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eBay vs Etsy vs Whatnot

Marketplace Fee Comparison

One item, three US marketplaces, real math. Enter a sale once and compare fees, payout, and true profit with each platform's tax bases, fixed fees, and ads applied.

Fee rules verified July 13, 2026rules v2026.07.0 · sources & methodology →
The sale
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eBay
Total fees$0.00
Net payout$0.00
True profit$0.00
Etsy
Total fees$0.00
Net payout$0.00
True profit$0.00
Whatnot
Total fees$0.00
Net payout$0.00
True profit$0.00

eBay uses most-categories rates · Etsy assumes one listing fee · Whatnot commission skips shipping & tax · verified July 13, 2026 · methodology

Fee structures at a glance (July 13, 2026)

FeeeBayEtsyWhatnot
Main percentage13.6% most categories
(12.7% Basic Store+)		6.5% transaction8% commission
(4% coins & money)
Payment processingincluded3% + $0.252.9% + $0.30
Fixed per order / listing$0.30–$0.40 per order$0.20 per listingnone
Percentage applies to sales tax?yesprocessing onlyprocessing only
Percentage applies to shipping?yesyesprocessing only
Ads / promotionoptional 2–100% ad rateOffsite Ads 12%–15% (mandatory over $10k/yr)boosts optional

Percentages alone mislead — the base each fee applies to differs. eBay's 13.6% covers payment processing but is charged on the entire order including tax; Etsy splits fees across three smaller pieces with different bases; Whatnot's commission has the narrowest base (item only). For your specific numbers, the live comparison above is the honest answer.

Frequently asked questions

Which marketplace has the lowest seller fees in 2026?
It depends on the sale. For a typical $30–$100 item: Whatnot's 8% + 2.9% + $0.30 stack is usually the lowest, Etsy's 6.5% + 3% + $0.25 (+ $0.20 listing) is close behind for organic sales, and eBay's ~13.6% + $0.40 runs highest — until you add an eBay Store discount, or an Etsy Offsite Ad (12–15%) flips the order. That's why this page computes your actual numbers instead of quoting one percentage.
Why is the same item more profitable on one marketplace?
Three structural differences: what the percentage applies to (eBay charges on the total including tax; Etsy excludes tax from its transaction fee; Whatnot's commission skips shipping and tax entirely), fixed per-order fees ($0.40 vs $0.25 vs $0.30) that hit small orders hardest, and optional costs like ads, stores, and promoted placement.
Should I sell on multiple marketplaces?
Usually yes — audiences barely overlap, and cross-listing software makes the overhead manageable. But price per marketplace: an item that nets your target at Whatnot's fees may need a 5–8% higher price on eBay to clear the same profit. Use each calculator's reverse mode to set per-marketplace prices.
Do these numbers include shipping costs and my item cost?
Yes, optionally — enter your item cost and label cost and each column shows true profit, not just payout. Fees are computed with each marketplace's exact current rules (eBay most-categories rate, Etsy organic or ad-attributed, Whatnot standard commission), last verified July 13, 2026.

Sources — official fee pages this calculator is built from

Rates are re-verified against these pages before each fee-rules release. If a marketplace changes its fees, the change log records what changed and when. Results are estimates — your account's exact fees are always shown at checkout or in your seller dashboard.

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