There are legit so many print-on-demand companies out there that it’s difficult to settle on one. So why did I choose Spreadshop? As a content creator, I was looking for something that would help me sell my merchandise easily.
And tbh I wasn’t willing to shell out any money. At least not in the beginning of my business. So Spreadshop suited me just fine.
And since I’ve sold a lot of my merchandise using this platform, I decided to write a Spreadshop review to help my fellow influencers, freelancers, designers, and whatever you may choose to call yourself – I call us artists. You can be as creative as you want!
A Quick Summary
If you haven’t been around print-on-demand businesses, I’ll explain how they work. If you already know, you can skip this section.
Spreadshop is a platform that lets you come up with ideas, print them on different products, and sell them.
So let’s say you’re a content creator who has a quirky little cartoon character and you write and act on jokes. You can print that character in different poses and with different dialogues on mugs, t-shirts, caps, bags, facemasks, and other products.
That’s your merch – you can simply print and sell it. And you don’t need to spend anything. You don’t have to buy the inventory beforehand. When you get an order, it’s passed on to Spreadshop, they print and deliver it, and you get to keep the profit.
So your success depends on how popular your merch is. If you have a big following, you can turn it into a successful business. Let’s get on with the pros and cons in this Spreadshop review.
Pros
Easy to use
No paid subscriptions
Inbuilt marketing tools
Easily customizable products
Sales analysis to help you keep track of your profits
Cons
There are some other print-on-demand stores out there with more product options
Key features
Can be used as a standalone shop or you can integrate it with your already existing shop
Bulk services to deliver big orders
Performance bonus for users who sell more than 50 items per month
Doesn’t have any paid subscriptions
Easy to run promos and discounts
Lets you track your sales and other stats
Allows you to create and upload products directly from the mobile app
How I tested Spreadshop
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Before going full-on for Spreadshop, I went through some Spreadshop reviews. After that, I tested it with some products. I set up a test shop and created a design for t-shirts, tote bags, aprons, and many other products. I believed them to be the top-selling products so I decided to try them out first.
I placed a couple of orders myself and had them delivered to different addresses. The products came on time and I loved their quality, which is why I decided to stick with Spreadshop. I checked the stats and Spreadshop let me track my sales accurately, which was a big plus.
With insights for sales, it’s easier to see which products are selling faster than others. This way you can focus on best-sellers and try to create more variants for them.
I can safely say that my experience with Spreadshop was positive, which is why I decided to set up my shop with this platform.
Who is Spreadshop Designed For?
As I mentioned earlier, Spreadshop is for artists. If you have a following on social media, Spreadshop will help you translate that into money. But if you don’t have a good social media presence, it might be difficult to sell.
Spreadshop does offer marketing features, but then so do so many other companies. There is so much competition out there.
Use Spreadshop (and for that matter, any print-on-demand company) if you’re an influencer, designer, freelancer, content creator, or any other type of artist who has a presence on the internet. It’s not mandatory, but it sure does help you sell faster.
How to Create Products on Spreadshop
I’ll review Spreadshop here and see how you can set up a shop and upload your first product. It’s a fun journey and I’ll try to keep it as simple as possible. I already have a running shop but for this Spreadshop review, I’ll create a test shop and upload a product.
Let’s begin.
Step 1. Register on the website.
Click on the Open a Spreadshop button and sign up.
Step 2. Upload your design
After you enter the basic details, your shop will be created. Now you can upload the design you want to be printed on your products.
If you have a design ready, you can just upload it here. And if you don’t have a design, Spreadshop will generate one for you in the beginning. Let’s say I don’t have a design yet. Click on Try Now.
Step 3. Create your design (skip if you already have a design ready)
You’ll get two options here.
A quick design to help you set up your first product or get a graphic designing partner who can design your products. Let’s pick the first option for now.
The platform came up with abstract circles as your design. You can edit it if you want. It’s not really a good design so let’s upload our own design here.
I uploaded a design I created many years ago when I was experimenting with my comics.
Step 4. Preview it
Click on the product and it will take you to the product selection page.
You can select the size of the print on the product. For example, you can make the print larger or smaller, change the product color, or place the print on the back instead of its default place (in the front).
You can edit other products as well.
Let’s try rotating this image a little.
I’ll try it on an apron.
See that square in the middle? That’s the print area. You can place your design anywhere within this area. The two buttons on top of your design let you rotate and resize your design. Let’s try rotating it.
I rotated my design to the left a little. You can play around and find the right placement for your design. Let’s change the color of this apron.
I selected blue and this is how it appears now.
As you can see, creating a mockup is really easy. Although some print-on-demand stores offer better mockup options. But then there are some other amazing features with Spreadshop. The performance bonus is one such feature.
As you move from one product to another, click on Next Product given in the top right corner.
And when you’ve edited all products, click on Done.
Step 5. Add or delete products
When you set up your shop, Spreadshop adds some products by default. You can remove the ones you don’t like.
Visit your shop. You’ll see all the listed products here.
There’s a cross on the top left corner of each product. Click on it and that product will be removed from your shop. Now let’s try adding a mug.
Click on all products.
You’ll see a panel on the left side.
Let’s select accessories.
Notice the slider at the top of the products? Click on it to make it green. Now the product will start showing on your shop.
Here you can edit it like earlier and your product will be ready to sell.
Step 6. Describe your design
When you’re happy with your products, click on Next in the top right corner. On the next page, you’ll be asked to describe your design.
When you’ve entered the description and tags, click on Publish in the top right corner.
And that’s it! You’ve created and uploaded products. Now you can continue with setting up your shop by adding a name and logo and designing it with the right color theme.
Setting up your store is pretty basic. It will show you a preview of your shop. If you click on Shop Now, you’ll see your products.
Setting the price of a product
As you can see, your products have default prices. To set their prices, you’ll need to visit your shop’s settings.
Here you can see the price that Spreadshop charges and the margin you’d want to keep.
Once you’ve set the prices, you can launch your shop.
Pricing
Any Spreadshop review would be incomplete without discussing the pricing. After all, pricing is an important deciding factor for any software.
Yep, that’s right. Spreadshop is free. Forever. So you don’t have to get any paid subscriptions or whatever. Just open your shop, set up your products, and you’re ready to sell.
But then how do they earn?
They earn each time you make a sale. They have a base price for each product. You get to decide your profit margins. In the example above, the men’s t-shirt is priced at $16.49 by Spreadshop. If you want to sell it at $22.90, you get a profit of $6.50 for one shirt.
Spreadshop keeps its money and transfers the rest to you. With that money, it prints your design on the shirt, packs it, and ships it to your customers.
User Experience
I tried finding what other users feel about Spreadshop. There weren’t many reviews but I saw mixed feelings on many review websites. Indeed, Spreadshop doesn’t have as many products in its catalog as some other print companies. Additionally, they don’t offer the same design facilities that some other print-on-demand stores have.
However, to be fair, the design facilities of other stores aren’t even worth it. It’s best to use dedicated graphic design software and then upload your designs to the store.
Spreadshop is always free, so that’s one good thing. Also, their performance bonus is something you won’t find in all stores. Considering all these factors, Spreadshop is a good choice. Is it the best out there? No. But does it work for you – that’s the question. I feel it does and this is why I use it.
Spreadshop Alternatives
I’m sure you’ve heard about so many other print-on-demand stores. If you don’t want to settle with Spreadshop, which one should you choose? Let’s discuss some alternatives and review Spreadshop against them.
Printful
Printful is among the most popular options out there. It’s got its own logo maker, mockup generator, warehousing service, and other options. Apart from Direct-to-go printing, it also has embroidery services. You can also get Direct-to-film printing and all-over printing.
Printful is definitely one of the most versatile options out there. It can also take bulk orders and give discounts on large volumes. Printful also has a free account but it also has a paid membership that will give you extra branding options.
In terms of ease of use, Printful is very user-friendly. You can set up a shop in just a few minutes and start selling online. And just like Spreadshop, you can integrate your shop with your website.
MORE: Printful review
Printify is yet another well-known print-on-demand service that will let you sell your products without keeping inventory. It’s got three pricing plans, including a free one. However, unlike Spreadshop, Printify’s free account isn’t unlimited. It lets you create up to 5 stores on a free plan. If you want more stores, you’ll need to switch to the Premium plan.
Printify has a bigger product catalog than Spreadshop. Apart from t-shirts, hoodies, and other general items, Printify also offers beauty products. Hydrating toners and facial serums – they’ve got everything you need to start up your own beauty brand. And they have coffee too – different types of roasts. So you can understand how big their catalog is.
MORE: Printify review
Gelato claims to have the world’s largest print-on-demand network. Apart from a store to flaunt your products, it also gives you a graphic editing platform. Although I really prefer dedicated graphic designing software for good designs. Just like Spreadshop, it can also integrate with many leading eCommerce platforms.
It has a pretty standard catalog, which is close to Spreadhop. While it has a free plan, there are better features on paid plans. For example, you cannot access premium mockups on a free account. Also, all products will be costlier on the free account. Their prices go down on paid plans.
Gelato has over 140 production partners in more than 32 countries, which means you can sell local products internationally.
MORE: Gelato Print on Demand review
Is Spreadshop Legit?
For me Spreadshop seems to be a legit and solid platform to create and sell custom merchandise. The reviews I read are all positive about its ease of use and product quality. Setting up a shop is easy – no setup fee and no bank account or credit card required to get started so it’s open to almost everyone
One of the things I like about Spreadshop is the flexibility. You can upload multiple designs at once and apply it to multiple products which saves a lot of time. You can also customize the look and feel of your shop so you can match it to your brand.
Plus Spreadshop handles all the logistics – printing, shipping and customer service so you can focus on designing and promoting your products. They also have good integration options especially with YouTube which is a big plus for content creators who want to monetize their audience
However it’s not perfect. Some users find customizing individual products a bit tedious which could be a drawback if you plan to manage a large inventory. But overall the feedback from users is very positive with many liking the support and the ability to earn without upfront costs.
Conclusion
I’ve used Spreadshop and sold products. For me, the selling point was it being forever free. There are no premium plans that will give better product prices. Yep, it’s free and the only way they earn money is by charging a base price on their products.
The catalog is decent – it’s got all the top sellers – t-shirts, hoodies, phone cases, and mugs. You can set up your shop in just a couple of minutes and start selling. To be fair, there isn’t much to complain about. But then again, if you’re ready to shell out a few dollars every month, there are better print-on-demand services available.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How to start a Spreadshop store?
Sign in for a store, upload your design, place it on your products, add or remove products, set product pricing, customize your store, and you’re ready to sell.
Is there a minimum order requirement on Spreadshop?
No, there is no minimum order requirement. Your buyers can place an order for single items. And if they want to place a bulk order, Spreadshop can handle that too.
Can I track my orders?
Yes, Spreadshop gives tracking numbers that help customers track their orders.
Does Spreadshop come with analytics?
Yes, Spreadshop lets you track your sales and traffic so you can focus on products that sell more.
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There are legit so many print-on-demand companies out there that it’s difficult to settle on one. So why did I choose Spreadshop? As a content creator, I was looking for something that would help me sell my merchandise easily. And…
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