Etsy hits sellers with 30 percent transaction fee increase

Photo: Chris Welch / The Verge

The company announced today that it is raising seller transaction fees from 5 percent to 6.5 percent. The 30 percent increase will take effect on April 11th, according to the company's report to investors. When a seller makes a sale, the transaction fee is the percentage of the total order amount.

The company attributes a strong holiday shopping season to a strong fourth-quarter revenue. There were 10 million new buyers in the fourth quarter, bringing the total to 90 million. The stock prices went up after the market closed on Thursday.

In the report, Josh Silverman says that they have demonstrated their ability to make improvements that directly translate into more sales for their sellers.

The increase in fees will mostly pay for marketing, seller tools, and creating world-class customer experiences.

Merchants on the platform have complained about changes at the company for years. The last time transaction fees were raised was in 2018, when they went from 3.5 percent to 5 percent, and sellers paid 0.20 for listing an item.