What it does
Big Cartel provides storefronts for artists and makers selling physical work, digital files or products fulfilled through connected services. Gold offers five free listings; paid plans add features such as downloads and inventory tracking. Sellers create an account by email and password or Google sign-in.
An original print and a downloadable collection need different delivery arrangements. Big Cartel supports both, but digital products require a paid plan. Print-on-demand fulfilment comes through connected providers rather than Big Cartel shipping the goods itself. Existing listings can be imported from Etsy, Shopify or Squarespace.
In the admin, open Products > Add Product and choose the product type. Enter its name, price, description and images, then Save Product. Add variations, shipping and other relevant settings, and save again.
Choose the status deliberately. Coming Soon displays the listing without accepting purchases; Hidden removes it from the public shop while still counting against the product limit. Active makes it available to buy, subject to stock where inventory tracking is enabled.
Free shop or paid launch tools
| Plan | Practical scope |
|---|---|
| Gold | Five free product listings, size and colour variants, and the Cosmos template |
| Platinum | Paid selling tools including digital products, custom domains and shop design changes |
| Diamond | Adds scheduled drops, password-protected products and abandoned-cart recovery |
Gold needs no payment card and continues separately from the seven-day Platinum trial. Paid plans have monthly and annual options.
For a limited release, decide whether a public Coming Soon listing is sufficient or whether the launch needs Diamond's schedule and restricted access. The Gold registration form offers email and password or Google sign-in; creating that account is separate from connecting a payment provider.
Strengths
- Supports physical products alongside paid digital-product selling
- Listing imports can help move an existing small catalogue
Watch out for
- Digital products and inventory tracking require a paid plan
- Scheduled drops and password-protected products require Diamond
- Hidden products still count toward the plan limit
Best for
- Artists and makers organizing a focused online storefront
Sources
- Free, Easy Online Stores for Artists & Small Businesses (Oct 25, 2026)
- Big Cartel pricing and plans (Oct 27, 2026)
- Big Cartel Gold plan (Oct 27, 2026)
- Big Cartel Gold account registration (Oct 27, 2026)
- Add and update products in Big Cartel (Oct 27, 2026)