As someone who started my business by selling digital products on Etsy, I always look for up-and-coming digital product marketplaces. 

Gumroad has been around since 2011 but has recently experienced some growth. So, I checked out the platform’s features, how the platform compares to Etsy and the pros and cons of using Gumroad. 

Keep reading for my in-depth Gumroad review and final thoughts on whether or not it is a worthwhile marketplace to list your digital products. 

(This post contains affiliate links and you can read the full disclosure here)

What is Gumroad?

Gumroad is an e-commerce platform allowing creators to list and sell digital and physical products to their audiences. The platform is primarily known for digital product sales and was founded in 2011 by Sahil Lavingia. 

This popular platform is dominated by creators, such as designers, writers, musicians, and artists. Some of the most popular products sold on the platform include e-books, art, music, software, courses, and digital templates for platforms like Notion. 

Examples of popular products under the business and entrepreneurship category on Gumroad

What Can I Sell on Gumroad?

Gumroad is a versatile platform known for digital products, but you can also list physical products. You can even manually add sales tax to your product pricing for physical products to make the selling and accounting process easier for yourself. 

Common products listed on Gumroad include: 

• Digital products

• Courses or tutorials

• E-books and comics

• Newsletters

• Memberships for your fans (Newsletters, podcasts, exclusive content, etc.)

• Podcasts

• Audiobooks

• Physical goods

Gumroad divides its discovery page or search function into the following categories: 

• 3D (physical products, 3D animation, etc.)

• Drawing and painting

• Software development

• Design

• Self-improvement

• Fitness and health

• Music and sound design

• Photography

• Business and money

• Writing and publishing

• Education

• Comics and graphic novels

• Fiction books

• Audio

• Recorded Music

• Films

• Gaming

How to List a Product on Gumroad

Gumroad is a user-friendly platform that buyers and sellers can join for free. 

Here are the simple steps to listing your first product on Gumroad: 

1. Create a free account with Gumroad. 

2. Upload your digital products to the platform. 

3. Write your title, description, etc., for your product. 

4. Upload a product thumbnail. 

5. Set your prices, or list it as free. 

6. Publish your product and watch it go live on your page. 

Gumroad Memberships

Unlike Etsy, Gumroad offers platform membership features to help creators connect with their audience. For example, you can subscribe to paid newsletters or podcasts. 

Some of the best aspects of Gumroad’s membership feature is that you can quickly set up a membership around your business, teaching, newsletters, or podcast releases. 

Gumroad has tier features, allowing you to create different membership access levels and sell software with different license features, such as individual, team, and company. 

I like that you can limit product sales for a specific tier by entering a maximum subscriber number for each tier. The platform also offers fixed-length memberships, allowing you to set a maximum number of months to end the membership after it hits that time automatically. This could be useful for creating exclusive course memberships that last a few months and saves you manual labor to track and delete members each month. 

Unique Gumroad Features 

Gumroad allows you to embed a link to your website directly on your Gumroad seller page, helping you increase traffic to your website. This feature provides instant information for any Gumroad buyers looking to learn more about your background, products, and more.  

Other unique Gumroad features include: 

• You can set discounts and coupons on your products

• Gumroad affiliate links

• You can list multiple versions of your product

• Create license keys

• Gumroad seamlessly handles different currencies

• This platform collects VAT

• Gumroad also has a DRM to help protect your work

• Gumroad University and its blog are available with additional information

Gumroad offers many product categories under its discover function. 

Gumroad Pricing

Gumroad is entirely free to start, so you can begin selling on Gumroad without paying any out-of-pocket fees. However, they will take a 10% fee on your sales. 

For example, if you sell a $50 e-course, Gumroad would take $5 as their fee, leaving you with $45. If you post any free products, there is no fee. 

As for pricing your products, the pricing is completely up to you. You can even list products for free to offer as an incentive for your audience. 

I noticed that many products on Gumroad are listed at a premium price, especially when comparing similar products on Etsy, which is a big bonus for sellers! 

Pros and Cons of Selling on Gumroad

Gumroad has a lot of pros. My favorite features are its user-friendly interface, customizable sales pages, and the ability to add affiliate links. I love that it is free to join and offers coupon and discount options. The interface is well-organized, and it takes little time to join and list products. 

My biggest con is Gumroad’s lack of reporting features and analytics. Analytics are so essential to understand what is selling well and what products I need to adjust. Gumroad also has a much smaller shopper base than Etsy. 

Overall, Gumroad is ideal for digital products and content creators. While you can list physical products, the platform is predominantly used by and known for content creator products. However, if you sell courses or ebooks or want to set up a membership, Gumroad offers many great features. 

Interested in learning more about earning money by selling digital products? Digitally Purposed, tackles everything you need to know about researching, setting up, and marketing your digital products shop. 

Our community, Digitally Purposed, is different from anything out there. Not only does it lay out a step-by-step guide to launching and marketing your digital products business and helping you overcome common misconceptions, it also has one of the best private support communities dedicated to helping you every step of the way.

Plus, we have weekly training on the most requested topics like marketing, design tutorials, niche research, along with live Q&A calls and new PLR products!

Just need some feedback? Personalized shop audits are also included!

Selling digital products online requires constant learning and we'd love to support you!