Who is Etsy best for?
Etsy is tailored for people creating unique or fully personalized items that can’t be found anywhere else. It’s a good choice for multi-channel sellers with artistic personalities and creative businesses.
Source: CostureroReal on Etsy
Etsy’s also good for small artists looking to sell their work on the side. Etsy marketing offers many options for sellers without a large budget, and the advanced Etsy search allows storeowners to connect with Etsy’s built-in audience of buyers looking for distinctive, special products.
Statistics Etsy sellers need to know for 2024
The ecommerce market, much like everything else, has seen some turbulent times in recent years. Let’s take a deeper look into some of the most interesting Etsy statistics to keep in mind for 2024.
In 2023, Etsy reported $13.2 billion in overall gross merchandise sales
Let’s start with a big one—Etsy’s gross merchandise sales. Gross merchandise sales refer to the dollar value of all products sold on all Etsy marketplaces, including Depop, Reverb, and Elo7, which all belong to Etsy.
At the end of last year, Etsy reported $13.2 billion in gross sales, a slight year-over-year decline from the previous year’s gross merchandise sales volume of $13.3 billion.
Over the past few years, Etsy’s seen a slight but persistent decline in gross merchandise sales. The last quarter of 2023 was no different—Etsy itself attributes this to several factors, chiefly the difficult macroeconomic environment that’s put a damper on consumer discretionary spending.
In 2023, Etsy delivered record-high revenue of $2.7 billion
Despite the slight dip in Etsy’s gross merchandise sales, Etsy had something to celebrate—over the past year, Etsy’s revenue reached historic heights. In 2023, Etsy revenue reached an all-time high of $2.7 billion, a 7% increase from Etsy’s revenue in 2022.
Strong performances during Cyber Weekend and the holiday period also helped make the last quarter of 2023 the most successful in Etsy’s revenue history. During Q4 of 2023, Etsy reached its highest-ever quarterly revenue of $842 million.
According to Rachel Glaser, Etsy’s Chief Financial Officer, Etsy’s revenue increase during Q4 was due to “healthy GMS flow through, strong growth in Etsy Ads and good contribution from payments.”
The top 6 Etsy product categories make up 87% of gross merchandise sales
We all know Etsy is the go-to place for craft and party supplies, as well as handmade or vintage items. But do you know which categories bring in the most sales for Etsy shops?
According to the Etsy 2023 Q4 earnings report, just 6 categories represent approximately 87% of gross merchandise sales on the Etsy marketplace.
The most popular category of 2023 by far is Home & Living items, followed by Jewelry & Accessories. Both of these categories experienced a small year-over-year decline, while the third most popular category, Apparel, saw a slight increase in sales. These are followed by Craft Supplies, Paper & Party Supplies, and Toys & Games.
What do these Etsy stats tell us? First, it’s clear what kind of products Etsy buyers are typically looking for—home decor, jewelry, accessories, apparel, hobby supplies, toys, and games.
It also shows which categories will be the most competitive for Etsy sellers. In 2024, Etsy sellers with online shops that focus on categories like Home & Living, Jewelry & Accessories, or Apparel will need to think extra hard about their market niche, to differentiate themselves and ensure their store stands out among their competitors.
Source: Etsy
Etsy seller numbers showed a 30% YoY increase at the end of 2023
Let’s talk Etsy seller statistics—can you guess how many Etsy sellers are there?
At the end of 2023, Etsy reported that 7 million active sellers were selling on Etsy (this means just Etsy, excluding sellers that use Etsy-owned marketplaces like Elo7).
This is a notable rise in the number of active sellers. In 2022, Etsy finished the year with 5.4 million active sellers, making this year’s result an almost 30% increase. This shows that despite the competitive online retail sector and challenging macroeconomic circumstances, Etsy has nevertheless managed to attract and retain active sellers who are looking to build or expand their creative businesses.
Etsy has seen a 101% increase in active Etsy buyers since 2019
OK, Etsy seller statistics are looking well. What about buyers?
During the pandemic era, ecommerce sites exploded in popularity—the Etsy marketplace wasn’t an exception. Etsy statistics show that since 2019, Etsy has experienced a 101% increase in active Etsy buyers (buyers that have made at least one purchase over the past 12 months), with the numbers climbing from 45.7 million active buyers in 2019 to an all-time high of 92 million active buyers in 2023.
There’s also been moderate year-over-year growth. At the end of 2022, Etsy reported having 89.4 million active buyers, which shows that over the past year, there’s been a roughly 3% increase.
Etsy stats also show that 48% of total active buyers are repeat customers. According to Etsy, a repeat customer is “any buyer who made purchases on two or more days in the previous 12 months.”
Plus, another interesting thing to note about recent buyer statistics is that over the last quarter of 2023, Etsy managed to reactivate a record-high number of lapsed buyers—10 million.
So, while the pandemic ecommerce gold rush is slowing down, Etsy still boasts strong active buyer numbers and has managed to remain one of the heavy hitters of the ecommerce industry.
While having many customers is important, having habitual and repeat buyers is essential for any thriving business—an online retail marketplace is no exception.
In 2023, Etsy recorded 7.1 million habitual buyers. A habitual Etsy buyer has “spent $200 or more and made purchases on six or more days in the previous 12 months”. Essentially, these are customers for whom shopping on Etsy is a regular activity.
According to Etsy statistics, there’s been a significant increase in habitual buyers over the past years. In 2019, only 2.5 million active buyers could be considered habitual buyers. The rise in habitual buyers demonstrates how online retail is becoming an indispensable part of our lives.
A 6% YoY increase in active male buyers shows Etsy is gradually becoming more popular among men
Historically, Etsy has been overwhelmingly favored by users who identify as women. According to recent data from Similarweb, roughly 58% of Etsy visits come from women, while only 42% are men.
However, since 2019, Etsy buyer demographics have been slowly changing. In 2022, Etsy reported that from 89.4 million active buyers, 22 million identified as male—a 124% increase when compared to 2019 numbers.
More recently, the Etsy 2023 Q4 earnings report showed that this trend is continuing—there was a 6% year-over-year increase in active buyers who identify as male. This shows the growing universal appeal of Etsy as an online marketplace.
Source: Etsy
People aged 25–34 make up almost 30% of Etsy users
The broad appeal of Etsy is visible when you take a look at how popular it is among different age groups. While Etsy is most loved by people aged 25–34, other age groups aren’t far behind.
The 25–34 age group makes up 29.7% of Etsy’s audience. The next largest age group is people between 35–44 years of age, who make up around 18.2%. Put together, these two groups make up roughly half of all Etsy visitors over recent months.
The third most active age group is users aged 18–24, which makes up around 17.7% of Etsy’s audience, followed by older folks. An interesting thing to note is that Etsy has more users in the 65+ age group than most of its competitors, reaffirming Etsy’s broad appeal and accessibility.
Source: Similarweb
Additionally, Etsy buyer demographics show that, while people in their teens and early 20s favor Etsy, the general trend leans more toward adults in their mid-20 to mid-40s. This makes Etsy different from an ecommerce marketplace like Redbubble, which is overwhelmingly used by Gen Zers.
Source: Similarweb
Over 70% of Etsy purchases are for special events, gifting, and personal use
Gifting has always played a role in Etsy’s marketplace, even before the pandemic. In a buyer survey conducted back in 2019, 9 out of 10 Etsy buyers said they’d bought a gift on Etsy in the past year.
More recent Etsy buyer statistics show that over 70% of purchases made on Etsy are intended for special events, gifting, and personal use, highlighting the enduring popularity of Etsy as the go-to place for unique and original gift options.
According to Etsy’s own statistics, 90% of gift purchases are split pretty evenly between holidays and personal events. The most popular holidays include Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day, while the most popular personal events are birthdays or family-related celebrations, like weddings or welcoming a new baby into the family.
Source: Etsy
Etsy’s mobile app downloads decreased by roughly 28%
Last year, there was a dip in the number of downloads for Etsy’s buyer app. The number of downloads for the Etsy app peaked in 2022 with 2.5 million downloads. However, in 2023, Etsy mobile app downloads fell to around 1.8 million.
That said, it’s not all doom and gloom for Etsy in the mobile commerce. According to data from Similarweb, 58% of Etsy’s traffic comes from mobile devices. Plus, the Etsy seller app did quite well, reaching more than 626,000 downloads, a significant increase from previous years.
Source: Etsy
Source: Similarweb
