This post is also available in: Français Italiano Español
Etsy has just rolled out an updated New Guidance for Listing Titles, and a Tool to Help. This article provides new advice on how to write your listing titles, and they’ve even created a tool to help you update them. If you’ve ever wondered whether your titles are too long, stuffed with keywords, or just not clear enough for shoppers, this is the update you’ve been waiting for.
But before you jump in and start changing things (and risk causing harm to your Etsy shop before the busy season!), here’s a simple breakdown of what’s new, what to change, and what to leave as it is.
Contents
- Don’t Change the Titles of Your Bestselling Listings
- What to Know Before Editing Your Etsy Listing Titles
- Etsy’s New Rules for Writing Listing Titles
- Etsy’s New Tool to Help You Edit Titles
- Etsy’s Updated Title Guidance FAQ
- Key Takeaways for Sellers
- Safely Update Your Etsy Titles
Don’t Change the Titles of Your Bestselling Listings
First and foremost, we recommend not changing anything in your Etsy listings that are already performing well. If a product is bringing in views and sales, leave it as it is. Focus instead on the listings that aren’t doing as well, and use the new guidance (and tool) to improve them safely with smart optimization. Edit small batches of listings at a time and monitor the changes you make to them over the next one to three months. This way, you can determine whether or not your revisions are helping those listings rank higher in search results and get more sales.
💡TIP: Use eRank’s Changes report to view and monitor changes to your listings’ titles, tags, price, quantity available, total views, and total favorites. Use Changes to see if the revisions you’ve made to your listings’ titles have helped increase their traffic.
What to Know Before Editing Your Etsy Listing Titles
Etsy’s New Listing Title Guidelines, at a Glance
Shoppers don’t want to read long, confusing titles. They’re looking for something quick and simple that conveys to them what the Etsy product is.
Here’s a detailed explanation of Etsy’s new guidelines:
- Clearly say what the item is, like “mug” or “dress.”
- Add the most important details up front: color, size, and materials.
- Keep it short. Etsy recommends titles under 15 words.
- Only add special occasions if they’re essential, like “birthday candle” or “Halloween costume.”
- Avoid filler words. Terms like “perfect” or “beautiful” belong in the description, not the title.
- Try not to repeat words.
- Leave out sales, shipping, or price info. Etsy adds this automatically.
Which Parts of Your Etsy Titles to Keep
Etsy isn’t asking you to rewrite your titles from scratch. Not everything needs fixing. Some parts of your title may already be doing the job, and those parts are worth keeping.
- Your brand style: keep the tone and personality that makes your Etsy shop unique.
- Main keywords: if shoppers always search for “personalized dog bandana”, don’t remove it.
- Attributes in other fields: don’t strip these out of tags or descriptions because you tidy up titles.
💡 TIP: Remember eRank’s Golden Rule: If an Etsy listing is performing well, don’t touch it.
Etsy’s New Rules for Writing Listing Titles
Here’s a simple breakdown of what belongs in your title, and what doesn’t, according to the Etsy’s seller handbook:
What to Keep in the Title?
- Noun: what the item is, like “dress, mug, ring.”
- Objective descriptors: top 3 details (colour, size, material), and other key info specifically for your item, like “neon pink, extra large, reclaimed wood.”
What to Remove From the Title?
- Aspirational search items, like “gift for him” or “birthday present”, should be moved to tags or attributes.
- Subjective descriptors, like “beautiful” or “perfect”, should be moved to tags or attributes.
- How the item is sold, like “on sale” or “free delivery”, should be removed completely from the listing.
- Remove unnecessary repeated words or phrases like “unisex adult poncho, unisex cotton poncho.”
💡 Example:
Instead of: “Dad T-Shirt Father Shirt Personalised, Father’s Day Gift Personalised Dad T-Shirt, Dad Statement Shirt Father Shirt with Kids Names”
Use: “Personalised 100% Cotton Dad T-Shirt: Custom Kids’ Names S-XL”
What to Do With the Keywords You Remove?
Etsy doesn’t want those words gone entirely, just moved somewhere else. This keeps your Etsy SEO strong and helps your shop show up in the right search results:
- Attributes: appear in Etsy filters and highlights.
- Tags: helpful when no attribute fits, and great for shopper phrases like “gift for her”.
- Descriptions: help Etsy’s search engine understand what you’re selling.
Etsy’s New Tool to Help You Edit Titles
To make this change easier, Etsy is rolling out a new AI-powered tool that suggests updated listing titles based on your current information. You’ll find it in your search visibility dashboard or the Etsy Seller app.
Here’s what it can do:
- Update one listing, or many, at once.
- Suggest new Etsy titles (you can accept them, change them, or ignore them).
- Give you real-time feedback as you edit.
Etsy is also:
- Rolling the tool out gradually. Etsy sellers will be notified when the tool is live in their shop.
- Reminding sellers to download a CSV of their Etsy listings to keep a record of current titles and keywords (tip: You can also use eRank’s Changes tool to track changes to your listings’ titles, tags, price, quantity available, total views, and total favorites).
- Updating the Seller app so Etsy sellers can edit titles on the go.
Etsy’s Updated Title Guidance FAQ
Ever since Etsy rolled out some updated guidance around listing titles, many sellers are wondering: Do I need to change all my titles right now? Will my shop lose visibility if I don’t?
Recently, our team at eRank dug into some of the most frequently-asked questions regarding this topic. Below is a summary of what we’ve learned and what it means for your shop.
1. Are older-style titles being penalized?
No. Etsy confirmed that its search doesn’t punish older-style titles. Instead, the search algorithm weighs a wide range of factors for each listing—its title, tags, attributes, description, main image, reviews, and more.
👉 What this means for you: There’s no need to rush into rewriting all of your listings’ titles. If you do want to make changes, test gradually and track results before rolling out broader updates.
2. Will visibility drop if I don’t update titles?
Not necessarily. Etsy made it clear that updating titles is optional. Keeping things as they are won’t automatically hurt your visibility.
👉 What this means for you: If a listing is performing well, leave it alone. Instead, experiment with underperforming items and see if your revisions improve their visibility in search results.
3. How does Etsy’s AI title suggestion tool work?
The AI tool only factors in a listing’s current title, main image, and description. It does not take into account past sales or search performance.
👉 What this means for you: Always review AI suggestions before applying them. Some sellers have noticed that the tool occasionally omits important keywords or suggests terms that could cause issues (like trademarks or prohibited phrases).
4. What does “visibility may be reduced” really mean?
Etsy has explained that search considers many different factors, but the platform hasn’t provided a precise definition of “reduced visibility.” What we do know: Etsy’s personalized search focuses on a filtered pool of top-ranking results. If your listing doesn’t make it into that pool, it may never be shown to shoppers.
👉 What this means for you: Protect your strong listings and use data to decide where testing makes sense.
5. Should you change titles for listings that are already selling well?
No. Etsy made it clear that updates are not required, and the AI tool is entirely optional.
👉 What this means for you: If your listing is doing well, leave it alone. Focus on experimenting with lower-performing listings, and track results carefully with tools like eRank’s Changes report, Rank Checker, and Spotted on Etsy.
Key Takeaways for Sellers
- No penalties for keeping old-style titles.
- No need to panic-edit your entire shop.
- Test slowly. Focus on underperforming listings, not your bestsellers.
- Always double-check AI suggestions.
- Rely on data to track what works and what doesn’t.
At the end of the day, Etsy’s guidance is optional. The smartest approach is a balanced one: protect what’s already working and make small, strategic changes where your shop has room to grow.
Safely Update Your Etsy Titles
This update is all about making titles clearer and easier for shoppers to understand, not about removing important keywords. By moving those extra words into tags, attributes, and descriptions, your items can still show up in search results, while your title remains clean, simple, and more buyer-friendly.
Think of it as giving your Etsy shop a light makeover: short, simple titles using the keywords that best describe your products. This will help you rank higher, drive more traffic to your store, and make your shop easier for shoppers to browse.
👉 Want to take it a step further? Use eRank’s tools like Changes report, Rank Checker, and Spotted on Etsy to test your edits, track their impact, and safely optimize your titles.
