Is it better to charge shipping or offer free shipping on Etsy pricing?

Hi! In most Etsy categories, “free shipping” (or at least low shipping) usually converts better because buyers hate getting to checkout and seeing an extra charge—so if you can keep your total price competitive, rolling shipping into the item price tends to help. That said, it’s not one-size-fits-all: Etsy has also been putting more emphasis on US domestic listings with lower shipping prices in search, so the practical goal is often “free or low shipping,” not necessarily free shipping on everything.

Here’s how I’d decide between the two approaches:

Go with “free shipping” (shipping baked into price) when:

• Your shipping cost is pretty consistent (lightweight items, similar package sizes).
• You’re competing in a crowded search where buyers are price-comparing fast.
• You want fewer abandoned carts from surprise shipping at checkout.
• You can still keep your list price in the “normal” range for your niche.

Keep shipping separate (or use calculated shipping) when:

• Shipping varies a lot by location/zone, weight, size, or you sell bulky/heavy items.
• You sell multi-quantity orders where combined shipping savings matter (charging shipping separately with good “additional item” rates can feel very fair).
• Your item price would look “too high” if you bake shipping in (especially for low-priced items).

A really common “best of both worlds” setup (especially for US buyers):

• Keep shipping free or very low for US domestic (many sellers aim to keep domestic shipping under Etsy’s “pain point” range), and
• Charge separate shipping for international, or reduce international shipping by the amount you built into the item price for US shipping.

How to pick confidently (without guessing):

• Look at your top 5–10 bestsellers and calculate your typical shipping cost (including packaging).
• Try one clear strategy per product line for 30 days (don’t change every few days or you’ll never know what worked).
• Watch: listing conversion rate, add-to-cart rate, and profit per order (not just revenue).
• Compare against competitors the buyer sees in search: if everyone is showing a similar “delivered price,” free shipping usually wins; if everyone is low item price + shipping, matching that can be safer.

If you tell me your average item price range, your typical US shipping cost, and whether items are light or bulky, I can suggest which option is more likely to lift conversions for your specific situation (and how much to bake into the price).