The complete guide to successfully selling stickers on Etsy in 2025

Why sell stickers on Etsy?

$191.1 million

That’s the forecast for the global die-cut sticker market in 2028.

And for this particular niche, Etsy has an excellent reputation. Here are some benefits of creating an Etsy store for your custom-printed stickers:

• Vast existing market – Etsy has become a go-to marketplace for anyone interested in buying unique products like custom stickers.
• High visibility –  As a vesatile product, you can place stickers in various categories, adding tags for special events or holidays for better visibility.
• Customizable storefront –  Personalize your store, add videos to your products, and showcase high-quality product images to attract shoppers.

Selling stickers on Etsy is also perfect for beginners thanks to its user-friendly interface, easing your money-making journey.

Things to look out for when opening an Etsy sticker shop

While Etsy has a lot of positive aspects, it’s essential to look at some of its drawbacks to get a full picture:

• High competition – Plenty of other sticker makers compete for customers. That said, if you clearly define your niche, it’ll be easier to stand out and profit.
• Etsy fees – How much does Etsy take per sale? Etsy charges listing, transaction, shipping, and payment processing fees. Although small, they do add up.
• Marketing effort – While setting up and listing your products on Etsy is easy, getting sales requires optimizing for the Etsy search engine and digital marketing.

With that said, Etsy is still a great platform for beginners.

Once your business starts attracting loyal customers, it’ll be easier to leverage the power of multichannel retailing and expand your sticker business beyond Etsy.

Research the sticker market and identify your target audience

Market research is essential for understanding how to sell on Etsy. It provides valuable insights into the industry, competition, and consumer sentiment. 

• Set a clear goal – Define the purpose of your research and how it will assist your Etsy sticker business. This helps you stay focused and avoid irrelevant information.
• Spot trends – Research popular stickers on Etsy, Amazon, and eBay. Use tools like eRank to understand consumer preferences and what’s currently in demand.
• Analyze competitors – Examine successful Etsy sellers and their product range, strengths, and weaknesses. Determine unique stickers you can provide that they don’t.
• Identify your audience – Pinpoint potential customers. Utilize social media accounts, competitor feedback, and online forums to understand their interests and needs.
• Create buyer personas – Develop profiles for different customer segments, like “K-pop Katie” or “Alt-rock Alan”. They should reflect the characteristics and preferences of your target market, helping you design stickers that resonate with them.

With a thorough understanding of the sticker market, you can find what’s missing and fill the gap with one-of-a-kind products.

Find a niche for your unique stickers

Success on Etsy depends on identifying a profitable niche. A niche targets a specific group with distinct interests, like fitness enthusiasts, craft beer lovers, or van-life travelers.

Narrowing your focus makes it easier to attract these groups. Plus, choosing a niche aligned with your passion helps you stand out and potentially increase earnings.

Here are just a few examples of stickers you can modify to fit the needs of your target audience:

• Round stickers with names, quotes, and memes
• Kiss-cut stickers with trending aesthetics
• Tattoo-style durable vinyl stickers
• Organization and planner stickers

Use Google Trends to check whether your ideas are popular enough to justify spending time creating designs.

Create your sticker designs

In the competitive Etsy sticker market, standout designs are key to success. You don’t need to be an expert designer – a creative idea and an understanding of your niche helps you make compelling designs.

Find inspiration from various websites to fuel your creativity:

• Dribbble – It’s not only a social networking platform but a valuable resource for hiring designers. Find a wealth of ideas and creative concepts.
• Pinterest – A visual discovery engine, it’s the place to find inspiration for aesthetic sticker designs in any niche.
• Behance – A design portfolio platform where artists showcase their work. It’s excellent for gathering ideas and hiring talented designers.

These sites are perfect for kickstarting your creativity. Get inspired and use it as a starting point to create awesome stickers while adding your personality and uniqueness.

If hiring a designer is out of your budget or you want to design stickers yourself, try the following options:

• Adobe Photoshop – A powerful and versatile solution perfect for creating original graphics. While there’s a learning curve, it’s one of the best tools for creating stickers.
• Canva – A cloud-based design platform suitable for beginners. Learn how to make stickers on Canva to sell on Etsy by experimenting with templates, shapes, illustrations, fonts, and colors.
• Pixlr – A user-friendly, cloud-based design and photo editing tool that lets you easily create stickers directly within your browser.

For a quicker approach, consider leveraging stock images.

With Printify’s Shutterstock integration, you’ll find stunning visuals starting at just $2 to easily customize and create unique stickers for your Etsy store. Refer to our Help Center article to learn more.

Find where to create your stickers

There are three main options for making stickers:

• Create your own from scratch – This option requires time and supplies. To create paper stickers at home, invest in inkjet or laser printers, sticker paper, and cutting tools. You’ll also need to prepare shipping labels and packaging.
• Use sticker printing services – Order product batches from a print shop specializing in printing stickers, but handle shipping yourself.
• Sell print-on-demand stickers – The most beginner-friendly and cost-effective option, this is where you use a print-on-demand (POD) platform that offers various stickers ready for customization. The best part? They print and ship them for you.

With Printify’s POD, all you need to do is sign up for a free account to access a wide variety of stickers. Upload your designs and customize the stickers using our Product Creator before listing them on your Etsy store in just a few clicks.

Open an Etsy store

Making beautiful custom stickers won’t get you far if you don’t know how to start an Etsy shop.

After signing in or registering, click on the gray silhouette in the top-right corner and select Sell on Etsy. Then, hit Get started to open your store.

Fill in the following information:

• Shop preferences – Describe your store and set the shop’s language, country, and currency. 
• Your shop name – Choose a creative and memorable Etsy shop name. If you plan to expand your product range beyond stickers, find something evergreen while still reflecting your niche.
• How you’ll get paid – Enter your bank account and payment details, specifying if you’re an Individual or Business. Funds deposit weekly on Mondays, but you can adjust the frequency in Shop Manager → Finances → Payment Settings.
• Billing – Enter your credit card details to pay for Etsy fees. 
• Your shop security – Etsy requires you to set up two-factor authentication. 
• Stock your shop – Add a product listing. You can save this as a draft and add details later. Then, click Open your shop to become an Etsy seller.

List and price your stickers

Enhance your store’s appeal by focusing on key elements on your sticker listings.

Optimize them

To start selling stickers successfully, you need to optimize listings to improve visibility on Etsy. This means:

• Using high-quality photos to highlight the unique details and true colors of your stickers. Show your stickers on items like laptops or notebooks to provide context and scale.
• Creating compelling descriptions that address any questions buyers might have. This includes sticker dimensions, material type, such as vinyl or paper, adhesive strength, and whether they’re waterproof or UV resistant.

Set up your storefront and take care of branding

As with any online business, perception is vital. Pay attention to every detail when customizing your store – convey professionalism while reflecting what makes your sticker brand stand out.

Here are a few things your Etsy store should have:

• A beautiful banner image  – This is your most prominent branding asset. Use it to showcase your brand, bestselling stickers, or to advertise a sale. 
• Information about your store – Add a shop description, create a custom profile photo, and tell about yourself. A good story helps draw people in. 
• Shop policies – Provide clear guidelines for returns, exchanges, cancellations, and consumer privacy. Utilize Etsy’s templates and automation options to tailor these policies to your shop’s needs.
• An FAQ section – Explore other sticker shops and check what information they provide sellers. Are the stickers waterproof? How long does order processing usually take?

Don’t forget about Etsy SEO

Etsy SEO is a way to improve the visibility of your Etsy store and its products. Learning how to get more sales on Etsy through SEO can be a real game-changer.

To make your Etsy store search-friendly, you’ll need to do keyword research:

• Etsy SEO tools – Use tools like eRank, Alura, EverBee, and Keyword Tool Dominator to see what people search for.
• Etsy’s search bar – Get suggestions after typing a few letters in Etsy’s search bar. These are queries people have made previously and which are currently trending.

On that note, there are a few things you can do to gain more visibility. The first is adding keywords to product titles and descriptions. Place the most relevant keywords at the beginning to capture buyers’ attention.

Over time, regularly renew your listings to get a small boost in the search rankings. Try to do this during peak hours when most people are browsing for the best results.

Related article

Etsy SEO: How to get noticed on Etsy in 2025 (with expert tips)

Learn how to improve Etsy SEO for 2024 with valuable insights and clear steps to increase your store’s reach and profits will follow.

Start promoting and selling your stickers

If you want to make money selling stickers on Etsy, don’t underestimate the power of marketing. Building a loyal customer base and promoting your store plays a big role in growing your online business.

To increase the likelihood of success, here are a few proven strategies to consider:

• Social media marketing –  This is a fantastic way to save money on advertising. Post regularly on your social media accounts, promote your printed stickers, and offer giveaways to attract people to your Etsy store.
• Influencer marketing  – As influencer marketing continues to grow, capitalize on this opportunity by collaborating with a content creator to target interested buyers within your niche.
• Etsy advertising  – Etsy Ads run directly on the marketplace, spotlighting your stickers in prominent areas within Etsy search results, categories, and market pages. See Etsy’s step-by-step guide on how to set up and manage Etsy Ads to learn more.

Step 1: Sign up and choose your sticker

Register for a free Printify account to access print-ready custom stickers and sticker sheets.

Round Stickers, Indoor\Outdoor

By Generic brand

From $2.41 From $1.77 with Printify Premium

5 sizes SunFrog Solutions

Kiss-Cut Stickers

By Generic brand

From $1.45 From $1.07 with Printify Premium

4 sizes SPOKE Custom Products

Square Vinyl Stickers

By Generic brand

From $2.66 From $1.95 with Printify Premium

8 sizes 2 print providers

Sticker Sheets

By Generic brand

From $5.94 From $4.37 with Printify Premium

2 sizes Printed Simply

Bumper Stickers

By Generic brand

From $4.22 From $3.10 with Printify Premium

3 sizes Printed Simply

Step 2: Apply your sticker design

Bring your sticker designs to life with our beginner-friendly Product Creator. There’s no need to have design experience to use this Etsy sticker maker tool – just follow the recommended sticker guidelines.

Step 3: Edit product details

After your sticker design is ready, fill out the product details while naturally embedding keywords to gain favor with Etsy’s search engine.

Step 4: Connect your Etsy store

Connect your Etsy store with Printify to integrate our sticker printing and fulfillment services, automatically processing orders each time a customer purchases.

Step 5: Publish and start selling stickers on Etsy

Showcase your creations and publish your stickers to attract customers worldwide. After a sale, our Print Providers will print, package, and ship your stickers worldwide.