Compare selling platforms without hiding the costs

Use one order and disclose each platform's assumptions

A comparison is useful when you know what stayed fixed. Enter the same selling price, charged shipping, product cost and outbound postage for each scenario. Then select the fee contract that actually applies to each platform. A difference in fees can be real while a comparison of total business profit is still incomplete.

This calculator covers US / USD single-item orders. Amazon uses FBM. Shopify uses a domestic standard online card through Shopify Payments. Etsy assumes a US bank and Etsy Payments. Each platform may have product eligibility requirements; the ability to calculate a fee does not establish permission to list a product.

For Amazon FBA or Shopify premium, international and third-party payments, use the dedicated tools. If a selling channel needs different packaging, labor or ad spend, replace the common cost comparison with separate complete order estimates before deciding.

The same $100 order across four fee models

Use a $100 item, $0 charged shipping, 6% buyer tax, $40 product cost and $5 outbound postage. Common packaging, ad dollars and other costs are $0. The example platform inputs are: eBay No Store / Starter and Most categories with no listing fee; Etsy no Offsite Ads and one $0.20 listing allocation; Amazon Individual, home-and-kitchen and FBM; Shopify Basic monthly, 100 orders per month, no apps and a domestic standard card.

Hypothetical order, selected contracts
Platform	Fees & allocation	Common costs	Profit
eBay	$14.82	$45.00	$40.18
Etsy	$10.13	$45.00	$44.87
Amazon FBM	$15.99	$45.00	$39.01
Shopify	$3.76	$45.00	$51.24

These results call the same engines as the individual tools. Shopify's example includes a $0.39 allocation of its $39 monthly plan. Amazon uses a $0.99 per-item plan cost. Etsy includes one listing allocation. eBay Store subscriptions and other platform-specific expenses are not inferred. To cover extra channel costs, enter consistent allocations in the dedicated tools.

The largest result in this table is not a recommendation to choose that channel. A standalone store might need paid traffic where a marketplace order does not, while a marketplace might have stricter product or performance conditions. The costs of winning a buyer can outweigh a fee advantage.

Tax bases and ad attribution can change the gap

The $6 buyer tax is excluded from seller revenue in every scenario. It still affects eBay's percentage fee and Shopify's processing base. For this US Etsy scope it affects payment processing, while Etsy transaction and Offsite fees exclude it. Amazon referral fees exclude tax collected through its tax calculation services.

Select a 15% Etsy Offsite Ads fee only for an attributed order when that rate applies to the shop. On this $100 example it adds $15 to Etsy fees, reducing profit from $44.87 to $29.87. A 12% attributed order adds $12. The $100 cap applies to that ad component only.

Common ad dollars are another input. They should exclude the Etsy Offsite fee already calculated. If a Shopify order needs $20 of advertising while an organic marketplace sale has no attributable ad spend, do not give both orders a zero cost simply to preserve a tidy table.

Make the final check with complete costs and real demand

Verify listing eligibility and the actual fee category or payment contract.
Use the comparison to identify which fee components explain the difference.
Open each relevant platform tool and add its own fulfillment, subscription, returns and acquisition allocations.
Check the price against demand and the profit after discounts or an attributed ad fee.
Compare actual cost evidence and sales behavior before expanding a channel.

Cross-border operation can change registration, currency, tax and payment fees. A US/USD tool should not be used as if those conditions are identical in every market. Keep the assumptions visible when copying or sharing a report.

Sources and scope

Sources and formulas checked 2026-10-04. These are hypothetical examples and estimates using the entered costs, not invoices, typical margins or forecasts of sales or income. The site is independent of Amazon, Shopify, eBay and Etsy. Review your account terms for adjustments that apply to you.

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