How to price handmade jewelry on Etsy
Jewelry is light to ship and cheap in materials, so the biggest cost is your time. That's the one most makers forget to charge for.
Step 1: Add up materials and packaging
Take a sterling silver stacking ring as an example: wire, solder and finishing might come to $8. A gift box, pouch and card add about $1.25. Shipping a small padded envelope in the US costs around $4.50.
Step 2: Pay yourself properly
If a ring takes 45 minutes to cut, solder, shape and polish, and you value your time at $25 an hour, that's $18.75. Leave it out and you're working for free.
Step 3: See what's left after Etsy
Here's that ring at $38 with free shipping:
You keep $1.44 after paying yourself for your time. To keep a 30% margin on top of your wage, list it at $54.46.
Step 4: Plan for Offsite Ads
Etsy can advertise any listing through Offsite Ads. If a sale comes from one of those ads, Etsy takes another 15% (12% for larger shops). On this ring, an ad-driven sale leaves you −$4.26 instead of $1.44. Price so that ad sales still make you money.
