Just testing an idea?
Etsy. The audience is already there and set-up is nearly instant. Budget for the ~10–11% they take from every sale.
The honest guide · 2026 fees
Where to sell jewellery
Where to sell jewellery
online.
Short version: it depends on what you’re optimising for. Marketplaces like Etsy and eBay hand you an audience and take a cut of every sale — forever. Your own store keeps your margin and your customers, but you bring the traffic. Most successful jewellery sellers end up doing both.
Yes, we’re a store builder. No, we’re not going to pretend Etsy is bad. It isn’t.
Where you should sell depends on what you’re trying to do.
The right choice changes with the stage you’re at, the kind of pieces you sell, and the audience you already have.
Vintage or high-value?
eBay — buyers go there specifically for secondhand, watches and fine pieces. Budget for the 15% cut.
Building a brand?
Your own store. Lowest fees (2.5% free, 0.5% paid), your customer list, your rules. Best long-term margin.
Already have a following?
Your own store, linked from bio. You’ve already solved the traffic problem marketplaces charge you 6.5–15% to solve.
Selling pieces you already own — an inherited ring, old gold, a watch you don’t wear? You don’t need a store. Your best options are a local independent jeweller (get two or three quotes), an online consigner like Worthy or TheRealReal for fine pieces (expect them to take 15–40%), or eBay and Facebook Marketplace if you’re happy to handle the sale yourself. That’s the honest answer — the rest of this page isn’t for you, and we’d rather say so than waste your time.
Selling jewellery you make, source, or curate — as a business? Keep reading. That’s what this guide is about.
Fees are where the “where” question gets real.
What each platform takes from a sale, using published 2026 rates. US rates shown.
| Platform | Listing fee | Fee per sale | Payment processing | Effective total* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Etsy | $0.20/item | 6.5% (incl. shipping) | ~3% + $0.25 | ~10–11% — or ~25% when Offsite Ads apply |
| eBay (Jewellery & Watches) | Free up to 250/mo | 15% (incl. shipping) | Included | ~15–16% |
| Amazon Handmade | Free | 15% referral fee | Included | ~15% |
| Instagram / TikTok Shop | Free | Varies by region & programme | Varies | Check current rates for your region |
| Your own Freewebstore | Free, unlimited | 2.5% (0.5% on paid plans) | Stripe/PayPal rates (~2.9% + 30¢) | ~5.5% |
*On a typical order incl. shipping. Etsy’s Offsite Ads fee is mandatory once you pass $10k/yr in sales. eBay’s jewellery rate drops on the portion above $2,500.
Say you sell a $40 necklace with $5 shipping.
Here’s exactly what each platform keeps — including their cut of the shipping charge, which nobody puts in the headline.
- Etsy: $2.93 transaction + $1.60 processing + $0.20 listing = $4.73 gone (10.5%). If it sold through an Offsite Ad: $11.48 (25.5%).
- eBay: $6.75 final value + $0.40 order fee = $7.15 gone (15.9%).
- Amazon Handmade: $6.75 gone (15%).
- Your own Freewebstore: $1.13 platform fee + ~$1.61 card processing = $2.74 gone (6.1%).
Both have real advantages. Here’s the honest split.
What marketplaces give you
Traffic, trust, and zero set-up.
Etsy alone puts your pieces in front of roughly 90 million active buyers who already have payment details saved. For handmade jewellery especially, buyers start on Etsy the way they start on Google. If you’re at zero sales, that’s worth paying for.
What you don’t get: the customer. Their email belongs to the marketplace. Your “shop” is a row in someone else’s catalogue, one algorithm change from invisible, sitting directly beside your competitors — often literally in the “similar items” strip on your own listing.
What your own store gives you
The margin, the customer list, the brand.
When someone buys from yourshop.com, they’re your customer — you can email them when the new collection drops. No competitor’s ring in the sidebar. No policy change that buries you. (Comparing store builders? See how we stack up against Shopify and Big Cartel.)
What you don’t get: free traffic. You’ll bring buyers from Instagram, TikTok, Google, markets and fairs, word of mouth. If you already have any audience at all, this is the cheapest place to send it.
The jewellery-specific bits, built in.
A Freewebstore jewellery store comes with the fiddly parts of the category already handled.
Ring sizes & metal options
Variant options for ring size, metal type and gemstone. Each combination gets its own price, stock and SKU.
Made-to-order workflows
Checkout Forms collect customisation details — engraving text, ring size, stone choice. Lead times in your product description.
Insured, fragile shipping
Live shipping rates from Royal Mail and DPD with insurance options. High-value packaging tracked end-to-end.
Start on a marketplace. Build your own store alongside it.
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Start on Etsy, validate the product
Get in front of buyers who are already there. Learn which pieces sell, at what price, to which type of customer — without paying for traffic.
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Open your own free store
Freewebstore imports your Etsy catalogue by CSV, so running both costs you nothing but the marketplace’s cut on marketplace sales. Ten minutes, no card.
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Move your repeat buyers over
A card in the parcel with a discount code for your own site is the oldest trick in the book because it works. Repeat buyers cost you ~5.5% instead of ~10–25%.
Selling jewellery online, the questions you actually have.
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Where is the best place to sell jewellery online?
For instant audience: Etsy (handmade/vintage) or eBay (secondhand/high-value). For margin and brand ownership: your own store. Most established sellers run their own store alongside one marketplace.
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Where can I sell jewellery online for free?
No marketplace is free — Etsy takes ~10%+ per sale, eBay 15%. A Freewebstore store is free to open and run (no monthly fee, no card required) with a 2.5% platform fee per sale, dropping to 0.5% on paid plans.
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Is it better to sell jewellery on Etsy or my own website?
Etsy wins on ready-made traffic; your own site wins on fees (2.5% vs ~10–25%), customer ownership and brand. If you already have social traffic, your own site usually nets more per sale from day one.
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Where should I sell handmade jewellery?
Etsy and Amazon Handmade for marketplace reach; your own store for margin. Handmade buyers respond strongly to brand story — which is easier to tell on your own site than in a marketplace listing.
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Where do I sell expensive or fine jewellery online?
eBay (with authentication for watches and fine pieces), specialist consigners like TheRealReal or Worthy for resale, or your own store with insured shipping for your own line. Expect steeper fees at consigners — often 15–40%.
Sell jewellery.
For free.
Wherever else you sell, owning your own store is the only option that gets cheaper as you grow. Yours is free — ten minutes, no card.
Start my free storeNo credit card. No trial. Free forever.