All businesses / Dropshipping

Fingerprint: capital · hours · speed to income · margin · ceiling. The dashed line is mid-scale.

Start a dropshipping: the real numbers

Reselling without stock. Below is what it actually costs, how long before money arrives, and the part most guides leave out.

Startup capital

€300–€2,000

Hours / week

15–40

First income

~8 wks

Net margin

12%

Saturation

high

Realistic ceiling

€200–€1,200

What nobody usually tells you

Almost no barrier to entry, which is exactly the problem: anyone can copy you tomorrow. At 12% margin with long deliveries, nearly everything goes to ads and refunds.

The route, in five steps

  1. Check real delivery times by ordering yourself
  2. Work out acquisition cost before anything else
  3. Start with one product only
  4. Build 10% refunds into the price
  5. If it hasn't converted after €500 of ads, stop

What you'll need to buy

These are the categories every dropshipping pays for in the first month. We break down what each one actually costs at this size on the tools page.

platformpaid adsproduct research tools

Does it hold up for you?

These numbers are the average case. Whether this business clears your target depends on your capital, your hours and how long you can wait — put them in and see.

Run my numbers → See the tool stack