Etsy recently announced a major update for sellers targeting U.S. customers. Beginning October 1, 2024, sellers with listings aimed at American buyers will need to limit their shipping fees to a maximum of $6.
Under the new “Etsy Search Visibility” changes, listings with shipping costs under $6 will be prioritized in Etsy search rankings, with some exceptions, including digital products and items shipping to non-U.S. destinations.
Sellers with existing listings or those submitting listings with shipping fees exceeding $6 will receive a warning indicating that higher shipping costs could negatively impact their search visibility.
Etsy says that it arrived at the decision based on feedback it received from buyers, who cited high shipping costs as one of the primary reasons for abandoning purchases on the platform. According to Etsy, their internal data indicates that when shipping prices exceed $6, buyers are less likely to follow through with a purchase.
Etsy is encouraging sellers to shift the postage price over $6 to the item price. To support this, it has launched a tool that will help sellers with many listings to bulk lower US domestic postage prices and adjust item prices.
Some sellers affected by these changes have opted to offer free shipping by shifting 100% of the shipping cost to the item price. While this is straightforward, there is growing concern that it could result in losing customers to competitors on platforms like eBay, where pricing may be lower for similar items.
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