Etsy Listing Grader

What makes a strong Etsy listing

A strong listing does two jobs. It gives Etsy search clear words to match against what shoppers type, and it gives the shopper who clicks enough to decide. Most of Etsy SEO lives in a few fields you fully control: photos, video, title, description and tags.

The grader above checks those five fields the same way the listing score in Alura does. It doesn't look at reviews, price, shipping or sales history. Those matter too, but they aren't things you fix by editing one listing.

How the listing score works

Each section has a few checks worth points. The points add up to 84, and the score is your share of them, out of 100.

Grades follow the score: A from 90, B from 80, C from 70, D from 60, and F below that. When Etsy doesn't share a photo or video size, that check is skipped and left out of the total, so a missing number never counts as a zero.

Photos: at least 10, sharp, with alt text

Etsy lets you add up to 20 photos and recommends a width and height of at least 2000 pixels. The grader looks for 10 photos or more, counts a photo as sharp at 2000 pixels on the short side (or Etsy's 3000 pixel cap on the long side), and checks that every photo has alt text.

• Main photo: the item, clearly lit, filling the frame. It is what shoppers see in search.
• The rest: close-ups of texture and detail, the item in use, its size next to something familiar, every color or option, and the packaging if it is part of the gift.
• Alt text: one plain sentence per photo saying what it shows. Etsy's alt text guide explains it describes the image for shoppers who can't see it. Repeating your title or tags in it adds nothing for search.

Video: up to 15 seconds, 1080 pixels

A listing video runs up to 15 seconds and Etsy removes the sound, so show rather than tell: the item turning, being worn or used, or next to something for scale. Etsy calls 1080 pixels the ideal resolution, so upload at that size or larger. The grader gives 7 points for having a video and 3 more when it is high resolution.

Title: say what it is, first

Etsy titles can be 140 characters, but Etsy suggests using fewer than 15 words, and its SEO guide says to put the most important traits first. The grader looks for:

• 5 to 15 words. Name the item, then add 2 or 3 key traits like color, material, size or style.
• A tagged keyword up front. The first few words, before the first comma, should include a phrase you also use as a tag: the words a shopper would type to find this item.
• Clean wording. No repeated words, no praise like beautiful or perfect, and no gift for her or free shipping. Etsy shows sale and shipping badges for you, and gifting phrases work well as tags.

A title like "Linen throw pillow cover, natural flax, 18 x 18 inch" does all three.

Description: answer the questions, open with the keyword

The description is where a shopper checks the details before buying. The grader looks for at least 100 words, a tagged phrase in the first 160 characters, and breaks or bullets so it isn't one block of text. Etsy's SEO guide asks for the same thing: describe the item clearly in the first sentence, using words shoppers would search for.

A simple structure that covers most items:

1. One sentence on what it is, using your main keyword.
2. Materials and how it is made.
3. Size, with units, and the options available.
4. What is included, care instructions, and how it ships.

Tags: all 13, as phrases

You get 13 tags of up to 20 characters each, and Etsy says each one is a chance to match a shopper's search. The grader checks three things:

• All 13 used. An empty slot is a search you can't show up for.
• Multi-word phrases. "Linen throw pillow" matches how people search better than "pillow", and fewer listings compete for it.
• No duplicates. The grader counts singular and plural as the same tag, so pillow and pillows use two slots for one search.

Attributes like color and material describe your item too, and Etsy suggests tags for what attributes can't cover, such as occasions and styles. To find phrases shoppers actually search, try the tag and title generator.

Using the grader as an Etsy SEO checker

Work in order of points. Fix these first lists the checks with the most points left, which are usually photos and tags. Make the changes in Etsy, then grade the listing again later to see the new score.

A high score means the listing is complete and clear. It isn't a promise of more views or sales, since Etsy search also weighs relevance to each search, reviews, shipping and how shoppers respond. It is a good way to make sure nothing basic is missing.

Go further with Alura

The grader checks one listing at a time. Alura scores every listing in your Etsy shop with the same checks, tracks each score over time, and helps you rewrite titles, descriptions and tags with keyword research behind them.

Start for free or see pricing.