Shopify vs Poshmark: Which is Best for Your Online Store?

Shopify and Poshmark are two popular eCommerce platforms, but they operate very differently and are suited for different types of sellers.

Shopify is an end-to-end eCommerce solution for entrepreneurs looking to build an online store from scratch.

Poshmark, on the other hand, is a social marketplace app for buying and selling new or used clothing and accessories.

When deciding between Shopify and Poshmark, the main considerations are product variety, fees, control over the brand, desired selling experience, and audience reach.

Shopify offers more flexibility and control for serious entrepreneurs, while Poshmark provides an easier selling experience focused on a fashion-minded community.

This article will compare the key differences between the two platforms across several factors to help sellers determine the better fit.

The best platform depends on your specific business goals and merchandise.

Shopify Vs Poshmark Overview

Business Models

Shopify and Poshmark have fundamentally different business models.

Shopify is an eCommerce platform that allows merchants to build their own online stores and sell products directly to customers.

With Shopify, sellers have full control and ownership over their businesses.

Poshmark, on the other hand, is a social marketplace.

Sellers don’t own their own stores – instead, they sell their items through Poshmark’s platform and app.

Poshmark handles payments, shipping, and customer service on the sellers’ behalf.

Poshmark takes a commission from each sale made on its platform.

The key difference is that Shopify empowers entrepreneurs to build their own brands and retail businesses online, while Poshmark facilitates peer-to-peer social shopping through its community-driven marketplace.

Shopify store owners have more flexibility and independence but need to handle more of the backend work themselves.

Poshmark streamlines selling for casual sellers, but they rely entirely on Poshmark’s ecosystem and following.

Try Shopify

Try Poshmark

Fees For Shopify And Poshmark

Both Shopify and Poshmark charge fees for using their platforms, but the fee structures are quite different.

Shopify charges a monthly subscription fee for access to its eCommerce software and features.

The Basic Shopify plan starts at $29/month, while the most popular Shopify plan is $79/month.

There are also higher-tier Shopify plans with more advanced features.

In addition to the monthly fee, Shopify charges payment processing fees.

If you use Shopify Payments, the fee is 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction.

There are ways to get discounted transaction fees with Shopify through third-party payment gateways.

Poshmark has a much simpler fee structure. Sellers on Poshmark don’t pay any monthly subscription fees.

Instead, Poshmark takes a 20% commission from each sale.

For example, if you sell an item for $50 on Poshmark, you would receive $40 while Poshmark takes $10.

So Poshmark’s fees are directly tied to your sales, while Shopify requires an upfront monthly investment whether you make any sales or not.

Poshmark’s 20% transaction fee is competitive for a managed marketplace, but merchant-managed platforms like Shopify offer lower transaction rates if you can drive your own sales.

Product Types For Each eCommerce Platform

Poshmark is best suited for selling new and used clothing, shoes, accessories, and home decor since its target demographic is fashion-conscious women.

Shopify, on the other hand, supports all product types including physical, digital, and service-based products.

Shopify gives sellers the flexibility to add and sell any kind of product.

It has features optimized for selling physical products like inventory management, shipping calculators, and discount codes.

But Shopify sellers can also sell digital products like ebooks, courses, and memberships by utilizing the built-in digital product delivery and access restriction capabilities.

Service-based businesses like consultants, freelancers, and agencies can also use Shopify by adding their services as products.

In contrast, Poshmark is focused on a narrower range of product types since its platform and tools are more tailored to clothing and accessories.

Sellers on Poshmark are limited to listing physical products from women’s, men’s, and children’s fashion, beauty, and home decor categories only.

So while Shopify accommodates every product type, Poshmark specifically caters to reselling clothes and accessories.

Selling Experience For Shopify And Poshmark

The selling experience is quite different between Shopify and Poshmark.

With Shopify, sellers need to set up their own independent online store and drive traffic to it.

This requires selecting a store theme, customizing the design, adding products, promoting the store through marketing channels, providing customer service, and more.

Essentially the seller is running their own eCommerce business.

Poshmark on the other hand operates a centralized marketplace.

Sellers simply need to create a Poshmark profile and list their items for sale.

The platform provides the marketplace infrastructure, and customer acquisition, and even handles shipping.

For sellers, Poshmark is much more plug-and-play compared to the work required in setting up a Shopify store.

However, Shopify offers sellers more control and the ability to build their own brand.

Poshmark is more suited to casual sellers who want access to an existing audience of buyers.

Marketing – Building Audiences and Driving Sales

When it comes to marketing products and building an audience of buyers, Shopify and Poshmark take very different approaches.

With Shopify, the responsibility for marketing falls entirely on the merchant.

Shopify merchants must drive their own traffic to their online stores through search engine optimization, paid ads, email marketing, social media marketing, influencer collaborations, and any other marketing strategies they pursue.

It is up to each merchant to build their own audience.

On the other hand, Poshmark sellers benefit from having access to Poshmark’s existing user base.

As of 2022, Poshmark has over 80 million registered users.

When sellers list new items for sale, those listings get added to Poshmark’s centralized listings database which all Poshmark users can browse and search.

Sellers don’t have to drive external traffic to their Poshmark “closets”—the traffic already exists within Poshmark’s built-in audience of buyers.

Of course, Poshmark sellers can certainly market their closets externally as well, but they already have a captive audience of millions of buyers on the platform itself.

This fundamental difference in marketing approaches means Shopify sellers take on more work and costs associated with marketing, while Poshmark sellers gain instant access to an enormous buyer audience from day one.

Both models have their advantages, but marketing is undoubtedly easier on Poshmark compared to Shopify in most cases.

Let’s See How They Compare For Shipping

One of the biggest differences between Shopify and Poshmark is how shipping is handled.

With Shopify, merchants are responsible for handling all of their own shipping.

This includes deciding on shipping carriers, setting up shipping rates, purchasing shipping labels, packing orders, and getting shipments to the post office or carrier drop-off.

Shopify does provide some helpful shipping features like calculated shipping rates and discounts through USPS, UPS, and DHL.

However, the logistics and costs of shipping orders fall entirely on the Shopify merchant..

Unless they have a dropshipping store.

If you go this route then Shopify will ship it for you because it’s sent from the vendor once sold.

In contrast, Poshmark makes shipping incredibly easy for sellers by providing pre-paid shipping labels for all orders.

When an item sells on Poshmark, the seller just needs to package up the order and drop it off at a USPS location using the shipping label Poshmark emails them.

Poshmark covers the cost of shipping labels up to 5 lbs, so sellers don’t have to build shipping expenses into their pricing.

This takes a huge burden off sellers and ensures a smooth, simple shipping experience for buyers as well.

Payment Processing

Shopify and Poshmark take different approaches when it comes to payment processing.

With Shopify, sellers can integrate with many popular payment gateways like Stripe, PayPal, and Amazon Pay.

Shopify payments functionality is robust, allowing sellers to accept credit cards, debit cards, mobile payments, and more.

Sellers have control over their payment settings and can choose which payment methods to accept.

The funds from sales on Shopify go directly to the seller’s bank account after the platform fees are deducted.

On Poshmark, all payments are handled directly through their platform.

Buyers pay Poshmark when they purchase an item, and then Poshmark pays the seller after deducting their commission fee.

This centralized payment processing can be easier for sellers who don’t want to deal with setting up their own payment gateways.

However, it also means sellers don’t have as much flexibility or control over payments compared to Shopify.

In summary, Shopify gives sellers more customization and direct access to payment processing, while Poshmark handles payments centrally through their platform.

Sellers should weigh convenience vs. control when evaluating the two models.

Try Shopify

Try Poshmark

Shopify Vs Poshmark For Audience Reach

Poshmark and Shopify target very different audiences.

Shopify is open to anyone looking to build an online store, regardless of your target customer demographic or location.

The Shopify platform can be used by entrepreneurs and businesses around the world to sell all types of products.

In contrast, Poshmark’s audience is much more narrow.

The vast majority of Poshmark’s user base consists of women between the ages of 16-34 years old, located in the United States.

The app specifically targets women interested in buying and selling new or used fashion and accessories.

Poshmark makes an effort to cultivate a community experience through social shopping features.

But this limits the overall audience reach compared to Shopify.

Shopify casts a wider net, appealing to all types of entrepreneurs globally.

Poshmark specifically targets young female fashion enthusiasts in America.

The audience focus is drastically different between these two eCommerce platforms.

FAQ On Shopify Vs Poshmark

Conclusion and Summary

In reviewing the major differences between Shopify and Poshmark, a few key factors stand out that can help guide sellers in choosing which platform is right for their needs.

Recap of Major Differences

• Business model: Shopify is primarily an eCommerce platform for selling your own products online, while Poshmark is a social marketplace for buying and selling secondhand/vintage fashion items.

• Fees: Shopify charges monthly subscription fees plus transaction fees, while Poshmark takes a flat 20% commission on sales.

• Product types: Shopify accommodates all product types, while Poshmark focuses on apparel, shoes, and accessories.

• Selling experience: Shopify offers more customization and control as your own website, while Poshmark provides a simpler selling process within their mobile app.

• Marketing: Shopify merchants must drive their own marketing, while Poshmark assists sellers with built-in audience and exposure.

• Shipping: Shopify sellers handle their own shipping, while Poshmark sets up prepaid shipping labels for sellers.

Pros and Cons

Key advantages of Shopify include owning your brand, unlimited product selection, and control over site design.

Downsides relate to upfront and ongoing costs and significant effort required for marketing.

Poshmark’s main benefits revolve around tapping into its existing audience of buyers, simplified selling process, and handling shipping/payments.

Downsides include high fees, focus on secondhand clothing, and little customization or control.

Recommendation

For those looking to build their own independent brand and sell a wide array of products, Shopify offers more flexibility and customization.

For easy access to secondhand fashion buyers, simpler selling, and built-in exposure, Poshmark provides a more turnkey solution.

Evaluate your product selection, brand goals, and desired effort level when determining which platform best matches your needs and strengths as a seller.