Set aside 25% to 30% of your Etsy profit, not your sales, for income and self-employment tax. Your profit is what buyers paid for items and shipping, minus Etsy fees, Etsy Ads, shipping labels and your own costs; sales tax is not yours, because Etsy pays it to the state. Type one month, a quarter or a year below to see your profit, how much to set aside and what is yours to keep. The set-aside starts at 25%: change it to your own rate.
Do it from your Etsy statement, every month
The Bookkeeping for Etsy Sellers workbook on Etsy works this out from your real Etsy statement instead of estimates, and adds:
- Paste the monthly statement CSV you download from Etsy: sales, refunds, fees, Etsy Ads and shipping labels are added up for you.
- Profit, set aside for tax and yours to keep for every month and the year, side by side, plus a table by quarter.
- Fee Details: listing, transaction and payment processing fees, Etsy Ads and shipping labels, month by month.
- An Expenses sheet with a category for each cost you pay outside Etsy, and a status line that tells you when every statement line is counted.
One .xlsx file for Excel, plus a link to make your own copy in Google Sheets. Instant download.
Questions
How much should I set aside for taxes as an Etsy seller?
A common starting point is 25% to 30% of your profit, not of your sales, to cover income and self-employment tax; the calculator starts at 25% and takes 0% to 60%. In the example, $745 of sales leaves $324.12 of profit, so 25% is $81.03 to set aside and $243.09 is yours to keep. It is a planning number, not the tax you owe - ask a tax professional for your own rate.
How much does Etsy take from a sale?
In the US, Etsy charges a 6.5% transaction fee on the item price and shipping, payment processing of 3% of what the buyer pays (sales tax included) plus $0.25 per order, and $0.20 for each listing and renewal. In the example that is $80.88 in fees on $745 of sales; with $40 of Etsy Ads and $120 of shipping labels, Etsy takes $240.88, 32.3% of sales.
Is sales tax part of my Etsy income?
No. Etsy collects sales tax from US buyers and pays it to the state, so it is not counted in your sales or your profit. It still costs you a little: the 3% payment processing fee is charged on everything the buyer paid, sales tax included.
What goes in my own costs?
Everything you paid outside Etsy for these sales: materials, packaging, postage bought elsewhere, tools, software and fees on other sites. Leave Etsy fees, Etsy Ads and shipping labels bought on Etsy out of it - they have their own lines.
Where do I find these numbers on Etsy?
On your monthly statement: Shop Manager > Finances > Monthly statements shows your sales, fees, ads and shipping labels for the month. The Bookkeeping for Etsy Sellers workbook reads that statement CSV for you, month after month.
Good to know
- This free calculator works one period at a time from totals you type, and does not save anything.
- Fees here are worked out from the rates. Your Etsy statement shows what Etsy actually charged, including refunds and any fees in another currency.
- The set-aside is a planning number, not the tax you owe. Ask a tax professional for your own rate.
- In the workbook, Sales includes the sales tax buyers paid and the tax is taken back out in its own column, as on your Etsy statement. So its Sales line is higher than here; the profit is the same.
- Fee rates and the example numbers are starting points; type your own.
Questions? Message us on Etsy.