Disorganized, High School Atmosphere - Anonymous employee Etsy Employee Review

3.0
9 Apr 2015
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Work alongside some very creative and interesting people who live very rich lives. It's a great place for the young and single. Engineering culture is very strong, almost to the point of letting a technological style dictate a product experience.

Cons

"Keep it real" is the company's motto, but there is constant smokescreen and double-talk on everything. Despite the fact that "Loose Lips Sink Ships" as they say at every all hands meeting, gossip and rumor is usually how you receive most of your information. This isn't due to the clique-like culture, which is pervasive (Regina George in the C-Suite is forming her own team of Mean Girls to worship her since she left the financial world), but more because the top management isn't aligned at all on what needs to get done, most of all the CEO, who is more of a cultural tour guide than a leader. The product experience has languished from years with no leader, and there is so much experience debt to dig out of that growth is constrained. Speaking of growth, don't consider being promoted. They're so worried about upsetting anyone, they rarely promote from within the ranks with the exception of the few anointed who don't threaten the egos of the top dogs. They are more likely to hire from outside than to nurture their own talent, because management experience is poor throughout. Lastly, Etsy just simply wastes a lot of money and is badly run. Many departments are bloated, the office is rarely humming before 10:30, and you might see people around the office just doing whatever they want under no apparent direction. Most people can't measure their impact or explain why they are doing something.

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5.0
25 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Empathetic, smart people in a lot places.

Cons

Senior leadership has changed alot in the years since the pandemic highs and it's not quite stabilized. Overvalued executors and undervalued those with high EQ and people leadership. Promoted executors into senior roles and then they floundered and exited, or worse they chased away better potential fits for those roles who were overlooked.

5.0
26 Feb 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Etsy is, by far, my favorite company. From the outside, it has the characteristics of big tech —a big NYC office, a household name, and it's publicly traded. However, from the inside, it retains the soul of a startup. Collaboration is constant, office politics are minimal, and there’s a genuine community—people actually eat lunch together in the Brooklyn office and get together. I’ve been here for a year now, and I usually wait for that milestone before giving a review, I can confidently say I’d love to stay here for a long time. During my interview process, I noticed that many Etsy Data Scientists have tenures exceeding five years, which I think speaks volume. While the compensation might not reach Meta or Google levels, the work-life balance, mission, and culture are unmatched. The new CEO is also fantastic; her expertise is evident, and for the first time, I am actually aligned with the company's strategy, instead of just rolling my eyes the whole time at the all hands. As we continue to 'Keep Commerce Human,' Etsy is perfectly positioned to offer the human connection that is so often lost in the age of AI and mass production.

Cons

Nothing I can think of really.

3
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