the store
• High competition
• Must use third-party tools to connect

Fees: 

• No monthly subscription
• Referral fees per transaction: 15% for most items.

Suitable for: 

Walmart is suitable for medium and large businesses, especially sellers with e-commerce experience, business registration, a tax identification number, and the ability to professionally operate large-scale orders.

TikTok Shop

TikTok is a short video platform launched in 2016 and quickly became a global phenomenon. With more than 1 billion users in 150 countries, TikTok has become a popular entertainment channel where anyone can become a content creator with just a phone. Thanks to attractive content, catchy sounds, and the ability to spread strongly through hashtags, TikTok brings huge traffic to those who know how to take advantage of it.

Leverage this resource, TikTok has developed the TikTok Shop –  an e-commerce platform integrated right into the application. Users don’t need to navigate to other pages or apps; they can shop directly while watching videos. This is an outstanding difference, helping TikTok Shop quickly develop and become a new choice for both buyers and sellers.

Pros: 

• Reaching potential customers is easier than on other platforms
• High conversion rate from viewers to customers
• Abundant creative content
• Easily repurpose TikTok content for other sales channels

Cons: 

• TikTok Ads are a little different than what you’re used to
• Sellers need to follow TikTok Shop’s own guidelines

Fees: 

• TikTok takes a percentage of each sale. Most products have a 6% referral fee, while some jewelry items have a 5% fee.
• Transaction fees apply when processing earnings. TikTok charges a $0.05 withdrawal fee, and you need at least $2 to cash out.
• Advertising on TikTok Shop requires a minimum budget of at least $50 per day, while ad groups require $20 per day.
• Fulfilled by TikTok (FBT) fees start at $3.58 per item, and free storage is limited to 30 days before fees apply.

Suitable for:

TikTok Shop is one of the best choices for dynamic sellers who know how to leverage short videos to promote products, especially trendy, visual products such as fashion, accessories, home appliances, or print on demand products.

eBay

eBay is one of the oldest e-commerce platforms where sellers can sell products through auctions or “Buy It Now”. Buyers often come here to hunt for good deals with a wide range of product options.

Apart from that, creating an eBay account is quite simple; just register your email and personal information. However, to open an official store, sellers need to choose a paid plan and follow many internal policies. Plus, new accounts are often limited in the number of products (up to 5 products initially) and can be suspended if they violate the regulations.

Additionally, selling fees include an insertion (listing) fee, which varies by product type and subscription plan, and may decrease over time. Sellers can personalize their stores and product listings with logos, banners, descriptions, images, colors, sizes, etc. Besides, eBay supports management tools, creates sales templates, and has a mobile application that supports most sales activities. 

Generally, eBay is a potential alternative to Etsy, especially if you want to try dropshipping or integrate with services like Merchize. If you want to learn more about the difference between Etsy and eBay, read this article.

Pros:

• Consolidated traffic and attendance 
• Auctions allow increased profit from single listings
• Simple setup

Cons: 

• Limited customization 
• High competition for regular listings
• Complex policies and rules can lead to account suspensions 

Fees: 

• Starter – $7.95 per month. For beginner sellers with a few products.
• Basic – $27.95 per month. Adds benefits such as more insertion fee credits, fee discounts, or coupons. 
• Premium – $74.95 per month. This plan offers more zero-insertion-fee listings, lower fees, and more business tools. Intended for merchants with a considerable number of listings.
• Anchor – $349.95 per month. Adds dedicated customer support and a reduced final value fee cap. Intended for merchants with high-volume sales.
• Enterprise – $2,999.95, available yearly. Intended for merchants with extensive catalogs. Builds on the previous plan with an increased allowance for zero insertion fee.

Suitable for: eBay is suitable for experienced sellers who want to sell a variety of products (new or used), are willing to learn detailed regulations, and handle technical issues well during the selling process. This is also a good choice for those who want to try dropshipping or sell unique, rare products.

Platforms for Building Your Own Store

Shopify 

If you’re tired of Etsy limitations and want more control over your brand, customer data, and sales operations, Shopify is the best solution you should consider. 

Indeed, Shopify allows you to create a standalone online store instead of selling on a marketplace. With Shopify, you can:

• Use a custom domain to increase brand recognition.
• Add unlimited products (great for POD multi-design campaigns).
• Integrate directly with print-on-demand suppliers such as Merchize, Printify, or Printifyl, etc., to automate the entire process from order processing to shipping.
• Connect to multi-channel sales: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Google Shopping, etc.
• Take advantage of tools like coupon codes, abandoned cart recovery, marketing automation, etc., to increase conversion rates.

Alternatively, Shopify also supports international sales with automatic currency conversion, flexible tax calculation, and multiple payment gateways (over 100 options). Moreover, its drag-and-drop interface helps you design a professional store easily without any programming knowledge.

However, keep in mind that Shopify operates on a subscription model, and some of the apps required for POD (e.g., flexible shipping rates or marketing campaign management) may charge a monthly fee. So, budget wisely and choose the apps that are really necessary to optimize costs.

Pros: 

• User-friendly and easy-to-use interface
• Complete e-commerce functionality
• Multiple payment options
• Multi-channel customer support

Cons:

• Heavily dependent on third-party apps
• Difficult to transfer data to other platforms
• Can be expensive for those looking to expand features

Fees: 

• Basic Shopify: $29/month 
• Shopify: $79/month
• Advanced Shopify: $299/month
• Shopify Plus: From $2,000/month (enterprise level)
• Just pay $1 for the first 3 months

Available for:

Shopify is suitable for POD sellers who want to build their own brand, control the store interface, customer files, and operating processes instead of depending on a marketplace like Etsy or Redbubble. It is especially suitable for those who already have stable products, want to develop a sustainable business, and are willing to invest in advertising and marketing to expand sales.

WooCommerce

WooCommerce is an open-source plugin that adds e-commerce functionality to WordPress websites. It is one of the most popular e-commerce solutions in the world, accounting for over 28% of the global e-commerce market share by 2022.

Unlike platforms like Etsy or Shopify, WooCommerce doesn’t charge a monthly fee, but you’ll need to provide your own hosting and may have to pay for some premium plugins or themes. This reduces fixed costs but requires you to plan your overall costs carefully.

The biggest advantage of WooCommerce is its powerful customization capabilities. You can build a complete online store – from sales functionality, dropshipping, SEO, email marketing, to tax calculation – by simply installing the right plugins. Most of these plugins have a free plan for beginners.

WooCommerce also has a flexible payment system, supporting over 135 currencies and many different payment gateways. However, the built-in WooPayments payment gateway currently only works in 18 countries.

However, WooCommerce has a notable downside: a high learning curve. You’ll need to invest time learning how to set up and manage your store.

Pros:

• Full ownership of your own online store
• Flexibility and scalability
• Ample options for secure payment processors

Cons: 

• Steep learning curve
• Hidden costs with themes and plugins 
• Requires regular maintenance and updates

Fees:

WooCommerce is free, but requires hosting and a domain name. Themes and additional plugins may charge subscriptions or one-time payment fees.

• Web hosting – From $1.99 per month 
• Domain – From $0.99 per year
• Themes – From $24 per year

Available for:

WooCommerce is suitable for POD sellers with website skills who want full control over their store and flexibility in design, features, and costs, especially those who are familiar with WordPress.

Wix eCommerce 

Wix is ​​one of the best website builders out there and a great alternative to Etsy if you want to build a fully functional online store. This platform offers a variety of editors: from the intuitive drag-and-drop Wix Editor to the AI-powered Wix ADI to Velo for those who want to customize with HTML code.

Plus, with the premium Business plan, you can create a built-in e-commerce store that can be easily managed via a mobile app. Besides, Wix Ascend toolkit lets you add marketing, SEO, and automation features, but many advanced tools cost extra. Right from the setup stage, you can add blogs, forms, forums, photo galleries, and more to help you sell.

Wix supports multiple payment gateways, including Wix Payments (available in select countries), Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, and more. US sellers can choose from 22 different payment gateways.

In terms of point-of-sale (POS), Wix has expanded significantly since 2022 and now supports Square, SumUp, and Wix Mobile POS in over 20 countries. However, it is still not as strong as Shopify or WooCommerce.

Pros:

• User-friendly and intuitive
• Full of resources
• All e-commerce plans offer the  abandoned cart feature

Cons: 

• Fewer payment options
• Mobile site consistency and speed need improvement
• Advanced e-commerce, marketing, and SEO tools require an Ascend plan subscription in addition to the premium e-commerce plan.

Fees:

Wix provides some website plans and a free plan without e-commerce functionality. Premium plans for businesses:

• Business Basic – $34 per month
• Business Unlimited – $38 per month
• Business VIP – $64 per month

Available for:

Wix is ​​suitable for individual POD sellers or beginners who want to quickly create a beautiful, easy-to-use online store without programming skills. This is an ideal choice for small shops with few products that prioritize building a personal brand.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce is a platform that helps sellers build professional e-commerce websites. Launched in 2009 in Australia, after 15 years of development, BigCommerce is one of the most popular e-commerce platforms today, along with names like Shopify and WooCommerce.

To date, BigCommerce is being used by more than 137,000 stores worldwide. Including leading brands in the industry such as Sony, Toyota, Assurant, Paul Mitchell, ASOS …

Some of the main features of BigCommerce include:

• Product management
• Multi-currency support
• Multi-channel sales support
• SEO optimization
• Automatically calculate taxes and support multiple shipping methods

Pros:

• Easy to use
• Offers a wide range of features built into the package
• Professional reporting & analytics
• Cost-effective implementation

Cons: 

• Must upgrade the plan after reaching certain sales thresholds
• Inconsistent website performance
• An inconsistent and unreliable theme library with limited filters makes it difficult to set up the right storefront.

Fees:

• Standard – $29.95 per month
• Plus – $79.95 per month
• Pro – $299.95 per month
• Enterprise – customized pricing
• Premium themes from $150 – 399

Available for:

BigCommerce is suitable for experienced POD sellers who want to scale and build a big brand with many powerful built-in ecommerce features. It is ideal for those who sell multi-channel, internationalized, and need deep technical customization.

Squarespace

Squarespace is a great Etsy alternative for POD sellers in creative industries like design, art, and crafts. The platform has a beautiful, easy-to-use interface with a powerful drag-and-drop builder, built-in SEO, analytics, and sync with Etsy. However, e-commerce features are limited – only Stripe, PayPal, basic POS, and some advanced features are available with an upgraded plan. Squarespace is great for small shops in the US, but may not be powerful enough if you want to scale larger.

Pros:

• User-Friendly
• Competitive in Images and Content
• Consistent and Professional Integration

Cons: 

• Limited eCommerce Functionality
• Some Integrations
• Some features offered by competitors in basic plans require Squarespace’s advanced plan

Fees:

There is no free plan, but a 14-day free trial for every website.

• Personal – $23 per month – no eCommerce functions
• Business – $33 per month
• Basic Commerce – $36 per month
• Advanced Commerce – $65 per month

Available for: Squarespace is suitable for POD sellers who are creators, artists, craft designers, who prioritize aesthetics, and want a beautiful, easy-to-build website to showcase their products. Especially suitable for sellers in the US who are running small or medium-sized businesses.

How to Choose the Right Etsy Alternative for Your Business?

Before choosing an Etsy alternative, answer these questions:

What is your budget? Some are free, others charge a monthly fee.

• What do you sell? Some platforms specialize in print-on-demand, handmade, or digital products.
• How much control do you want? Shopify or Squarespace gives you complete control, while Merch by Amazon handles much of the work for you.

And to help you quickly compare Etsy alternatives, we’ve created a quick comparison table below that will help you quickly answer these questions.

Generally, Etsy is one of the most popular choices for POD sellers to start selling online, but it’s clearly not the only option. Consider your goals, budget, and desired level of control; there are better platforms to build your brand, increase your profit margins, and grow sustainably. Hopefully, this list of Etsy alternatives will help you confidently choose the best path for your business journey.