Every new dropshipping business faces an important decision – what to sell online. Choose a perfect dropshipping niche that stands out from the crowd and your sales will be booming. If you pick a product group with tons of competition, sales might flop or never take off.
eCommerce is one of the best and easiest ways to make money today, but to succeed in this industry you need to start with a good plan, and at the center of that plan is your niche.
Our first tip is to look for emerging markets that are unsaturated yet show high consumer demand. In these sweet spots, you will find:
- Eager buyers
- An opportunity to set your own prices
- The advantage of becoming the market expert
In This Article
- How to Find Profitable Dropshipping Niches
- 15 Most Profitable Dropshipping Categories
- 5 Dropshipping Categories to Avoid
How to Find Profitable Dropshipping Niches
Today, trends change quickly. Finding what sells by pure trial and error and zero research can be time-intensive, stressful, and expensive, especially if you’re starting without experience or flexible capital.
To identify top-selling products and see how consumer interests change over time, do your market research and use search volume analytics tools like Google Trends. Keep an eye on spiking graphs to avoid investing your efforts into something that’s about to crash and find products that will stay relevant for a longer time.
Here are four simple resources that will help you recognize a profitable niche.
Social Media
The most accessible place to start your market research is on your phone. Social media platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok are the hub of modern trends. Browse the “Discover” sections and hashtags to see what’s trending and what products people are desperate to get their hands on. You can filter by location and topic to get more precise results.
You will likely find competitors who target the same or similar customer segments. Check what they’re offering, learn from their wins and failures, and find ways to sell products with more added value for your target customer.
Pros:
- Shows current trends
- Category filters
- Filter by location
Cons:
- No export options
- You can't see the search volume
Google Keyword Planner and Ahrefs
Online tools like Google Keywords Planner and Ahrefs are great for search engine optimization and traffic improvement. They can also help you identify popular trends, their longevity, and understand if there’s a high demand for a particular product niche.
These tools show you how many people search for particular words and phrases and how their interest in them has changed over a month. For example, you’ve brainstormed a few potentially promising dropshipping niches. A simple keyword analysis can help you clarify if people are interested in buying products from these categories and whether the market is already saturated or not.
Google Keywords Planner Pros:
- Free for everyone
- Shows search volume
- Search multiple keywords
- Keyword suggestions
Google Keywords Planner Cons:
- You need a Google account use it
- It doesn't show you trends longer than 12 months
- You can't filter search results by device
Marketplaces
It’s always a good practice to investigate what your competitors are up to. Given that online marketplaces like Amazon can rank more than 2 billion users per month, they’re an excellent indicator of consumer trends.
Browse categories and see which products are at the top of search results – these are the items with high demand. See if they are suitable for your dropshipping business and if you can add more value.
You also have easy access to customer reviews. See what satisfies them, what they would like to be improved, and if they’re happy with the product’s price.
Pros:
- Review competitor activity
- See best-selling products
- Read customer reviews
Cons:
- Doesn't show how many people have searched for a keyword
- No data to export
- Doesn't show historical trends
Google Trends
This easy-to-use tool will let you quickly identify trends and see how their popularity changes over time. This way, you can evaluate the potential of a dropshipping niche.
Google Trends is free for everyone. You can find the search volume for specific words and phrases and filter them by time and location relevant to you. See what people are excited about and pinpoint a gap in the market that your dropshipping business can fill.
If you’re out of ideas, click on the “Trending Searches” section for daily and real-time trends, or keep reading to see the 15 most profitable dropshipping niches.
Pros:
- Search single keywords or phrases
- Filter by location, time frame, and category
- Charts of trending topics
- Keyword comparison
Cons:
- No variety of graph types
- Related topics and queries need improvement
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15 Best Dropshipping Niches
Congratulations, now you know how to do simple market research to validate potentially profitable areas for your online store. To make sure you can start selling right away, we’ve compiled a list of popular categories that are excellent choices for new dropshipping businesses.
All product groups mentioned in this article, apart from the worst ones at the end, have a high profit potential. You need to find what best fits you and your dream customer.
Take a look at these 15 most profitable dropshipping product categories, and make sure you avoid the five risky categories mentioned afterward.
1. Pet Supplies
There are so many people all over the world who pamper their pets like there’s no tomorrow.
Products Pet Owners Love to Spend Their Money On
- Custom pet portraits
- Collars
- Food bowls
- Pet clothing
The total pet industry has grown to $103.6 billion, and that’s only in the United States. There are many entry points into the pet supplies market but remember, your dropshipping business has to concentrate on a niche to raise your chances of profit. Pet owners are likely to be active in breed-specific communities. See what value you can bring them.
2. Eco-Friendly Products
One of the best dropshipping niches to get into right now is sustainable products.
A global consumers insights survey reports that 52% of shoppers regard themselves as eco-friendly and look for environmentally conscious alternatives when making purchases.
Key Factors Consumers Consider Before Purchasing
- Sustainable packaging
- Transparent and traceable product origin
- Eco-friendly, biodegradable materials
People want to support businesses that try to help the planet and their local communities.
Popular categories include clothing, shoes, beauty products, bags, and accessories. Today’s dropshipping processes are efficient and can handle this increasing demand, making organic products more accessible than ever before.
3. Baby Products
Parents want what’s best for their children. If they’re satisfied with a product, it’s more likely they’ll come back for more and recommend it to their friends.
There is always a steady demand for baby products and toys, with a predictable annual peak around the winter holiday season. Data predictions estimate the annual revenue growth rate for sellers in this category will reach 10.55% by 2025.
Popular Baby Products
- Blankets
- Bibs
- Baby bottles and bottle sterilizers
- Baby onesies
We also suggest looking into the custom product category. Parents love dressing their children in unique outfits, making baby clothes and accessories some of the most profitable dropshipping products on the market.
4. Fitness and Sports Products
The pandemic prompted us to evaluate our health and daily habits, resulting in a growing number of people practicing an active lifestyle. A consumer fitness equipment report estimates that 4 in 5 Americans now own at least one piece of home exercise equipment.
Popular Fitness Products You Can Sell Right Now
- Custom yoga mats
- Sportswear
- Resistance bands
- Gym bags
Remember to consider traditional sporting goods like basketballs, hockey sticks, or golf clubs. These sports are here to stay, and they have a huge following who are willing to spend a lot of money for good value and representation of their favorite sport.
5. Beauty Products
Market researchers estimate that the global beauty industry will reach $558.12 billion by 2026, with an annual growth rate of 4.82%. Trends in beauty and skincare change quickly, but that’s not necessarily bad news.
If you’re comfortable with following trends, this is an excellent opportunity for your dropshipping business to capture an exciting target consumer segment. Use tools mentioned, like Google Trends, and remember the growing demand for eco-friendly products.
Popular Beauty Products
- Hot air brushes
- Razors
- Makeup remover wipes
- Makeup blending sponges
- Magnetic false eyelashes
Consider affiliate marketing when entering the beauty industry, especially working with influencers. A well-planned partnership with the right influencer drives engagement, brand recognition, and most importantly, sales.
6. Home Decor
With a predicted US value of $283 billion by 2026, the home decor market is one of the top dropshipping niches on this list.
Choose one of the many different interior design styles – minimalist, Art Deco, industrial – the list goes on. You can dive deeper into each one of them and focus on a specific product.
Popular Home Decor Items
- 3D wall art
- Curtains
- Ceramic decorations
- Candles
- Bedding
Pinterest and Instagram are fantastic for keeping up with trends. Make sure you follow the most popular lifestyle and interior design pages and influencers.
7. Clothing
Perhaps the most universal of all dropshipping niches, apparel is a vast and highly competitive industry, but don’t run away just yet.
Remember that you want to sell products in a specific niche, and there is more to clothing than just fashion and basic apparel. Think of other categories like industrial workwear, sports apparel, medical scrubs, or sustainable clothing from recycled materials.
Clothing Categories We Recommend for Merchants
- Industrial workwear
- Sports apparel
- Medical scrubs
- Sustainable clothing
- Custom clothing
If you decide to enter the fashion eCommerce industry (expected to grow in the United States to $1,164.7 billion by the end of 2025), prepare for more challenging competition but don’t give up – with the right business strategy and a mindfully thought-out dropshipping niche, profit is possible.
8. Health and Personal Care
It would take days to divide this product category and its subcategories until there is nowhere further to go.
Popular Health and Personal Care Products
- Baby planning and child care
- Haircare
- Dental care
- Nutrition
- Medical supplies
This is just the tip of the iceberg. Healthcare researchers predict a rapid increase in global consciousness surrounding health and well-being, estimating that the global consumer healthcare market will grow from $3.32 million in 2020 to $6.65 million by 2028.
To get an idea of the most sought-after products, check marketplaces like Amazon or Etsy and browse the top products in its search query.
9. Gaming Accessories
There are more gamers than Chicago has residents. This number will potentially grow to 3.07 billion by 2023, indicating one of the most profitable dropshipping niches.
Gaming is not just an evening hobby anymore. For many, it’s a way to make a living. You could argue that it should be a world-recognized sport. eSports, aka online gaming championships, are bringing in as many as 5.41 million peak viewers for live events. Each player wants the best accessories to help them set new records.
Popular Gaming Gadgets and Accessories
- HD headsets
- Mice and mouse pads
- Custom keyboards
- VR headset straps
- Microphones and streaming packs
You can sell all of these online through your new dropshipping business.
10. Jewelry
You can find a piece of jewelry for every occasion. There are many different materials, styles, and types to choose from. It is also an evergreen product category. Its market size is somewhere around $228 billion. For a dropshipping business, this means scoring literal gold.
Pros:
- Small and lightweight packaging
- Highly customizable
- Fewer returns than clothing
Jewelry is mostly a sentimental buy, either for oneself or a loved one, showing a spike in purchases around holidays like Christmas and Valentine’s day. Create a marketing strategy around these special occasions – consider promotions and special offers.
Popular Jewelry Items
- Custom engraved necklaces
- Jewelry holders and organizers
- Hoop earrings
- Earring sets
Make sure you know your customer and invest time into creating pleasing product presentations.
11. Mobile Phone Accessories
As long as technology advances, companies will release a new phone model every year, if not more often. Charging cables break, screens need extra protection, phone makers introduce new connection ports, and then there are the lost wireless earbuds.
Phone accessories present an abundance of products for your eCommerce store to sell online. To succeed in this segment, make sure your store offers high-quality and durable accessories with accurate product descriptions. Otherwise, you might deal with lots of returns and bad reviews.
Popular Product Examples
- Phone cases
- Charging cables
- Power banks
- Ring lights and tripods
- Screen protectors
12. Home Office Accessories
With more employees working from home, their homes need to accommodate these new needs. Workers might need a chic background for video calls or a cushy mouse pad for wrist pain.
Everyone works differently. Some need their desks to be minimalistic and tidy. Others require a comfortable seat and don’t care about a little mess. Dropshipping offers hundreds of categories to choose from in this segment.
Popular Home Office Accessories
- Desk organizers and pads
- Notepads and writing supplies
- Footrests
- Laptop stands
74% of employers plan to permanently switch to remote working. This is one of many emerging markets, indicating a profitable dropshipping niche.
13. Kitchen Tools
People love food, and an efficient cooking process allows us to pour that love into our meals. Your dropshipping business can provide pleasurable cooking experiences to home chefs around the world by selling high-quality kitchen tools.
Popular Kitchen Products
- Electronic scales
- Can openers
- Place mats
- Dish cloths
- Kitchen towels.
These products and many others are constantly making the best-selling list in the Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets category on Amazon.
Browse through various niches you can dive into – baking, confectionery, barbecuing and grilling, or general home cooking. During the pandemic, people jumped on the trend of making banana bread. Use the search analytics tools mentioned above to see what’s gaining popularity now.
14. Car Accessories
Car parts and accessories are great for eCommerce because there is a vast network of manufacturers who can store heavy and bulky items in their own facilities. You don’t have to worry about finding extra storage and charging your customers high shipping rates with dropshipping.
Popular Car Accessories
- Car seat gap fillers
- Cup holder coasters
- Back seat covers for pets
- Phone holders
You can find the most profitable dropshipping niches in this category by focusing on specific car models or vehicle types – electric, gas, or fuel. Studies predict that the car accessories market will reach $522 billion by the end of 2022. Don’t forget that this category also includes smaller items – air fresheners, phone holders, and storage organizers.
15. Hobby Items
We all have our interests and passions. In an increasingly on-the-go world, it’s never been more important to focus on your mental health and make time to do what you love. People are glad to spend time and money on things that bring them happiness.
Top 5 Hobbies and Interests in the United States
- Music
- Food
- Reading
- Pets
- Video games
You can find a profitable dropshipping niche in each of them if you dig deep enough. For example, if you decide to concentrate on books, go to Google Trends and see which genres are popular right now.
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5 Dropshipping Niches To Avoid
Some dropshipping niches are more volatile and risky than others. You want your dropshipping processes to be as seamless and straightforward as possible. Many factors can come into play to disrupt those processes – return and refund rates, shipping problems, market saturation, and quality control.
This doesn’t mean you can’t enter a broad category like clothing. Just make sure you narrow down your product as much as possible, targeting a very specific customer segment. See if you can filter it by age, gender, location, and other interests.
We’ve selected five product categories you should try to avoid, especially when starting out.
1. Furniture
Furniture seems like a safe bet for a dropshipping business – large items can bring in more profit. We also covered that the home decor and office improvement categories are versatile. So where’s the risk?
The size. Bigger objects result in higher shipping rates for your customer, especially if your manufacturer is from abroad. Consider import taxes, packaging costs, and potential returns and refunds if the product gets damaged along the way. You still have to offer your customer an acceptable price. These extra expenses can hurt your profit margin if you need to bring the price down to stay competitive.
2. Fragile Items
Delicate items such as glass decor, watches, wine glasses, and electronic components often cause headaches for dropshipping businesses. They tend to be expensive and extremely fragile, especially when shipped from overseas. Longer shipping times equals a higher risk of damaged goods.
You can also ship them through a higher-class courier, which will demand higher shipping costs. We suggest going for sturdier, less expensive, and locally manufactured goods when looking for products to sell in your online store. Keep an eye out for a new generation of eco-friendly packaging – it appeals to consumers and is designed to protect even the most fragile items.
3. Basic Clothing and Apparel
The basic apparel industry is saturated with competition in every direction you look. Top players like fast fashion enterprises run the market and can quickly adapt to the ever-changing fashion trends.
If you want to start a dropshipping business in the clothing industry, make sure you construct a carefully thought-out strategy. Know exactly who you’re selling to and what you provide them that no one else does. The most promising clothing subcategories in the Clothing section were mentioned above.
People love being a part of a movement and are looking for like-minded brands they can support. Think about values you can share with your ideal customer and build your brand around them.
4. Electronics
Electronics is another category that experiences a high return and refund rate. In fact, it’s the third most returned product group in the United States, following clothing and shoes.
When choosing an electronic product to sell, we recommend that you order a few product samples and test them before making a final decision. Low build quality and poor performance will likely result in bad reviews that damage consumer trust in your store. Even if your samples work okay, keep in mind that manufacturing errors can still happen and catch you off guard. You can avoid this by carefully reading other eCommerce company reviews of the manufacturer.
5. Cosmetics
While beauty and personal care products are still some of the most profitable dropshipping niches out there, cosmetics carry considerable risk for your dropshipping business. These are products that people put directly on their skin – one bad reaction because of a poor product description or simple inattention can severely damage the reputation of your online store.
The cosmetics market is also highly saturated. To enter this segment and be able to compete, you need substantial capital to bring quality products and a powerful marketing strategy. You can also offer lower prices, though this could mean you compromise on product quality and durable packaging.
To Sum Up
Dropshipping is one of the easiest ways to make money online, though you need to consider a few crucial factors before starting.
- Take time to research what products are currently trending with the tools and resources mentioned above.
- Check the top-selling items in your niche and think about the added value you can provide to the customer.
- Look for unsaturated markets with high customer demand and fill that gap.
Make Sure Your Products:
- Cater to a very particular consumer segment
- Have high demand in an unsaturated market
- Are high-quality and made by trusted manufacturers
- Have a low return rate
Avoid Products That Are:
- Fragile
- Highly competitive
- Expensive to ship from abroad
- Likely to be returned
Look for ways to provide more value than your competitors and find a specific customer group that will be beyond excited to buy your products. When customers feel individually recognized, you have the opportunity to create personal, long-term connections with people on levels that you couldn’t achieve in a saturated market.
We hope that our list of the 15 most profitable dropshipping niches can help you figure out what products to sell online.
We work closely with the world’s leading print providers to offer more than 600 high-quality products you can customize and include in your store today. Use our Mockup Generator to add your unique designs to products in any of these 15 categories.
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