Docs

How HonestListing works, step by step — and exactly where its boundary sits.

How it works

1

Send us your listing export + your original photo files (a shared folder link is fine). Five minutes.

2

Our auditor inspects every image file's EXIF/XMP/PNG metadata — camera-original, edited, AI-generated, or unprovable — and applies all six Oct 22 rules per listing.

3

In 48 hours you get the verdict per listing (PASS / WARN / FAIL), the exact fix for each failure, and ready-to-paste AI disclosure copy written for your listings.

4

Fix Pack buyers: we write the fixes, build your photo-reshoot shot-list, remediate guide listings, and assemble your appeal evidence pack — you just re-upload.

Our guaranteeIf a listing we marked PASS is removed by Etsy under the Oct 22 AI/image rules within 30 days, we rebuild that listing's compliance fix free and prepare your appeal evidence pack free. Still not reinstated on a listing we passed? We refund that listing's share of your fee.

FAQ

What exactly changed on Etsy on Oct 22, 2026?

One unedited photo of the real item in every physical listing; AI-generated patterns/recipes/guides banned (your own work only, with a photo of a real result); bot-made listings banned; AI art allowed only with the AI attribute set and AI use explained in the description; prompt bundles still banned. Details in Etsy's Seller Handbook post "Important updates to AI use on Etsy."

How do you prove a photo is unedited?

We read the file, not the picture. A camera-original carries camera EXIF (make/model) with no editing-software tag and no AI-generation parameters. Photoshop/Lightroom/Canva leave a Software tag; AI generators leave parameter/prompt chunks. A file with stripped metadata is marked UNKNOWN — it can't prove anything, so it never counts as your unedited photo. Honest limit: metadata can be forged by a determined expert; our check catches the real-world cases — edited exports, AI images, and screenshots — which is what enforcement and buyer cases turn on.

Do you log into my Etsy shop?

No. You send an export + files; we return documents. You (or the Fix Pack's step-by-step sheet) apply changes in your own Shop Manager. Your credentials never leave your hands.

I sell patterns / recipes. Am I banned?

No — AI-generated guides are banned. If the guide is your own work and your listing shows a real result you made from it, you're compliant. We verify both and tell you exactly what evidence to keep.

I use AI for art prints. Can I keep selling?

Yes, with disclosure: the AI attribute ticked and a description line explaining how AI was used. We write that copy for you, listing by listing.

Is this legal advice?

No. HonestListing is a policy-compliance audit and document service against Etsy's published rules. We are not lawyers and Etsy — not us — makes final enforcement decisions. Our Honest Promise covers our work, not Etsy's discretion.