10 Best Etsy Alternatives for Digital Products
Etsy charges 6.5% + $0.20 per listing. Own your brand and save thousands per year with these better alternatives.
Why Digital Product Sellers Are Leaving Etsy
High Fees Add Up
6.5% transaction fee + $0.20 per listing + payment processing. Selling $5k/month costs $390+ in fees.
You Don't Own Your Brand
Limited customization, no customer data access, competing in crowded marketplace.
Declining Growth
Etsy's 2026 data shows 6.5% drop in sales and 3.4% decline in active buyers.
1. PengDrop
The #1 Etsy Alternative for Digital Products
- Lower fees than Etsy (5% vs 6.5%)
- $89/year for 0% fees forever
- No listing fees ($0.20 on Etsy)
- Own your brand and customer data
- Custom storefront included
- Instant digital delivery
- Built-in analytics dashboard
- No Etsy marketplace competition
- Unlimited products (10GB storage)
- Much lower fees than Etsy
- You own your customer relationships
- Your own branded store
- No listing fees or renewal fees
- Keep 100% of revenue on annual plan
- Direct payments to your Stripe account
- Need to drive your own traffic (no marketplace)
- Focused on digital products only
Digital product sellers who want to own their brand and maximize profit margins
2. Shopify
Build your own e-commerce store
- Complete store ownership
- Thousands of apps and themes
- Digital downloads app available
- Professional e-commerce features
- Abandoned cart recovery
- Advanced analytics
- Full control over your store
- Very scalable platform
- Great for mixed catalogs
- Powerful marketing tools
- Monthly costs ($468-4,788/year)
- Requires Digital Downloads app
- More complex than needed for digital-only
Sellers with both physical and digital products
3. Creative Market
Marketplace for designers and creatives
- 5 million+ monthly visitors
- Built-in creative audience
- Great for fonts, graphics, templates
- No listing fees
- Monthly free goods program
- Designer community
- Huge built-in audience
- No listing fees
- Perfect for design assets
- Good exposure for creatives
- High 30% commission
- Less control than own store
- Limited to creative products
Designers selling fonts, graphics, and templates
4. Gumroad
Simple platform for creators
- Very easy to use
- Email marketing included
- Pre-orders and memberships
- Discover page for exposure
- Quick checkout
- Workflow automation
- Super simple setup
- Good for beginners
- Built-in audience potential
- Workflow automation
- 10% fees higher than Etsy
- No custom storefront
- Limited customization
Creators who prioritize simplicity
5. Payhip
Sell digital products with ease
- Free plan available
- EU VAT handling
- Affiliate program
- Course hosting
- Memberships
- Email marketing
- Free plan option
- Lower fees than Etsy on free plan
- Good for courses
- VAT automation
- Limited customization
- Pro plan expensive
- Transaction fees on lower tiers
International sellers needing VAT compliance
6. Easy Digital Downloads
WordPress plugin for digital products
- Self-hosted solution
- Complete control
- Works with WordPress
- Extensive extensions
- No transaction fees
- Your own domain
- Total ownership and control
- No transaction fees
- Very customizable
- One-time annual cost
- Requires WordPress knowledge
- Need to manage hosting
- More technical setup
WordPress users who want complete control
7. Sellfy
All-in-one store for creators
- Print-on-demand integration
- Email marketing included
- Product subscriptions
- Upsells and cart recovery
- Custom domain
- Store customization
- No transaction fees
- Email marketing built-in
- Print-on-demand options
- Good for digital products
- No free plan
- Monthly costs add up
- Starter plan caps revenue at $10k
Creators wanting email marketing and no transaction fees
8. Big Cartel
Simple shop for artists
- Free plan for 5 products
- Simple interface
- Custom domain support
- Inventory tracking
- Discount codes
- Real-time stats
- Free plan available
- Very simple to use
- No transaction fees
- Good for artists
- Limited to 5 products on free plan
- Basic features
- Fewer integrations
Artists with small product catalogs
9. SendOwl
Digital delivery platform
- PDF stamping
- Subscription management
- Affiliate program
- Cart abandonment recovery
- Pay-what-you-want pricing
- Advanced security
- Advanced security features
- Subscription support
- Affiliate program built-in
- PDF stamping
- Expensive monthly fees
- Per-order fees on top
- No custom storefront
Sellers needing advanced security and subscriptions
10. Fourthwall
Stores for creators and communities
- Free to start
- Built for creators
- Memberships supported
- Custom merchandise
- Community features
- Video integration
- Free to start
- Good for content creators
- Community features
- Membership support
- 8% fee higher than PengDrop
- Focused on creator economy
- Limited to specific use cases
YouTubers and streamers building communities
Quick Comparison Table
| Platform | Monthly Cost | Transaction Fees | Listing Fees |
|---|---|---|---|
| PengDrop | $7.42 (annual) | 0% | $0 |
| Etsy | $0 | 6.5% | $0.20/item |
| Creative Market | $0 | 30% | $0 |
| Shopify | $39-399 | 0% | $0 |
| Gumroad | $10 | 10% | $0 |
Ready to Own Your Brand?
Join digital product sellers who left Etsy and are saving $900+/year while building their own brand with PengDrop.
Start Free TodayNo credit card required • 0% fees on annual plan • No listing fees