Amazon Handmade: What Sellers and Buyers Need to Know

I've bought from Amazon Handmade 23 times and sold through it for 18 months. The platform confuses people — is it actually handmade? Is it worth the fees? Does quality match Etsy?

Amazon Handmade launched in 2015 as Amazon's answer to Etsy. Eight years later, it occupies a weird middle ground — bigger reach than independent shops, stricter curation than main Amazon, but less community feel than craft marketplaces.

Here's everything I've learned about Amazon Handmade from both sides of the transaction, including whether it deserves your attention as a buyer or seller.

Feature	Amazon Handmade	Etsy	Own Website
Monthly Fee	$0	$0-15	$29-79
Transaction Fee	15%	6.5% + fees	2-3%
Built-in Traffic	Massive	Large	None
Application Required	Yes (strict)	No	No
Prime Eligible	Yes	No	No

What Actually Qualifies as Amazon Handmade

Amazon Handmade requires products to be genuinely handcrafted, hand-altered, or hand-assembled by the seller or their small team. Mass-produced items don't qualify. Reselling doesn't qualify. Using production partners requires disclosure. The application process verifies these claims through documentation — photos of workspace, production process, and finished goods.

The verification process for Amazon Handmade takes 2-4 weeks typically. Rejections happen frequently — my first application failed because I submitted finished product photos without showing the creation process. Second attempt included step-by-step production images. Approved in 11 days. The gatekeeping frustrates some sellers but maintains marketplace quality.

Categories on Amazon Handmade include jewelry, home décor, kitchen items, artwork, stationery, baby products, beauty items, clothing, shoes, handbags, pet supplies, sporting goods, and toys. Some categories perform dramatically better than others — jewelry and home goods dominate sales volume based on seller reports I've gathered.

The Application Process Explained

Getting accepted to Amazon Handmade requires demonstrating genuine craft production. Submit photos showing your hands making products, your workspace with tools visible, raw materials before assembly, and finished items. Written descriptions of your process help too. Amazon reviewers verify that products couldn't easily be mass-produced or dropshipped.

Production capacity questions matter during Amazon Handmade applications. They want to know how many items you can produce monthly, whether you have employees or work alone, and how you handle order surges. Honest answers work better than exaggeration — they're checking for consistency with your stated production methods.

Fees and Profit Margins on Amazon Handmade

Amazon Handmade charges 15% referral fee on each sale. No monthly subscription fee — the standard $39.99 Professional Seller fee gets waived for approved artisans. This fee structure beats Etsy's complex combination of listing fees, transaction fees, and payment processing fees for most price points above $20.

My actual margins on Amazon Handmade average 62% after all costs. That includes the 15% fee, shipping materials ($2.40 average), and occasional advertising spend. Products priced under $15 struggle to maintain healthy margins — the percentage-based fee eats too much. I've moved all sub-$20 items to other platforms.

Hidden costs on Amazon Handmade to budget for:

• Returns (roughly 4% for my category, shipping both ways)
• Professional photography ($12-25 per product if outsourced)
• Advertising/PPC (optional but increasingly necessary)
• Premium packaging for brand experience
• Inventory storage if volume grows

Amazon Handmade vs Etsy: Real Comparison

Etsy's fees look lower at first glance — 6.5% transaction fee versus Amazon Handmade's flat 15%. But add Etsy's 3% payment processing, $0.20 listing fees, and mandatory offsite ads (12-15% for larger sellers), and the gap shrinks dramatically. For items priced over $30, Amazon Handmade often costs less overall when you calculate everything.

Traffic differs significantly between these platforms. Amazon Handmade benefits from Amazon's 300+ million active customers browsing daily. Etsy has roughly 90 million active buyers by comparison. But Etsy buyers specifically seek handmade goods intentionally, while Amazon Handmade shoppers might be browsing casually without purchase intent. Conversion rates on Etsy run higher for my specific products despite lower overall traffic volume.

Seller support differs notably between Amazon Handmade and Etsy. Amazon provides robust backend tools, inventory management, and advertising platforms. Etsy offers community features and seller forums that Amazon lacks. The right choice depends on whether you value sophisticated selling tools or peer community support more.

Buyer Experience on Amazon Handmade

Shopping Amazon Handmade feels like regular Amazon with an artisan filter applied. Same interface, same checkout process, same Prime shipping options where sellers qualify. The difference appears in product listings — maker stories, production details, and customization options that standard Amazon products lack. Quality varies across sellers but generally exceeds mass-market alternatives in my experience.

My 23 purchases from Amazon Handmade have been 80% positive experiences overall. Ceramic mugs arrived well-packaged with personal thank-you notes from the artisans. Custom jewelry matched descriptions exactly with no surprises. A leather wallet exceeded expectations in quality and craftsmanship. The failures involved shipping delays (twice) and one item that looked more mass-produced than the listing suggested. Amazon's return policy protected me.

Prime eligibility makes Amazon Handmade particularly attractive for gift-buying situations. Two-day shipping on handmade items removes the planning-ahead requirement that other craft marketplaces demand. I've ordered birthday gifts from Amazon Handmade three days before events successfully. That convenience simply doesn't exist elsewhere in the handmade market.

Customization options on Amazon Handmade differentiate it from standard marketplace shopping. Many sellers offer personalization — engraving, color choices, size modifications. The interface handles custom orders smoothly when sellers configure it properly. I've ordered personalized items with specific text and received exactly what I requested every time.

Success Strategies for Amazon Handmade Sellers

Photography determines success on Amazon Handmade more than any other factor. The platform's visual-first browsing means your main image competes directly against professional product photography. White backgrounds, proper lighting, and multiple angles aren't optional — they're baseline requirements. My conversion rate doubled after investing in proper product photos.

Keyword optimization on Amazon Handmade follows Amazon's A9 algorithm, not Google's SEO rules. Include relevant search terms in titles, bullet points, and descriptions. But don't keyword-stuff — Amazon penalizes spam. Titles should be readable first, optimized second. The balance takes practice to master.

Pricing strategy on Amazon Handmade requires understanding buyer psychology. Products priced too low signal poor quality to shoppers. Premium pricing (within reason) actually increases conversions for handmade goods. My $35 items outsell $25 items with identical production costs. The handmade market rewards confidence.

Success Factor	Impact Level	Time Investment
Professional Photos	Critical	4-8 hours initial
Keyword Research	High	2-3 hours per listing
Review Generation	High	Ongoing
PPC Advertising	Medium-High	Weekly management
Inventory Management	Medium	Weekly check-ins

Building Reviews on Amazon Handmade

Reviews drive visibility on Amazon Handmade. Products with 15+ reviews significantly outperform those with fewer. Legitimate review building involves excellent products, fast shipping, and follow-up messaging thanking customers and requesting feedback. Never incentivize reviews — Amazon bans accounts for this aggressively.

My Amazon Handmade review rate sits around 8% — meaning roughly 1 in 12 buyers leaves feedback. This matches industry averages. Including thank-you cards requesting reviews bumped my rate from 5% to 8%. Small improvements compound significantly over hundreds of orders.

Is Amazon Handmade Worth It?

For sellers: Amazon Handmade works best if you can maintain 60%+ margins after the 15% fee, produce products priced above $25, and handle the application process with patience. The traffic advantage is real — I generate 40% of total revenue from Amazon Handmade despite it being my third-launched platform. The audience reach justifies the higher fee structure for many artisans.

For buyers: Amazon Handmade offers convenience unmatched in the handmade marketplace. Prime shipping on artisan goods removes friction from purchasing decisions. Quality generally exceeds mass-market alternatives significantly. Prices run 10-20% higher than Etsy for comparable items, but free shipping often evens this out completely. If you value convenience and already shop Amazon regularly, Amazon Handmade deserves exploration.

The platform's future looks stable for both parties. Amazon continues investing in handmade categories, adding seller features, and actively recruiting quality artisans. Unlike some Amazon experiments that get abandoned after launch, Amazon Handmade has matured into a permanent fixture over eight years. Building presence here makes strategic sense for serious craft businesses planning long-term growth.

Competition on Amazon Handmade remains manageable compared to main Amazon categories. The application barrier limits seller quantity, meaning quality products can find visibility without massive advertising budgets. I spend roughly 12% of revenue on ads — sustainable for a platform generating 40% of my sales. The economics work if your products and pricing align with the marketplace's structure.

For detailed selling strategies, check out our guide on how to sell on Amazon Handmade. And if you're looking for craft projects to create and sell, explore our handmade crafting ideas.

Updated 2026-01-07