---
title: "Revenue models for an online marketplace"
description: "A neutral taxonomy of marketplace revenue models and the questions to answer before combining them."
canonical: https://www.ordering.co/blog/different-types-of-revenue-models-in-the-online-marketplace/
---

# Revenue models for an online marketplace

A neutral taxonomy of marketplace revenue models and the questions to answer before combining them.

2 min read

A marketplace revenue model defines who pays, what triggers the charge, how the amount is calculated, and what value the payer receives. More mechanisms do not automatically create a healthier business; each one changes incentives and operating complexity.

## Access and subscription fees

A marketplace may charge merchants or customers to join, maintain access, or unlock a service tier. Model acquisition friction, renewal, cancellation, refunds, and the features attached to each tier.

## Listing and promotion fees

Sellers may pay to publish a listing, increase its visibility, or sponsor placement. Define duration, ranking rules, labeling, moderation, and what happens when a listing is removed.

## Transaction and seller fees

A fixed amount or percentage may be charged when a transaction succeeds. Specify the calculation base, taxes, tips, delivery, discounts, refunds, disputes, partial fulfilment, and who absorbs payment-processing costs.

## Lead and bid fees

Service and auction marketplaces may charge for a qualified lead or bid. The platform needs an auditable definition of a billable event and a dispute path that participants can understand.

## Advertising and ancillary services

Advertising, logistics, payments, financing, software, data services, or merchant tools can add revenue, but they also introduce permissions, disclosure, support, and regulatory responsibilities.

## Choose with unit economics

- Payer and value received
- Charge event and calculation base
- Volume and margin assumptions
- Refund, dispute, tax, and payment responsibilities
- Market and cultural fit
- Legal, accounting, and payments review

## Keep reading.

- ## [What are the different types of revenue models in the online marketplace?](https://www.ordering.co/blog/what-are-the-different-types-of-revenue-models-in-the-online-marketplace/)

  What are the different types of revenue models in the online marketplace? Getting the revenue model right is one of the first things you need to think…

- ## [Where to sell online: Etsy, Walmart Marketplace, or your own storefront](https://www.ordering.co/blog/online-marketplaces-seller-guide/)

  Compare Etsy, Walmart Marketplace and an owned storefront by eligibility, catalog setup, fees, customer data, fulfillment and a practical transition plan.

- ## [How to evaluate online ordering pricing models](https://www.ordering.co/blog/best-flat-fee-online-ordering-with-no-per-order-commission/)

  Compare subscription, percentage, processing, delivery, and implementation costs with an explicit volume model.

## See it running on your own menu.

The shortest way to understand any of this is to watch an order go from a storefront to a store to a driver, on your locations.

[Book a demo](https://www.ordering.co/contact/?meeting=demo#book)[See a live demo](https://www.ordering.co/demo/)