Selling Online in Canada: Fees Compared
By Selling Fee Tools team ·
Canadian sellers can sell through marketplaces, which bring the buyers and take a larger cut, or through their own Shopify store, which mostly costs card processing. Sales tax matters more in Canada than elsewhere, because some platforms charge their fee on it. This guide compares them on one order, using each platform’s Canadian fee pages, checked in October 2026.
The same C$50 order everywhere
A C$40 item with C$10 shipping to a buyer in Ontario (13% HST), a seller in Ontario not registered for GST/HST, in each platform’s general category, with no ads or monthly plan counted:
| Platform | How the fee is made up | Fees | Share of C$50 |
|---|---|---|---|
| eBay.ca | 13.6% of the total including HST (C$56.50) + C$0.40 | C$8.08 | 16.2% |
| Amazon.ca (FBM, Professional) | 15% referral fee | C$7.50 | 15.0% |
| Etsy | 6.5% + 3% and C$0.25 processing on the taxed total + 0.50% regulatory fee + HST on that fee | C$5.48 | 11.0% |
| PayPal Checkout | 2.9% + C$0.30 | C$1.75 | 3.5% |
| Shopify (Basic, Shopify Payments) | 2.8% + 30¢ card fee | C$1.70 | 3.4% |
Reading the table
- eBay charges on the tax. eBay’s total amount of the sale includes sales tax, so the same order costs you more in fees when the buyer’s province has a higher rate.
- Etsy’s processing fee includes the tax Etsy collects, but for a seller who isn’t registered, Etsy doesn’t charge GST/HST on its transaction and processing fees when it collected the tax from the buyer.
- Amazon’s Canadian pricing page doesn’t say how GST/HST applies to its fees, so the table shows the fee before any tax.
- Shopify and PayPal are payment costs only, and you bring your own buyers. On your own store you also pay the plan, C$37 a month for Shopify Basic on yearly billing. If you’re registered and charge HST at checkout, Shopify’s card fee applies to it too: C$1.88 on this order.
- Monthly costs aren’t in the table: Amazon Professional is C$29.99 a month (or C$1.49 per item on Individual).
- TikTok Shop hasn’t published seller fees for Canada, so it isn’t included.
Registering for GST/HST
You don’t have to register while your taxable revenues stay at C$30,000 or less. Once registered, you charge GST/HST at the buyer’s provincial rate, from 5% to 15%, and claim back the GST/HST in your fees.
Work out your own numbers
- Amazon Canada, eBay Canada and Etsy Canada fee calculators
- Shopify Canada and PayPal Canada fee calculators
- GST/HST calculator
Sources: each platform’s Canadian fee pages and the Canada Revenue Agency, listed on each calculator and on our methodology page.