Is It Cheaper to Sell on Your Own Website or on Shopee and Lazada?

Singapore seller fees, as of 2026 reporting:

• Fee: Headline commission | Shopee: 4–18% | TikTok Shop: 6–10% | Lazada: 4–8%
• Fee: Base commission | Shopee: 2–6% by category | TikTok Shop: 4–12.5% marketplace; 5.8–14.5% mall | Lazada: 0.99–3.99%
• Fee: Transaction / payment fee | Shopee: 2.18% | TikTok Shop: Not stated for Singapore | Lazada: 4.99%
• Fee: Platform / service fee | Shopee: 5% technical support fee (from Feb 2026) | TikTok Shop: Infrastructure fee (varies) | Lazada: 5% order processing fee
• Fee: Free Shipping programme | Shopee: 3–5% (optional) | TikTok Shop: Commerce growth fee (varies) | Lazada: —
• Fee: Coins Cashback programme | Shopee: 3–5% (optional) | TikTok Shop: — | Lazada: —

On a S$100 skincare order, total platform fees come to roughly S$17.81–19.81 on Shopee, S$14.71 on TikTok Shop, and S$13.98 on Lazada.

Two things to read carefully. Shopee's "optional" programmes are technically voluntary but materially affect search ranking and visibility, so most established sellers join — budget as though you are in them. And do not choose on base commission alone: Lazada's is lowest at 0.99–3.99%, but its 4.99% transaction fee plus 5% order processing fee lands it in the same 11–14% band as TikTok Shop.

Also worth knowing: Shopee mall sellers pay more (skincare commission cited at 15.26%), cross-border commission is a flat 14%, and new Shopee sellers get a 3-month commission waiver up to 500 orders a month — though transaction and service fees still apply. Price for the post-waiver rate, or month four will be unpleasant.

Fee structures change often and vary by category. Verify current rates in each seller centre before setting prices — these figures are for planning and comparison.

Zero platform commission. Everything else, you buy.

• Item: Store build | Singapore cost: S$3,000–15,000 depending on pages and functionality
• Item: Platform subscription | Singapore cost: S$40–200+/month
• Item: Payment gateway | Singapore cost: ~2–3.5% per transaction
• Item: Hosting, domain, maintenance | Singapore cost: S$50–200/month
• Item: Traffic | Singapore cost: The real cost

That last line decides the whole question. A marketplace listing sits inside an existing stream of shoppers. Your own store sits on an empty street until you pay for footfall.

What filling it costs in Singapore: Google Ads click costs run about S$0.80–3 for retail and F&B; at a 2% conversion rate and S$2 per click, you are paying roughly S$100 to acquire one customer. On a S$100 order, that is a 100% acquisition cost — considerably worse than Shopee's 18%.

This is the arithmetic sellers miss. Leaving a marketplace to "save the commission" and then buying traffic to replace it usually costs more, not less — unless the traffic is already yours.

Not "which is cheaper per order" but "where does the second order happen?"

The marketplace fee buys you: traffic, trust, payment infrastructure, logistics, and dispute handling. For a first-time buyer who has never heard of you, that is a fair price — you could not acquire that customer for 18% any other way.

But it is charged on every order, including the fifth one from a customer who already knows and trusts you. That is where the money leaks.

Let the platform earn the first order. Earn the rest yourself.

Pay the 14–20% once as an acquisition cost, then move the relationship.

1. A card inside the parcel. By far the highest-converting point — the customer has just received your product and is pleased with it. Scan to order direct, with a reason (free delivery, a small discount, a sample). Printing cost: around S$100.
2. Your Google Business Profile and website. Customers search your brand name after receiving an order; make sure something good is there when they do.
3. Instagram and Xiaohongshu bio links.
4. WhatsApp — the lowest-friction way for a Singapore customer to reorder. Note the new billing: since 1 October 2026 the WhatsApp Business API charges per message, with 1,000 free service messages per number per month, though the free WhatsApp Business App is unaffected and sufficient for most sellers.

Take the ~15% you were paying the platform and give half to the customer. A 7–8% direct discount still leaves you better off, and the customer relationship is now yours.

On platform rules: marketplaces restrict steering customers off-platform. A brand card inside the parcel with your website and social handles is generally accepted; actively directing customers to buy elsewhere inside platform messaging can breach the rules. Keep the handover to packaging and post-purchase brand presence, and check current platform policy.

And on PDPA: marketing messages to Singapore numbers require consent and a Do Not Call check — WhatsApp marketing included. Order notifications are a separate category from promotions.

Four situations where your own site is the better primary channel:

1. You already have an audience. A following on Instagram or Xiaohongshu, an email list, a physical shop with regulars, or genuine search visibility. Traffic you already own makes the 0% commission real rather than theoretical.

2. High-margin or high-ticket products. On a S$500 order, 18% is S$90 — enough to fund serious acquisition spend of your own.

3. Products that need explaining. Custom, configured or consultative products do not fit a marketplace listing template.

4. Repeat-purchase categories. Supplements, skincare, coffee, pet food, consumables. Where a customer buys six times a year, paying commission on all six is indefensible.

• Launching with no audience — this is the overwhelming majority of new sellers
• Low-ticket items where your own acquisition cost would exceed the margin
• Price-comparison categories where buyers start on the platform
• Small operations where listing on an existing platform is far less work than running a store

Months 1–6: platform first. Build sales, reviews and product-market fit where the traffic already is. Do not build a store yet.

Months 4–12: start the handover cheaply. Add parcel inserts. Complete your Google Business Profile. Set up a basic WhatsApp presence. Watch how many customers actually come back directly — this is your evidence, and it costs almost nothing to gather.

Month 12+: build the store if the evidence supports it. If a meaningful share of customers are returning through your own channels, the store now has traffic to serve. If nobody came back, a store would have been an expensive empty shop.

Throughout: keep both. The sellers who do best in Singapore run marketplaces for acquisition and their own channel for retention, rather than treating it as a choice.

Q1: Should I leave Shopee to save the commission?
For most sellers, no. The commission includes customer acquisition — leaving removes your buyer source, and replacing it with paid traffic typically costs more than 18%. The better move is using the platform to acquire and your own channel to retain.

Q2: How much does an e-commerce website cost in Singapore?
Roughly S$3,000–15,000 to build depending on pages, bilingual needs and functionality, plus S$40–200+/month in platform fees and around 2–3.5% in payment gateway charges. The build is the small number; traffic is the real cost.

Q3: Can I use the PSG grant for an online store?
E-commerce systems, inventory and order management, CRM and some digital marketing packages are commonly on the GoBusiness pre-approved list. Up to 50% co-funding, capped at S$30,000, applied for through a pre-approved vendor, with no retrospective applications — pay first and you cannot claim. EnterpriseSG requires companies to apply directly and charges no application fee. Platform commissions and ad spend are not covered. From 2H 2026 the EDGE scheme streamlines PSG, EDG and MRA under a S$100,000 annual cap.

Q4: How many marketplaces should I sell on?
Judge by capacity, not opportunity. Each additional platform adds listings, imagery, customer service, returns and its own promotion calendar. One person managing three platforms usually starts failing in month two — stock desynchronises, replies slow down, campaigns get missed. Get one platform profitably stable first.

Q5: What is the single highest-return thing I can do this month?
Print parcel inserts. Around S$100, and it converts customers you have already paid full commission to acquire into customers you own. Nothing else on this list has that ratio.

Want the actual per-order economics worked out across your platforms before you decide? Book a consultation or WhatsApp +65 8858 6886.
Mayson AI Enterprise Services · 8 Temasek Blvd, Suntec Tower 3, #42-01, Singapore 038988

Sources: Shopee vs Lazada vs TikTok Shop Seller Fees (2026) — Digital in Asia · Seller fees — Shopee Seller Centre Singapore · WhatsApp Business API Pricing 2026 — EngageLab