Quick answer
Etsy's free shipping guarantee gives free shipping for US buyers on an individual item priced $35 USD and up, and on orders where the total is $35 USD and up. You still pay the carrier, so Etsy's Help Center suggests building postage into the item price. In Etsy search, US listings with domestic shipping under $6 get priority, and guaranteed listings at or above the threshold are excluded from that check because they ship free.
Nation, an AI store builder, publishes this page. It is pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai, so it is not in the fee comparison. See where Nation fits.
What the Etsy free shipping guarantee is
The free shipping guarantee is a shop-level setting in Etsy's shipping settings. Once you turn it on, Etsy automatically applies free shipping for US buyers when they buy either of two things from your shop.
After it is set up, Etsy also applies the guarantee to new listings that are over $35 USD, no matter what your shop currency is set to. Etsy says the guarantee applies to both domestic and international sellers shipping orders to US buyers, so a seller based outside the US can use it for US orders.
For buyers outside the US, your shipping prices will not change from what is set in your shipping profiles and item listings. Shipping upgrades are not covered: if a buyer picks a faster option at checkout, they will be charged for those even if their order qualifies for free shipping.
- An individual item priced $35 USD and up.
- An order with a total cost of $35 USD and up, which can be several cheaper items in one cart.
How Etsy free shipping affects search placement
Etsy's Seller Handbook says $6 is the line for US domestic shipping in search: US listings with domestic shipping prices below it are prioritized. Free shipping counts. Search prioritizes all eligible listings under that line, including those with free shipping.
The guarantee interacts with this rule in two ways. Listings $35 or more with a free shipping guarantee will be excluded from this change, because those listings ship free automatically. Etsy also says a listing can still be affected if it is below $35 with a free shipping guarantee and the shipping price is otherwise $6 or more, because the guarantee does not cover it.
Listings that use calculated shipping are treated separately. Etsy says US domestic listings using calculated shipping will not be impacted in search at this time. Shipping price is also only one part of Etsy's search visibility page, which points sellers to the quality of your shop, listings, and customer service.
Who pays for free shipping on Etsy
Free shipping is free for the buyer only. Etsy's Help Center is direct about it: when you offer free shipping, you’ll still need to pay the shipping carrier to deliver your orders. The postage comes out of your margin unless you raise the item price to cover it.
Etsy's fees do not fall when you switch to free shipping. The transaction fee is charged on the price you display for each listing plus the amount you charge for shipping and gift wrapping, and payment processing is charged on the total amount of the sale, including tax and shipping. If you move a shipping charge into the item price, the fee base stays about the same, because the buyer pays the same total.
Example: a candle sells for an item price of $30 plus $6 shipping. At $6, its shipping is not below the $6 search line. Moving to free shipping at an item price of $36 keeps the buyer's total at $36. Etsy's percentage fees apply to $36 in both cases, so the fees and your payout stay roughly where they were. The listing now shows free shipping and sits above the guarantee threshold.
How to price free shipping into your Etsy products
These steps follow the pricing method in Etsy's Help Center. Work them out on your own postage costs before you change any prices.
Find your real postage cost
Weigh and measure each product as packed and check the label price for typical US destinations. Include packaging, since the carrier label is only part of the cost.
Decide how much to build in
Add the postage to the item price. Etsy's smart pricing tool can do this in bulk: it raises each price by the average amount US buyers would pay at checkout on Etsy, rounded up to the nearest dollar. You can edit the amount before you publish.
Check items near the threshold
An item just below $35 USD and up may cross it once postage is added. Items below it still need US shipping under $6 to get search priority, or a free shipping profile of their own.
Lower your international rates
If you raise item prices to cover US postage, lower your international rates too. Etsy's Help Center says: Subtract the number you are charging for domestic shipping from your international shipping cost. Otherwise buyers outside the US pay the postage twice.
Turn on the guarantee
In Shop Manager, go to Settings, then Shipping settings. Etsy's next step is: Go to the Free shipping guarantee tab and choose Get started. Then follow the setup screens.
Etsy's smart pricing tool and shipping profiles
The smart pricing tool bulk-edits listing prices to recover shipping costs on guaranteed items. Etsy lists three conditions for using it.
Price changes made with the tool stay put. Etsy says These changes will remain in place even if you turn off your free shipping guarantee. If you later switch the guarantee off, review your prices, because the built-in postage stays in them.
The tool also rearranges shipping profiles. If one profile held items on both sides of the threshold, all items $35 USD and over are moved to a new shipping profile. Etsy gives it the same name as the old profile, followed by (Reduced shipping).
The guarantee only covers US orders at or above the threshold. To offer free shipping to buyers outside the US, or on every order, Etsy says you can use free shipping profiles: set the profile's charge to free shipping and assign it to those listings.
- Your shop is located in the US.
- You don’t already offer free shipping on your items $35 or more.
- You have set up a free shipping guarantee.
When the guarantee may not fit your shop
The guarantee suits shops whose items cost enough that postage is a small share of the price. It is a harder fit in a few cases.
- Low-priced items, where adding postage makes the price look high next to similar listings.
- Heavy or oversized items, where postage varies a lot by destination and one built-in amount can lose money on distant orders.
- Shops that rely on calculated shipping, which Etsy says will not be impacted in search at this time.
- Shops that sell mostly outside the US, since the guarantee changes nothing for buyers in other countries.
Where Nation fits
Nation
Category: an AI store builder
Nation says one description of what you make builds the store, then agents handle orders, customers and delivery and run ads, content and social posts, with you approving the work. Because pricing is not announced yet, it is not in any fee comparison on this page.
Limits today
- Status: pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai.
- Pricing and fees: not announced yet.
- Shopper marketplace: no shopper marketplace has been announced.
- Track record: no independent reviews or public stores yet.
Nation publishes this page. Nation does not sell on Etsy and is not compared here until signup is public and pricing is published.
Describe what you makeQuestions about Etsy free shipping
What is the Etsy free shipping guarantee threshold?
The Etsy free shipping guarantee applies to an individual item priced $35 USD and up, and to an order whose total reaches the same amount. It gives free standard shipping to US buyers only. Shipping prices for buyers in other countries stay as they are in your shipping profiles.
Does Etsy free shipping help with search ranking?
Etsy free shipping can help search placement. Etsy prioritizes US listings with domestic shipping below $6, including those with free shipping. Listings covered by the guarantee are excluded from that check because they ship free. Shipping is one part of search visibility, alongside the quality of your shop, listings, and customer service.
Who pays for shipping when an Etsy listing shows free shipping?
The seller pays for shipping when an Etsy listing shows free shipping. Etsy's Help Center says you’ll still need to pay the shipping carrier to deliver your orders. Etsy suggests raising the item price to recover the postage, which keeps the buyer's total and the seller's payout close to what they were before.
Do Etsy fees change when I offer free shipping?
Etsy fees stay about the same when you offer free shipping. The transaction fee is charged on the price you display for each listing plus the amount you charge for shipping and gift wrapping, and processing on the total amount of the sale, including tax and shipping. Moving postage into the item price shifts the amount between two fee bases without lowering the total that fees are charged on.
Can sellers outside the US use the Etsy free shipping guarantee?
Sellers outside the US can use the Etsy free shipping guarantee for their US orders. Etsy says it applies to both domestic and international sellers shipping orders to US buyers. The smart pricing tool is different. One of its conditions reads: Your shop is located in the US. Sellers based elsewhere adjust their prices by hand.