Etsy Ads break-even ROAS
An ad pays back when the orders it brings keep more than the ad cost. Here's the ROAS where that happens for your items, and what your ads gain or lose a month.
Worked example
Break-even ROAS
2.30
Your ROAS of 1.50 is under it: at your numbers the ads cost about $104 a month more than they bring in.
One order an ad brings
Order total
item + shipping
$35.00
Kept before the ad
order − Etsy's fees − materials − packaging − label (no Offsite Ads fee on an ad order)
$15.22
Margin for ads
$15.22 ÷ $35.00
43.5%
Break-even ROAS
1 ÷ 43.5%
2.30
A month
Ad spend a month
$10.00 × 30 days
$300.00
Your ROAS
1.50
Sales the ads bring
1.50 × $300.00
$450.00
What those sales keep
$450.00 × 43.5%
$195.69
Less the ad spend
−$300.00
The ads lose
$195.69 − $300.00
−$104.31
The fix
Turn off ads on listings with ROAS under 2.3
Worth at least $104 a month
Turn off ads on listings with ROAS under 2.3 (Etsy Ads page > Manage Advertised Listings). If your other orders hold, you'd keep at least $104 more a month, even if every ad sale stopped. Some buyers find you through ads and come back later, and ad numbers count some sales that would have happened anyway, so ROAS can be off either way. Etsy suggests giving a change 30 days before judging it.
Good to know
- We assumed: Packaging per order: $1.00. Typical, weakly sourced; change it.
- We assumed: Etsy Ads a month: $300.00. We assumed your full budget is spent: 30 days × $10.00 = $300.00 a month; change it.
Etsy fees as of October 5, 2026 (Fees & Payments Policy) and July 31, 2026 (Payments Policy), checked October 13, 2026. Fixed formulas; no AI computes a number.
The rates this uses
Each one links to where it comes from, with that page’s date and the day we checked it. See every rate we use.
Listing fee, on each listing and renewal
$0.20 per listing
Etsy Fees & Payments Policy (last updated Oct 5, 2026; Wayback capture Oct 10, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated October 5, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
Transaction fee, on item, shipping and gift wrap
6.5%
Etsy Fees & Payments Policy (last updated Oct 5, 2026; Wayback capture Oct 10, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated October 5, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
Payment processing (US), on the whole order including tax
3%
Etsy Payments Policy (last updated Jul 31, 2026; Wayback capture Oct 11, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated July 31, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
Payment processing (US), fixed part
$0.25 per order
Etsy Payments Policy (last updated Jul 31, 2026; Wayback capture Oct 11, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated July 31, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
Packaging per order we assume until you give yours
A weak source: a general online-shop compilation puts packaging at $0.50 to $2.00 an order. Your result labels it typical.
$1.00 per order
Etsy Ads smallest daily budget
$1.00 a day
Etsy Help: How to Set Up and Manage an Etsy Ads Campaign (Wayback capture Jul 20, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated July 20, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
How long Etsy suggests giving an ads change
30 days
Etsy Help: How to Set Up and Manage an Etsy Ads Campaign (Wayback capture Jul 20, 2026) (opens in a new tab)Source dated July 20, 2026. Checked October 13, 2026.
One number at a time, or the whole shop at once
The free check-up runs these same sums on your whole shop and shows where the money leaks, each leak with its fix and what it’s worth. About a minute, no sign-up.
Start the free check-upMore free calculators
- Etsy fees on one sale
- Etsy Offsite Ads cost
- Etsy shipping gap
- Etsy price for a profit
- Shopify plan fit
- Amazon fees on one unit
AI agents can run the same calculators through our free MCP server: this one is the tool sellerprofit_ads_breakeven.