Why Did Etsy Give My Customer A Discount?

If you sell on Etsy, you’ll see some random coupons being used in your shop every now and then. These could be coupons that Etsy is sending to customers, and they won’t affect your revenue at all.

Does Etsy give out coupons very often? And how does that work?

Yes, Etsy will occasionally give out coupons to certain customers who are signed up for Etsy promotional emails, and these coupons are generally available to be used site-wide. These coupons are paid for by Etsy, and the seller doesn’t lose any of the money from the sale.

Let’s go over the basics of what you can expect to see if a customer uses one of these coupons.


Why did Etsy give my customer a discount

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How do customers get the Etsy coupons?

Etsy sends site-wide coupons out to customers who have opted-in to receiving Etsy marketing emails. Not every customer will receive every coupon, and Etsy doesn’t send them out very often, so it’s not guaranteed that a customer will ever see one.

When a customer does receive an Etsy coupon, it will look something like this recent one that was mailed out:

A coupon that’s sent out by Etsy.

The coupons are sent to individual people’s emails, and they’re usable on an account level. So if you’re an Etsy customer and you try to use a coupon code that wasn’t sent to you it might not work.

You have to have signed up to get emails from Etsy to possibly receive one of these coupons, so if you’re not signed up, you should read about how to do that here: How To Ask For Discounts On Etsy Without Being A Jerk.

If you’re an Etsy seller, how do these coupons work and what does it look like in your orders when people use them?


For an article about what “payment processing means on an Etsy order, click here.



What does an Etsy coupon look like in the orders?

If a customer uses an Etsy coupon, it will show up as a discount in your orders with “Etsy coupon” next to the discount. It looks like a regular coupon has been used, and it may be confusing if you don’t offer any coupons for your shop.

screenshot of what the etsy coupon looks like in the order
Etsy coupon in the cart.

The discount won’t be subtracted from your revenue, though, it’s paid for by Etsy and nothing is going to be taken out of your funds.

If you check your payment account, you’ll see the sale but no money is going to be subtracted out. Etsy pays for the discounts themselves.

This kind of coupon is different from the ones that Etsy allows us to set up for favorited items and abandoned carts, we have no control over them and we don’t send them out. You can read about those here: Should you turn on Favorited Item and Abandoned Cart coupons?

screenshot of what the etsy coupon looks like in the order
Message to the Etsy seller when an Etsy coupon is used.

You’ll also see this message on the order page that explains that you won’t be charged for the discounts.

There’s also a link that goes to the Etsy help sectionOpens in a new tab. about how they handle their coupons, so you can read more about it there.


Click for the video

So basically, this type of coupon isn’t something that we give out, and it’s not something that Etsy uses a lot, but they do send them out occasionally.

If you receive one, you can’t share the coupon code and expect it to work for everyone, because they’re sent to specific accounts.

It’s not a loss for you if someone does use the coupon, since Etsy pays for it and you won’t see any loss from your funds.

Kara Buntin

Kara Buntin has run a profitable home-based business since 1999, and has a background in art, theater design, and cake decorating. She's a top Etsy seller with over 51,000 sales on Etsy and her own website, and helps other home-based business owners with their business goals and SEO. She founded the Artisan Shopping Directory website to promote the artisans who are members of her EShop Success marketing program.

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