An Etsy shop in Canada is a shop on Etsy where you list something you made, designed, handpicked, or sourced under Etsy’s rules, priced in a way that still works after Etsy’s fees, and shipped from a place you can name. It suits people who can photograph the real object and pack it the week it sells. It is a poor fit if the plan is to resell ordinary mass-produced goods, or if the only idea is a seasonal pile you have not made yet.
This guide is the year-round shop. It is not a holiday-product guide. Fee figures below are from Etsy’s fees policy and help pages. Those pages change. Confirm them before you set a price. This guide does not state a Canada-wide payment-processing percentage, because Etsy says that fee varies by the country of your bank account and points sellers to the Etsy Payments policy for the rate.
| Fact | Detail for an Etsy shop in Canada |
|---|---|
| What you may list | Made, designed, handpicked, or sourced by you. Creativity Standards |
| Listing fee | 0.20 USD per listing, charged whether or not it sells. Listings expire after four months. Fees policy |
| Transaction fee | 6.5% of the displayed price plus delivery and gift wrap. Outside the US, that base includes taxes you are responsible for putting in the price |
| Regulatory operating fee | 0.50% for Canada, on item price plus shipping, gift wrap, and personalization. Help article |
| Payment processing | Varies by bank-account country. Confirm the Etsy Payments policy. This guide does not invent the percent |
| Canadian tax on listings | Etsy says Canadian residents include applicable taxes in prices except where the law requires Etsy to collect. Fees policy, taxes |
| GST/HST | Small-supplier threshold of $30,000. When to register |
A downloadable PDF is printables. A physical item you bought to resell on Kijiji or Poshmark is reselling, and ordinary resale is not what Etsy allows. Your own checkout, off Etsy, is a Shopify store.
Who does an Etsy shop in Canada suit?
An Etsy shop in Canada suits people who already make something small enough to pack: a sewn item, a ceramic piece, a print from your own photo, a supply a buyer uses to make something else. A phone camera and a table with daylight are enough for the first listing. The shop is a poor fit if you dislike packing, if you cannot say who made the item, or if you need a sale before the first object exists.
Etsy’s Creativity Standards say items must be made, designed, handpicked, or sourced by the seller. Vintage items that are handpicked must be at least 20 years old. Craft supplies are items whose primary purpose is to help a buyer make something. The seller policy says you must accurately represent how the item was made, by whom, and where it ships from, and that dropshipping and reselling are not allowed except in the specific cases that policy points to. Read both pages before you list a product you bought finished from a wholesaler.
What does an Etsy shop cost to start in Canada?
An Etsy shop in Canada can start with one listing and the materials for that one item. The fee rows below are from Etsy’s published policy. Supply ranges are typical Canadian retail prices to verify locally, not quotes. A set-up fee may be charged when you open the shop. Etsy’s fees policy says the amount is displayed during onboarding and may be waived in some cases. This guide does not state a dollar figure for it. Look at the screen before you confirm.
| Item | Published fee or typical CAD range | How to think about it |
|---|---|---|
| Listing | 0.20 USD, whether or not it sells | Renews after four months if automatic renewal is on. Another 0.20 USD. Fees policy |
| Transaction fee | 6.5% of displayed price plus delivery and gift wrap | For sellers outside the US, the fee applies to the price that should include taxes you are responsible for |
| Regulatory operating fee | 0.50% in Canada | On the item price plus shipping, gift wrap, and personalization. Help article |
| Payment processing | See Etsy Payments policy for your bank’s country | Assessed on the total sale, including tax and postage. Not stated as one number here |
| Offsite Ads | 15% of an attributed order under the 10,000 USD sales threshold, and you may opt out while under it. 12% and required after the shop crosses that threshold | Cap of 100 USD on the fee for a single attributed order. Confirm the fees policy. Leave ads off until you understand this |
| Etsy Plus | 10 USD a month, optional | Not week one. Credits expire inside the subscription cycle |
| Mailer, tissue, tape | $8–$25 for a small starter pack | Enough for the first few orders, not a case |
| Scale | $15–$30 | Postage guesses are how labels get adjusted |
| Materials for one product | Your recipe | Do not buy a year of stock |
Open the shop with one finished object. Etsy TODO-AFFILIATE is the marketplace this guide is about. Read the fee page the same day. A listing photo of the real item matters more than a second shop.
A simple listing image can be cleaned up in Canva TODO-AFFILIATE. Do not replace your photo with a mockup of an item you have not made. Etsy’s seller policy expects your own photographs for handmade items.
Put payouts where you can see fees come off. KOHO TODO-AFFILIATE is one Canadian account that can hold Etsy deposits until materials, postage, and a tax set-aside are clear.
| One handmade item you pack | A downloaded file | |
|---|---|---|
| Postage | You need a scale and a mailer | Often none |
| Main fee surprise | Offsite Ads if you leave them on | The same fee policy, without a box |
| Where to read the product guide | This page | Printables if the product is a PDF |
How much can an Etsy shop earn in Canada?
Etsy earnings in Canada cannot be promised as a profit per listing. What you keep depends on the list below. This guide does not publish a national shop income.
- The price you display, after you subtract 6.5%, the 0.50% Canada regulatory fee, and the processing fee on your payments page
- Postage you undercharged
- Offsite Ads, if a sale is attributed and you did not opt out while you still could
- Materials, including the ones you spoiled
- The 0.20 USD listing fee on items that never sell, and again when a listing renews
- Time to make, photograph, and pack
- Other side-hustle revenue in the same GST/HST pot
Etsy also says that if you list in a currency other than your payment-account currency, a 2.5% currency conversion fee can apply on the sale amount. Listing in the same currency as the account avoids that line. Confirm it on the fees policy.
What would an assumed Etsy sale look like in Canada?
An assumed Etsy sale in Canada, in the sketch below, uses Etsy’s published 6.5% and 0.50% only. It leaves payment processing out, because that rate depends on the bank-account country. The sketch is not a quote, a forecast, or a typical result.
Illustrative example. Suppose one item is listed at $40 CAD, shipping included in that price, which is an assumption, not a market price. The transaction fee at 6.5% is 0.065 × $40 = $2.60. The Canada regulatory operating fee at 0.50% is 0.005 × $40 = $0.20. Those two lines are $2.80, so $37.20 remains before payment processing, before the 0.20 USD listing fee, before materials, and before any tax set-aside. Suppose materials were $9 and a mailer was $1, and you already had the scale. The sketch is $37.20 − $9 − $1 = $27.20, still before processing. A processing fee you have not opened on the Etsy Payments policy can take more. The 0.20 USD listing fee is extra and converts at Etsy’s rate. If Offsite Ads attribute the order at 15%, that is 0.15 × $40 = $6, and the remainder shrinks by that amount. These totals are assumptions plus the two published percentages. They are not a quote, a forecast, or a typical result.
How do you start an Etsy shop in Canada?
Starting an Etsy shop in Canada means making one allowed item, reading the fee page, and listing it with your own photo. The steps below are that sequence.
Step 1: Confirm the item is allowed
Read the Creativity Standards. If you made it, say so. If a production partner helped, the seller policy expects that relationship to be clear. If you bought it new from a wholesaler and did not design it, do not list it as handmade.
Step 2: Make one finished piece
Not a plan. The object you can weigh and photograph. If the product is a digital file, use the printables guide for the file itself and still read Etsy’s fee page.
Step 3: Read the fees before you pick a price
Listing, transaction, regulatory, processing, and Offsite Ads. Decide whether you will opt out of Offsite Ads while your sales are under the threshold in the policy. Write the opt-out down so you do not forget it during onboarding.
Step 4: Open the shop and read the set-up fee on the screen
The fees policy says a one-time set-up fee may be shown and charged as part of setup, and that it is non-refundable once paid. If the number on the screen is not one you want to pay, stop. This guide will not guess that number.
Step 5: Photograph the item in daylight
Show the flaw. Show the scale with a hand or a ruler. Write where it ships from. The seller policy asks for an accurate representation of how it was made, by whom, and the ship-from place.
Step 6: Set postage from a scale, not a guess
Weigh the packed parcel. If you offer “free shipping,” the postage is inside the $40 in the sketch above, and the 6.5% applies to that displayed price. A light guess becomes an adjustment later.
Step 7: Write a processing time you have done
If the piece takes a week to make, say a week. A same-day promise for a made-to-order mug is how a review goes wrong.
Step 8: Tell five people who already know the work
A friend, a local market contact, a note where your photos already are. Do not buy ads on day one. Offsite Ads are a fee machine if you do not opt out.
Step 9: After the first sale, pack it that week
Ship from the place you named. Message the buyer if the carrier needs a detail. Then look at the payment account and write down every fee line. That list is your real price, not the sketch.
What should the first week of an Etsy shop in Canada include?
The first week should produce one finished item, a fee note, and a listing or a clear reason you are not listing yet. A sale is a bonus.
- Day 1: Read the Creativity Standards against the item you want to sell.
- Day 2: Finish one piece. Weigh it packed.
- Day 3: Read the fees policy. Write 6.5% and 0.50% on a page. Open the payments policy for your processing rate. Note the Offsite Ads opt-out.
- Day 4: Photograph in daylight. Write the ship-from line and the processing time.
- Day 5: Open the shop. Read any set-up fee before you confirm it.
- Day 6: Publish one listing. Turn automatic renewal off if you are not ready to pay another 0.20 USD in four months.
- Day 7: Show the listing to five people. Ask if the price still sounds right after you mention postage.
What Etsy mistakes are common in Canada?
Common Etsy mistakes in Canada are ignoring Offsite Ads, listing in a currency that triggers the 2.5% conversion fee, and describing a wholesale item as handmade. The fees policy is long because the surprises are real. Read the Offsite Ads section before you have a sale you did not expect to share at 15%.
Another mistake is letting listings auto-renew on items you no longer make. Each renewal is another listing fee. Turn renewal to manual until the shop has a rhythm.
Claims have to be true. The Competition Bureau’s page on false or misleading representations is the Canadian advertising rule. “Organic,” “handmade in a city,” and “limited” are claims. Use them only when they are accurate. Etsy also prohibits moving a sale off the platform to avoid fees. Do not ask a buyer to pay you by e-transfer for an item they found on Etsy.
Which tax rules apply to an Etsy shop in Canada?
Etsy shop income in Canada is self-employment income, reported on Form T2125, Statement of Business or Professional Activities, and self-employed people pay the whole Canada Pension Plan contribution on the net. GST/HST on your taxable supplies follows the $30,000 small-supplier test, not the taxi and ride-sharing rule. Nova Scotia’s HST is 14% as of 1 April 2025 on the CRA charge and collect the GST/HST table, and Quebec charges GST and QST.
This is not tax, legal, or insurance advice. Recheck Etsy’s tax section when marketplace rules change.
Etsy’s fees policy says that if you sell on Etsy and reside in Canada, you need to include applicable taxes in your listing prices, except where local tax legislation requires Etsy to collect on your behalf. It also says Etsy may apply taxes on a tax-excluded basis so that tax you already included is not taxed again, and it points to a help article for a Canadian example. Read that example. A marketplace collection line does not replace your small-supplier test.
Keep the payment-account statements, postage receipts, and material receipts. Report the shop on Form T2125 with the T1. The small-supplier test is worldwide taxable supplies, yours and your associates’, of $30,000 or less in a single calendar quarter and over the last four consecutive calendar quarters. Add other side-hustle revenue to the same pot. Under that test, registration is usually optional. Over it, you register on the timetable on the CRA’s when-to-register page. A shop is not ride-sharing, so the first-dollar rule does not apply unless you also carry passengers for a platform.
Once registered, charge the rate for the province where the supply is made. Confirm the rate on the charge-and-collect table and with the GST/HST calculator (and rates), and set the tax aside.
Search your city for a business licence and use that city’s fee if there is one. This guide does not state a licence fee from another city.
Which side hustles sit near an Etsy shop in Canada?
An Etsy shop in Canada sits next to other ways of selling something you made. Printables are the PDF version. Reselling is the right guide for Marketplace, Kijiji, eBay.ca, and Poshmark, and the wrong guide for pretending those goods are handmade on Etsy. A Shopify store is your own checkout when the marketplace rules are too narrow. A design printed after the order, on a blank, is print-on-demand.
What are the common questions?
What fees does Etsy charge a seller in Canada?
Etsy's fees policy charges 0.20 USD to list, whether or not the item sells, and 6.5% of the displayed price plus delivery and gift wrap when it sells. Canada also has a 0.50% regulatory operating fee. Payment processing depends on your bank-account country. Confirm the live pages.
Can I resell products I did not make?
Etsy's seller policy says dropshipping and reselling are not allowed except in specific cases such as certain craft supplies, and vintage items that are handpicked must be at least 20 years old. Read the Creativity Standards before you list a wholesale item as handmade.
What are Offsite Ads?
If Etsy's offsite advertising leads to an order within 30 days, the fees policy charges 15% while the shop is under 10,000 USD in sales over the prior 365 days, and you can opt out under that threshold. After the shop crosses it, the fee is 12% and participation is required. The fee on one order is capped at 100 USD.
Should I include tax in my Etsy price in Canada?
Etsy's fees policy says sellers who reside in Canada need to include applicable taxes in listing prices, except where the law requires Etsy to collect. Read Etsy's Canadian tax example and the CRA rate table. This is not tax advice.
Do I need Etsy Plus to open?
No. Etsy Plus is an optional 10 USD monthly subscription. Open with a standard shop and one listing. Subscribe later only if the credits match work you are already doing.
Which sources support this guide?
The rules, rates, and platform requirements in this guide are checked against these primary sources. Retail price ranges are labelled as ranges to verify locally, and they are not quotes.
- When to register for and start charging the GST/HST — Canada Revenue Agency
- Charge and collect the GST/HST — Canada Revenue Agency
- GST/HST calculator (and rates) — Canada Revenue Agency
- Form T2125, Statement of Business or Professional Activities — Canada Revenue Agency
- Contributions to the Canada Pension Plan — Government of Canada
- GST/HST for taxi and ride-sharing drivers — Canada Revenue Agency
- Fees and Payments Policy — Etsy
- What is a Regulatory Operating Fee? — Etsy Help
- Etsy's Creativity Standards — Etsy
- Seller Policy — Etsy
- False or misleading representations — Competition Bureau Canada