Most Etsy fees are predictable: every sale pays them. Offsite Ads are different. They only apply to some orders, the rate depends on your shop's size, and the fee is big enough to wipe out the profit on a low-margin item. This guide explains exactly how the Offsite Ads fee is calculated, who can opt out, and how to build it into your prices so it doesn't catch you by surprise (Etsy's fee policy).
What are Etsy Offsite Ads?
Offsite Ads are advertisements Etsy runs for your listings on other websites and apps, such as Google and social media. You don't pay to run them — you pay a percentage of the order only when a buyer clicks one of those ads and then buys from your shop within 30 days.
Etsy chooses where the ads appear and which listings to promote. From your side, the only visible effect is an extra fee on the orders that came through them, shown in your payment account.
How much is the Offsite Ads fee?
| Your shop's sales in the past 365 days | Offsite Ads fee | Can you opt out? |
|---|---|---|
| Under $10,000 | 15% of the order total | Yes |
| $10,000 or more | 12% of the order total | No |
The fee is capped at $100 per order, according to Etsy's help center. It's charged on the order total, which includes shipping — so it stacks on top of the regular listing, transaction and payment processing fees rather than replacing them.
What does an Offsite Ad sale actually cost you?
Take a $40 order (item plus shipping, no sales tax) from a US shop:
- Regular Etsy fees: $0.20 listing + $2.60 transaction (6.5%) + $1.45 processing (3% + $0.25) = $4.25
- Offsite Ads fee at 15%: $6.00
- Total: $10.25 — about 26% of the order
At 12%, the ad fee would be $4.80 and the total $9.05. Either way, one ad-driven sale can cost more than double a normal one. Cheap downloads feel it most, as our guide to Etsy fees on printables and other digital products shows at four price points.
The $100 cap only matters for large orders. At 15%, it kicks in on orders above about $667; at 12%, above about $833. A $1,000 order at 15% would owe $150 without the cap, but is charged $100.
Can you opt out of Offsite Ads?
Only if your shop has made less than $10,000 in the past 365 days. New shops are enrolled automatically, but under that threshold you can turn the program off in your Shop Manager settings.
Once a shop crosses $10,000 in a 365-day period, participation becomes mandatory at the lower 12% rate. Several seller guides report that this applies for the life of the shop, even if sales later drop back below $10,000 — so check Etsy's current rules before you cross the line.
Should you opt out?
There's no universal answer, because Offsite Ads bring you buyers you might not have reached. The question is whether those extra sales are worth 15% each. A few rules of thumb:
- Check your margin. If a 15% fee would leave you losing money on an item, the ads are costing you money on every sale they bring in.
- Look at your stats. Etsy's shop stats show how many orders came through Offsite Ads. If it's a tiny share, opting out changes little either way.
- Consider your prices. High-priced items benefit from the $100 cap; low-priced items are hit hardest by percentage fees.
How do you price Offsite Ads into your listings?
You don't know in advance which sales will come from an ad, so the practical approach is to price for the average. If about 10% of your orders come through Offsite Ads at 15%, your average ad cost is 1.5% of revenue (10% × 15%). Add that to your regular fee percentage when you work out prices.
For example, the regular percentage fees on an Etsy sale are 9.5% (6.5% + 3%). With a 1.5% average ad cost, you'd price as if fees were 11% of the sale, plus the fixed $0.45. Our guide to pricing products on Etsy shows the full formula.
It's also worth reading about Etsy vs Shopify vs WooCommerce costs and how much Etsy takes per sale.
