In 2023, Etsy has over 500 million visits each month, with most visitors coming from the US, UK, Germany, Canada, and France. Etsy is a fantastic choice for small business owners wanting to sell their unique items to customers around the globe, and staying updated on Etsy trends can greatly increase your chances of success.
Selling on Etsy can be lucrative. But having a great product isn’t enough. Understanding the platform’s current trends and staying ahead of the competition is key to unlocking its full potential. However, the information you need is all over the place, tucked away in paywalled reports and gated content. That’s why here at Business2Community, we’ve done the hard work for you and pulled together a curated list of the latest Etsy trends.
Key Etsy Trends
- In 2023, there was a 50% increase in year-on-year growth for the search term “student room decor”.
- In 2021, 95% of search-driven purchases on Etsy came from search results appearing on the first page.
- There was a 206% year-on-year increase for the search term “monthly budget” on Etsy in 2023.
- There was a 58% year-on-year increase in searches for “cargo trousers” in 2023; a sign that the Utility trend has made its way to the platform.
- The “gingerbread girl” aesthetic could be the platform’s next big viral trend, with signs of growth ahead of the festive season.
What are 2024’s Etsy Trends?
Staying on top of Etsy trends is a great way to attract more buyers, encourage repeat customers, and ultimately, make more sales. Staying on trend means showing up in search results when buyers search for trending products, for instance.
A successful seller on the platform can make around $45,000 per year, on average. Some sellers, like Liberty Island Farm, reported earning $53,500 in their first year of operations. But the most successful Etsy sellers make as much as $70,000 per month in sales.
Here’s a quick example of the power of trends: at the start of 2023, there was a 206% year-on-year increase in searches on Etsy for “monthly budget”. This was, in part, a nod to New Year’s resolutions but also a result of the worldwide cost of living crisis.
Sellers who jumped on the trend were more likely to appear in search results than those who ignored it. Etsy is essentially a search engine. As such, showing up in search is a great way to drive sales.
Etsy insights suggest that the most successful Etsy sellers are the ones who keep up with trends and come up with innovative and creative ways to stand out from the competition.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the leading product, marketing, and audience Etsy trends for 2023.
1. Cottagecore Decor
Cottagecore decor continues to grow as a trend on Etsy.
This trend is all about putting rural life on a pedestal. It has links to simple living and sustainability, as well as vintage, rural vibes. Picture the most idyllic chocolate box English village you can, and you wouldn’t be far off.
Interest in cottagecore as a concept peaked during the pandemic, when city-dwellers locked up in flats for months on end started dreaming of a simpler, country life.
Prior to 2020, cottagecore was essentially a fringe interest; it was COVID-19 that made it mainstream. And while it may not be as popular as it was during lockdown, Etsy trends suggest Cottagecore-themed products remain in demand.
In fact, the platform’s Market Insights publication reported a 53% year-on-year increase in search volume for “mushroom wall art”.
Mushrooms, in particular toadstools, have become synonymous with the cottagecore trend, as can be seen by Etsy listings like the one below. Sellers on Etsy use the cottagecore keyword in the product description to attract buyers interested in this particular trend.
And the vintage appeal of cottagecore doesn’t stop there. For instance, in 2023, Etsy saw a 23% year-on-year increase in search volume for the term “walnut jewellery box” as well as an 80% year-on-year increase in searches containing the term “toile art”.
Floral, countryside prints dominate the toile art search results on Etsy, another nod to the growing love for cottagecore.
Given that the Gen Z demographic is driving demand for this trend, it’s perhaps unsurprising that demand continues to grow as their purchasing power grows, too.
The cottagecore trend is alive and well on Etsy, with searches for cottage-themed decor increasing yearly.
2. Small Spaces Decor
In 2023, decor for small spaces was all the rage on Etsy. An Etsy report showed a 50% year-on-year increase in search volume for “student room decor”.
This is, in part, a nod to the younger demographic on the platform. In 2023, more than 50% of buyers were under the age of 35.
But just because younger people live in smaller spaces doesn’t mean they’re shying away from creating a cozy home. For instance, Etsy reported a 139% year-on-year increase in search volume for the term “narrow entryway table”.
Furniture that fits in small spaces and can be used to spruce up starter homes is growing in popularity.
But, more practical small space items, such as this “fruit and veggie hammock” found on the first page of Etsy results for “small space decor”, are also making waves.
Products that can make the most of a property’s available space while also adding a touch of personality to people’s homes seem to do well in this category.
To make the most of this trend, Etsy staff advises showcasing your product’s multifunctionality through the photos and videos displayed on your listings.
3. Sustainable Seasonal Decor
Sustainable, seasonal decor is growing in popularity on Etsy. Shoppers are looking for decorations made from natural materials.
For instance, in 2023, the platform saw a 277% year-on-year increase in searches containing the term “wooden Christmas tree decor”, according to Etsy data.
Festive decor titles reflect this demand. For instance, the keywords the seller used to describe this popular listing include “eco-friendly living” and “eco-friendly Christmas tree”.
But one of the most dramatic increases in search volume can be seen in the glassware category. In 2023, Etsy reported a staggering 5,536% increase in searches for handmade barware or glassware items year-on-year.
Once again, the emphasis here is on handmade products rather than mass-produced, less sustainable options.
The cottagecore craze has had an impact on seasonal decor too. In 2023, the “gingerbread girl” aesthetic will dominate Christmas trends on Etsy as shoppers scramble to create cozy interiors using “foraged decor” and “vintage pieces”.
This next “viral trend” (according to Etsy) is already showing signs of growth.
For instance, in 2023, searches for wreath sashes have doubled year-on-year. And there has been a 51% year-on-year increase in searches on Etsy containing the search term “carrot wreath”.
Searches for “gingham bedding” are also up 34%, according to Etsy data. And searches for holiday cookie cutters are up by 24%, too.
4. Digital Products on Etsy
Digital products are taking off on the platform, and this trend is likely to continue in 2023.
Etsy is often associated with handcrafted items and tangible products, but if your focus is on digital products, you shouldn’t discount the platform just yet. Over the last five years, interest in the search term “digital products Etsy” has grown significantly, as can be seen in the Google Trends chart below.
This jump in searches suggests the platform is establishing itself as a place for digital products as well as physical products.
For example, one Etsy seller made $93,000 in 2020 from selling digital products. The Etsy shop owner focuses on digital planners, marketing planners, and finance planners to help small business owners.
To succeed in the digital product space in 2023, you may want to hone in on the crafting niche. Experts with The Leap, an AI-powered digital product builder, think the following will do particularly well in 2023:
- Sewing patterns, patterns for clothing, in particular, are the most sought-after on the platform.
- Crochet and knitting patterns: one seller has made more than 148,000 sales in this category.
- Embroidery patterns: buyers can upcycle their old clothes by using embroidery designs.
The sewing pattern below is a platform “best seller”. It’s a downloadable PDF document showing people how to sew the dress in the picture.
These trends are in line with the general cottagecore and sustainability movement that is popular on Etsy as well.
Printables are another popular Etsy digital product option.
Searching for “wedding invites template download”, for example, yielded more than 133,000 listings on the website in 2023.
There were several ads by various Etsy shops pushing these products. Some of the listings had more than 25,000 buyer reviews, suggesting a healthy demand for this type of digital offering.
This can tie in with the general sustainability theme on Etsy, too; digital invites can be edited on a computer and sent off via email rather than printed.
Other examples of digital products that are doing well in 2023 include budget planners, ebooks, and diaries.
When we searched for “best selling items 2023” on the website, the number one search result was an e-book on passive income. The top three results were digital planners. This shows a clear shift from purely physical products to digital products, too.
5. Utility Fashion Takes Over
The utility trend made waves in the fashion world in 2023, and Etsy is no exception. The utility trend is yet another nod to sustainability. It’s all about durable, practical clothing that’s likely to last longer than a fashion cycle or two.
Examples of utility clothes include:
- Cargo pants
- Dresses with pockets
- Chunky loafers
- Matching blazers
- Oversized bags
People visiting the platform are looking to shop the Utility trend.
In 2023, there was a 12% year-on-year increase in searches containing the keywords “90s blazer”, for instance.
The platform saw a 58% year-on-year increase in searches for the term “cargo trousers” in 2023 as well.
If you want to find out more about the utility trend, check out our latest article on the eight style trends that are going to define 2024.
6. Sustainability and “Slow Gifting”
Sustainability is a transcendent Etsy trend. We’ve already touched on it a few times in this article. It spans the fashion, decor, and gifting categories on the platform. Whether you’re selling toys, clothing, jewelry, or unique gifts, you can cash in on this trend.
Etsy data reports that in 2023, there has been a 52% year-on-year increase in search volume for the term “Montessori toy”.
A quick search on the website for this search term spits out visually appealing toys in muted, wooden tones. Plastic is out; sustainable, durable wooden toys are in.
Another nod to the sustainability trend is increased searches for “handmade” items. In fact, year-on-year, Etsy reported a 40% increase in searches containing the term “handmade” in 2023.
So, sellers on Etsy focused on the handmade niche may well rise in the search ranks in the coming months.
The gifting category on the platform is also seeing a sustainable makeover. Slow gifting is becoming popular on the platform.
The slow gifting trend eschews buying mass-produced products and instead encourages thoughtful, handmade gifting with a personal touch.
It’s yet another rejection of mass consumerism in favor of sustainability and minimalism.
In 2023, searches for the term “wedding gift couple unique” have gone up by a staggering 943% year-on-year on Etsy, meaning wedding guests can choose unique, personalized gifts over mass-produced registry favorites of days gone by.
Fashion is another category where sustainability is making a difference in shopping habits.
For instance, in 2023, there was a 52% year-on-year increase in searches on the platform containing the keywords “loose linen”.
Linen is considered a sustainable, biodegradable, durable choice. It’s more expensive than its fast-fashion counterparts, so it typically appeals to shoppers who opt for sustainable clothes.
Another nod towards sustainability is the 27% year-on-year increase in searches for patchwork jackets in 2023.
Patchwork jackets use second-hand materials and leftover fabrics to reduce waste and create unique items.
If you can position your product as sustainable, authentic, and unique, you may be on to a winner in 2024.
7. Festive Fairytale Style Trend
Cottagecore-inspired fairytale trends are taking over the platform in 2024. This theme adds a touch of festivity to the cottagecore aesthetic by adding fabrics we associate with Christmas, including satin and the velvet look.
There was a 143% year-on-year increase in searches on Etsy containing the keyword “toile pattern”.
This style is typically associated with vintage looks.
There was also a 59% year-on-year increase in searches on Etsy containing the term “tartan maxi skirt”.
Tartan, in particular, is often associated with the fairytale cottagecore looks popular in winter. The below image, for instance, used tags including “cottagecore”, as well as “Outlander inspired” to market this tartan skirt, which is currently for sale on Etsy.
8. Etsy Wedding Trends in 2024
The wedding niche is big on the platform; the website even offers guides to marketing your products to Etsy Wedding shoppers.
Brides and grooms flock to Etsy to find unique rings and special touches for their wedding, be it a Halloween extravaganza in the Fall, or a wintery March do.
Unique wedding dresses perform well on the platform, too.
The handmade wedding dress in the screen capture below has more than 80 5-star reviews and is currently sitting in more than 20 carts, showing that demand for unique items is alive and well.
According to the platform’s own editors, the most popular wedding themes in 2023 will include:
- Lovecore: think pink and red color schemes, heart patterns, roses, and other sentimental symbols of love.
- Oversized florals: 3D bombastic florals are all the rage in the fashion world this year, and Etsy’s wedding themes are no exception.
- Unique rings with plenty of personality: diamonds are out, unless they’re black, and alternative gemstones like sapphires and emeralds are in.
These are just some possible themes to join in on with your own store this year. Remember, brides and grooms come to the platform because they’re looking for unique items that stand out from the mainstream.
This bestselling engagement ring is an example of a unique ring style for instance.
9. Etsy SEO and Marketing Trends
Getting on the first page of Etsy is a great way to ensure you make more sales. By the end of 2021, 95% of search-driven purchases on Etsy were made from results on the first page.
Because Etsy works a lot like a search engine, optimizing for SEO is key here. Etsy looks at the customer’s search query and your own listing to find potential matches. It’s a good idea to think about what your customer may be looking for and optimize using relevant keywords within your:
- Attributes
- Categories
- Tags
- Titles
Once you’ve created eye-catching listings, you can also run ads on Etsy if you have the budget to do so as well.
The conversion rate on Etsy ranges between 1% to 5% depending on factors like your categories and price points.
Ads can help push your listing to the front page of search results, which can help with conversions. Etsy ads operate on a cost-per-click basis, so you’re only charged if a potential customer clicks on your ad.
Costs vary, but some Etsy experts recommend a $3 to $5 daily budget with at least a 30-day run per ad to ensure you’re making the most of the opportunity.
Including a video as part of your listing could help increase sales, as well.
Etsy allows sellers to add a 5 to 15-second video of a specific product to help promote its features. Using high-resolution videos can help boost your SEO as it makes your listing more appealing. This can lead to more clicks and more time spent on your listing, which tells Etsy it’s a quality listing.
Another way to spread the word about your Etsy shop is to promote it on your social media accounts.
Etsy experts from Sale Samurai recommend studying your competition for ideas. Different Etsy niches will do well on different social media. But just because your competitors are all on Facebook doesn’t mean you should focus all of your efforts on Facebook, either. The market could be oversaturated, so you may be better off focusing on a different social media platform to start with.
Recommendations for social media platforms from other Etsy experts, such as Marmalead, include Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. These platforms are widely used by a range of potential customers, and they also work well with images, which is key to most Etsy shop sales.
In 2022, Etsy partnered with TikTok to help sellers market their items on the viral platform. TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social media platforms in the world, with a billion monthly active users in over 150 countries.
Etsy staff suggests using popular hashtags like #etsyshopowner and #smallbusinessowner to stand out from the competition on TikTok and attract potential new clients to your Etsy shop.
10. Etsy Audience Trends
Etsy is a huge selling platform that attracts people from all walks of life with many different interests. As such, it’s hard to define a specific buyer’s persona for Etsy in general.
As you niche down and find out what works for you, it’s likely you will be able to identify certain audience trends within your specific niche. That being said, there are some generic Etsy audience trends we can talk about that may be of interest to sellers across all niches.
In 2022, there were 95 million active Etsy buyers, down from 96 million in 2021, but up from 81 million in 2020. The uptick in 2021 may have been due to the pandemic. While numbers fell slightly in 2022, they increased significantly from 2020.
In 2023, the US was the country with the highest number of downloads of the Etsy buyer and seller apps.
Between January 2015 and April 2023, 10 million people in the US had downloaded the seller app, and 53 million had downloaded the buyer app.
Other big Etsy markets included the UK, with 8.9 million buyer app downloads over the same period, as well as Germany, with 5 million buyer apps downloaded.
In 2018, approximately 40% of customers on Etsy were repeat customers, and roughly 60% were one-time customers.
These numbers have been largely consistent over the past decade.
The vast majority of buyers on the platform are women. According to the latest data from Statista, in 2017, 81% of buyers on the platform were women, so businesses that offer products geared towards women may be more successful.
How to Find Trends to Exploit on Etsy
There are several ways you can get a valuable sense for potential popular items on Etsy by using the website, as well as the many external tools which are often available for free.
1. Use Etsy’s Trending Now page
One of the easiest ways to find items that are trending on Etsy currently is to type www.etsy.com/trends into your browser.
This will bring up the Trending Now page on Etsy which provides the most popular items on the platform right now. These are typically Editor’s Picks curated by the platform’s staff members.
In 2023, holiday themes to keep an eye on include:
- Candycore
- Grandpa Chic
- Gingerbread Girl
- Mantelscaping
The Gingerbread Girl aesthetic, in particular, could be poised for virality in 2023, according to Etsy experts.
Etsy also introduced its first colors of the year in 2023. These are indigo and honeycomb; colors that are forecasted to make a splash in 2023 across categories including home decor, crafts, and clothing alike.
While you can use Etsy’s “Trending Now” page to track current popular products, the most successful Etsy sellers get ahead of the competition before an item starts trending and gets featured on the Editor’s Picks page.
2. Use Etsy’s Search Tools
Buyers use the platform’s own search tools to find products they like, but the website also has lots of great data that sellers can use to plan their future product offerings, too.
For instance, the search filters on the Etsy homepage allow you to filter by:
- Category
- Location
- Price
- Etsy’s Picks
- Star Seller status
By searching for the types of items you’re selling at your price point, you can see what the competition is doing and whether there are opportunities for new ideas within your own Etsy shop.
Sorting the search results by “most recent” is a great way to spot listings that have been added recently. If you notice a particular theme among the results, this could be your cue to jump on it before the market becomes oversaturated.
You can also sort the results by top customer reviews to see what products are doing best with customers.
Using the platform’s tools is a great way to stay ahead of the competition, but there are external platforms that offer valuable insights too.
3. Use Pinterest to Spot Etsy Trends
Pinterest is basically a digital bulletin board that works really well for visual content, such as Etsy listings. Pinterest users can create boards on any topics they like and save pins to those boards. These pins are basically visual bookmarks with a thumbnail image leading to a product page or website.
At the start of 2023, Pinterest had 463 million active monthly users across the world.
This represented a 13 million increase in active users as compared to the previous quarter. And, in 2019, users spent an average of 14.2 minutes on the platform.
So, clearly, there is an engaged audience there.
Here are a few ways to use Pinterest to spot trends.
- Pick a keyword related to your industry or niche, as well as the trend you’re researching. For instance, if you sell t-shirts, you might type in “cottagecore t-shirts”.
- Look at the pins that come up in your search results. Pay particular attention to the colors, patterns, and styles used and identify common themes.
- Have a look at the number of repins and likes each pin has. The more engagement it has, the more likely it is to be popular.
- Look at the related searches that appear towards the bottom of the search results for even more ideas on aesthetics and trends that could link well with your niche.
- Do this on a regular basis to identify popular trends before they climb the Etsy charts and become oversaturated.
4. Harness the Power of Google Trends
Google Trends is a great way to get ahead of the competition and plan for potentially viral trends before they gain traction on Etsy.
This free tool can help spot cyclical trends that are likely to make a comeback year on year. For instance, the image below shows the interest in fall wreaths and Christmas wreaths over the last five years.
As expected, searches for fall wreaths and Christmas wreaths increase in the months preceding the fall and Christmas season every year.
Etsy shop owners can use this data to develop and release products ahead of the peak in searches each year so that their offerings can be indexed by search engines in time for the festive season.
For instance, it might be a good idea to have your Christmas products ready to go before November, which is when most people start their Christmas shopping.
Google Trends show that trends are often cyclical as well; this means that if you’ve “missed out” on a trend, it’s likely to make a comeback down the line. This free tool is perfect for putting together a long-term product strategy.
It also allows you to hone in on different search categories. For instance, in the example below, we selected the “home and garden” category as we were particularly interested in searches for home decor.
Other categories you can search include, but are not limited to:
- Books and literature
- Games
- Hobbies and leisure
- Shopping
You can then further see results for Google Shopping, Web Search, Image Search, News Search, and YouTube Search. This can provide more insights depending on your goals.
You can filter the results by country as well to get an idea of search volume in your geographic location.
5. Choose Paid Search Websites like Alura.io
Websites like Alura offer free Etsy trending information on the top listings on the platform based on sales over the last month.
Some features are free, including snippets of listings that have done well, how many total sales a particular listing has had, how much total revenue the shop has made, and what category the item is in.
According to Alura, in October 2023, the top 3 Etsy listings included:
-
- A mushroom glass ornament that generated 2,304 monthly sales.
- Fake green leaves foliage decor that generated 2,184 monthly sales.
- Crystal suncatchers that generated 2,099 monthly sales.
The most popular categories in 2023 were:
- Home and living
- Art and collectibles
- Clothing
- Shoes
These appeared in the top 10 Etsy listings for October 2023.
The Future of Etsy
Shoppers come to Etsy to find unique listings they can’t get elsewhere. Keeping up with Etsy trends is important, but it’s also key to invest in product development and think of creative ways to put a twist on overdone trends.
Catching the beginning of a trend can be hard, but one thing to watch for is the Market Insight Reports that are periodically published by the platform. They can help you find out about upcoming trends before the market is oversaturated.
If you want to invest in your shop, you might want to consider paid ads or paid apps that track shoppers’ habits on the platform and spot trending items before they become popular.