Since its inception, Etsy has been the home for creators and sellers of bespoke, alternative, and artisanal items — sex toys and erotic jewelry included.
But since July 29, 2024, some of these companies haven’t been welcome on the platform.
The decision to ban the sale of sex toys, printed or visual materials that exist for the purpose of stimulation or sexual arousal (e.g., vintage adult magazines and past Playboy issues), and anything with sexual slogans related to “mommy” and “daddy” has incited uproar within Etsy’s previously large sex-positive community.
The new policy was announced via a public letter written by Alice Wu, head of the company’s trust and safety team. She noted the switch is Etsy’s attempt to “keep our users safe.”
Due to the number of sellers in the adult category, the negative response is understandable, but perhaps unexpected from the platform’s standpoint.
Regardless, let’s take a look at the changes enforced, their impact, and the future for artisanal adult businesses…
Etsy Sex Toy Ban: The 3 Major Changes
The online marketplace’s newly published Adult Nudity and Sexual Content Policy outlines the types of disallowed products and how mature permitted items should be tagged and displayed.
Let’s take a look at the specifics.
#1 Limiting Types of Adult Toys and Sex Accessories
You won’t find products that fit the following on the platform anymore:
- Adult toys designed to be inserted into the body, applied to the genitalia, or designed for genitals to be inserted into them
- Custom photographs and videos depicting nudity
- Advertising sexual services
- Items bearing sexual language or slogans containing references to familiar relationships
- Non-photographic art where there is sexual context and explicit nudity, like depictions of sex acts
- Pornography, including vintage adult films and magazines
- Using human models to display items if body parts like genitalia, female nipples, or gluteal clefts are visible
Some “mature” content is still allowed, however.
The platform’s Listing Mature Content Correctly Policy outlines the permitted content, which falls into these three categories:
- Nudity — While most kinds of nudity aren’t allowed, the company permits items “containing photos and photo-realistic depictions of nipples and buttocks, provided they’re obscured in the first image of the listing.”
- Sexual content — This includes items used to promote sexual wellness, during sexual activity, and fetish content. Specific examples include sex furniture, kegel weights, BDSM gear, bondage gear, outfits, and non-photographic depictions of sex acts without visible genitalia.
- Graphic materials — The platform allows items with violent imagery (some are prohibited by the Violent Items Policy, though), gory imagery, or profane text/imagery.
#2 Prohibiting Any Depictions of Sex Acts or Genitalia
As of July 2024, Etsy does not allow photographic or photo-realistic depictions of sex acts, anuses, or genitalia, even if they’re censored in the listing’s first image.
But the rule also covers non-realistic, prohibiting sex acts with visible genitalia or anuses and genitalia or anuses with other sexual context (i.e., visible arousal, sexual stimulation, etc.).
#3 Providing Stricter Criteria for Mature Content Listings
Aside from the changes impacting listings, the new policies note that mature content isn’t allowed on any public areas of your account, including your username, shop home, and avatar.
Etsy Prohibited Items Policy: Then VS Now
Beyond the major changes discussed above, the platform altered the wording in its Prohibited Items Policy. Here’s the comparison for your convenience:
| Then | Now |
| “As a creative community, we are fairly liberal about what we allow on Etsy. That said, we prohibit pornography, illegal, or exploitative items, and used intimate items. Beyond that, we allow but restrict mature content so that people who’re offended by this sort of material do not have to see it. If you’re selling adult content, we ask that you be respectful of differing sensibilities by listing and tagging your items appropriately.” | “We work hard to balance keeping our community safety while allowing creative expression. We prohibit pornography, sexual services, illegal or exploitative items, and some types of adult toys. In some cases, adult nudity is permitted, though we require some photos to be obscured as a heads-up to people who may not want to see this type of content. If your listings contain mature content, which includes photographic depictions of breasts and buttocks, we ask that you be respectful of differing sensibilities and require you to list and tag your items properly. |
It seems the new Adult Nudity and Sexual Content Policy absorbed some of the old language, making room for the changes seen in the latest iteration.
As such, Etsy continues to cover all their bases — both the newly stated edits and past-held policies.
Why Etsy Nuked Its Adult Category
By now, you’re probably asking: “Was any of this really necessary?”
According to the company, the ban was introduced to keep shoppers safe and reflect industry trends.
Hmm, an interesting way to put it…
In the aforementioned public letter, Alice Wu wrote, “Etsy has long had policies prohibiting certain mature content. Today, we are building on this foundation, updating our standards and introducing more rigorous guidelines.”
She mentioned that the company carefully crafted the policy to continue its goal of allowing creative expression while considering the ever-evolving standards across the industry. But, predictably, many sellers do not concur.
The Impact on Sellers
Alexandra Houston, the founder of Charmskool, an e-commerce platform specializing in fetish apparel and accessories, shares sellers’ overarching opinions about the recent policy changes, “Sellers see this as a betrayal. Imagine if you have been trading on Etsy for the last ten years… it’s like having your house burnt down. The platform wants anything creative as long as it’s beige and middle of the road.”
Anna, founder of Simply Elegant Glass, which creates sex toys, echoed these sentiments, telling the BBC, “As creators who’ve helped make Etsy what it is and who have remained loyal to the platform for years, we feel betrayed.” Her business followed up on X, tweeting it was hard enough to run an adult business since many payment processors won’t work with us.
The post continued, powerfully quoting, “A blanket ban is a lazy solution to the problems of non-compliance and non-enforcement that you created in the first place.”
Laura Norden and Preston Stevenson, handmade dildo and other sex toy sellers, agree. Stevenson noted, “The ban will close the doors of many handmade makers in the adult toy realm. For small shops like ours who’ve spent the majority of their time on Etsy, 30 days’ notice isn’t enough time to pivot.“
We could go on, but the general consensus is this: affected sellers feel let down and they predict tumbling revenues from here on out.
So, What Can Sellers Do Now?
Etsy’s policy changes have undoubtedly dealt a significant blow to many sellers in the adult category. But while the frustration is valid, this is an opportunity to rethink strategies, diversify sales channels, and future-proof your business against similar risks.
In fact, Spicerack launched around the same time as Etsy’s policy changes.
This emerging marketplace was explicitly launched to support artisanal adult products and creators. While still in its early days, its growth and focus on adult-friendly policies make it a promising option.
Will Etsy roll back its restrictions?
While it’s impossible to say for sure (and we’re not optimistic), the current trend among platforms leans toward stricter content moderation rather than leniency.
For adult creators, this highlights the importance of building a resilient business model that doesn’t hinge on any one platform.
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