Guide · 8 min read · free tool
Etsy Offsite Ads: What 15% Really Costs on an Attributed Sale
Sep 26, 2026 · Zelpura Editorial · All guides
Etsy Offsite Ads is the fee sellers complain about most and understand least. You do not choose to pay it on a given order. Etsy shows your listing on Google, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Bing; if a shopper clicks and buys within the attribution window, you pay 15% — or 12% if you earned over $10,000 in the previous twelve months. The fee applies on top of every other Etsy fee, and it applies to the full order value including shipping.
This calculator isolates that fee so you can see what it actually costs. Enter the item price, shipping charged, gift wrap, your cost per unit, the postage you pay, your offsite ads tier, and the share of your sales Etsy attributes to offsite. The output shows your standard Etsy fees, the offsite fee on an attributed sale, your net without an offsite sale, your net with one, and the blended net across your real attribution mix.
Worked example. A $28 item with $4.95 shipping. Standard fees: transaction $2.14, listing $0.20, payment $1.24, regulatory $0.16 — total $3.74. At the 15% offsite tier the ads fee is $4.94. Net without offsite, on a $14 cost and $5 postage: $10.21. Net with an offsite sale: $5.27. The offsite fee has removed almost half the profit from that order. If 20% of your sales are attributed, your blended net is $9.22.
The 12% versus 15% tier is a real decision point. Crossing $10,000 in annual sales drops the rate to 12%, saving 3% of every attributed order. For a shop doing $60,000 a year with a 25% attribution rate, that is about $450 a year — meaningful, but not worth distorting your pricing to chase. The calculator lets you switch tiers and see the difference on your own numbers.
Attribution is the honest unknown. Etsy's window is generous, and a meaningful share of "offsite" sales are buyers who searched your shop name directly. The blended net field exists for this: set the attributed share to what your payment account actually shows, not to what the dashboard implies. If you pause offsite ads where permitted and revenue holds, your true attribution was lower than advertised.
Price for the fee, not around it. Because the offsite fee is a percentage of the whole order including shipping, it rewards higher prices proportionally but punishes cheap items absolutely. A $12 item pays $1.80 at 15%; a $60 item pays $9. Both are 15%, but the $12 item often has no room. If your catalogue is mostly low-ticket, raise the average order value with bundles or a minimum, then re-run this calculator.
Opting out is allowed but costly in reach. Sellers under $10,000 can opt out of offsite ads. If your margin cannot absorb 15%, opting out is rational — you lose some discovery, but you keep the orders you would have won anyway. Above $10,000 the programme is mandatory, so the only response is to price for it. Use the Pricing Calculator with your offsite rate included.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Etsy offsite ads fee?
It is 15% of the order value for sellers who earned under $10,000 in the previous 12 months, and 12% for sellers above that threshold. It applies only to sales Etsy attributes to its offsite advertising, and it is charged on top of all other Etsy fees.
Can I turn off Etsy offsite ads?
Sellers who earned under $10,000 in the last 12 months can opt out, though it reduces visibility in Etsy's external placements. Above $10,000 participation is mandatory and the rate drops to 12%.
Does the offsite ads fee apply to shipping?
Yes. It is calculated on the total order value, which includes the item price, the shipping charged to the buyer, and any gift wrap charge.
How do I know what share of my sales are offsite attributed?
Your Etsy payment account breaks out the offsite ads fee as a separate line. Compare that total to your gross revenue for the period — the calculator takes that percentage as the attributed share.
Related: Etsy Fee Calculator · Etsy Profit Calculator · Etsy Pricing Calculator · Etsy Ads ROI · All 93 tools