Clarification Needed on Upcoming API Changes Affecting Shipping Software Integration

[itiievskyi]

Hi everyone,

It has come to my attention that significant changes are happening with the Etsy API, particularly impacting shipping software like Pirate Ship. Starting from Monday, October 21, 2024, Etsy will reportedly remove the ability for third-party shipping software to access shipping addresses, submit tracking numbers, and automatically mark items as shipped. This has been communicated to users through partner shipping platforms and Etsy and in Etsy Seller Help Center (https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/26654295371031-How-to-Use-a-Third-Party-Provider-to-Ship-Your-Order?segment=selling), but we couldn’t find any relevant documentation updates or announcements.

Could you please clarify the following:

1. Has there been a documentation update about these API changes? If so, can you point us to it?
2. Will existing connections to third-party services (like Pirate Ship) be impacted after the October 21 date?
3. What are the reasons behind these changes, and are there any alternative methods being suggested for handling order shipment data?

Any insights or updates on this would be greatly appreciated, as this has the potential to create manual work for many businesses relying on automated shipping processes.

Thank you in advance for your time and support.

[samborambo305]

This needs to be addressed. This seemingly arbitrary change impacts dozens of companies. @nateswart

Our print-on-demand application requires these endpoints and is extremely useful for our Etsy users.

Also:

• We have our own Shipstation account and ALL of our shipment labels are purchased through them and on behalf of our POD clients.
• It makes no sense not to allow us to update this field for our customers via API. All this would do is introduce friction and annoy Etsy sellers.

[robneir]

+1 to this^

[sparkweb]

While it seems that this is targeted at third-party shipping label apps like PirateShip that provide a comparable service to Shippo/ShipStation, this is going to have the side-effect of completely destroying the print-on-demand ecosystem at Etsy. No new sellers will be able to use any third-party service to produce Print on Demand or fulfill any orders that might be stored at a warehouse. This seems very short-sighted on Etsy's part.

[amitkumar-248]

hello @itiievskyi
Etsy has now officially released the update. Could you share your plans for tackling this change?

[itiievskyi]

From my perspective, there are a few options to handle this situation:

• Manual Copy-Paste: Clients can copy and paste addresses to create labels, similar to what PirateShip offers. While it's functional, this method can be frustrating and time-consuming for clients, especially with larger order volumes.
• Export Orders from Etsy: Clients can export their order data from Etsy and then import it into your system (or any shipping platform). This still requires some manual work but might be more manageable for clients used to copying and pasting. It offers bulk handling and may be a bit more efficient than handling orders one by one.
• Hope for Etsy to Restore Functionality: This is more of a long shot. Waiting for Etsy to reverse their decision and restore the missing functionality isn't something I'd bank on.
• Integration with Shippo: You could explore integrating with Shippo, but there are caveats. In this case, the client may need to connect their store twice to extract different sets of data. This might work if your system handles more than just orders, but it does add complexity and might feel redundant.

[turboturtleD]

• Integration with Shippo: You could explore integrating with Shippo, but there are caveats. In this case, the client may need to connect their store twice to extract different sets of data. This might work if your system handles more than just orders, but it does add complexity and might feel redundant.

The same thing can be done with ShipStation. This not a free solution, but if ShipStation is already being used, it’s a viable method. You will also be able to access customer email addresses which had been removed from the Etsy API previously.

[chrisblach]

So much for an "Open API". They give only two companies a monopoly over shipping. This does not make software better. This restricts competition from improving the status quo.

[amitkumar-248]

Hi @nateswart,
This restriction is hampering our business very badly, is it possible to get this restriction reverted or Exempted for all the existing apps.
thanks

[displayground-josh]

Question: has anyone tested and confirmed that newly added integrations do fail when trying to pull shipping details or update an order?

Do we know what constitutes a "Etsy Preferred Partner or is in an approved category"?