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The internet makes it possible for even a small business to sell all over Europe.
A webshop in Málaga can ship to Copenhagen, and a Danish design brand can sell to customers in Madrid.
But selling in several countries is more than translating your website.
Shipping, VAT, payment methods, returns, customer service and local expectations all change from one market to the next.
In this guide we go through the practical side of selling abroad, so you can grow without nasty surprises.
Tax and legal rules change and depend on your situation, so always check the details with your accountant or adviser.
Start with one or two markets
It is tempting to open the webshop to all of Europe at once.
In practice, it is easier and more profitable to start with one or two countries where you already see interest.
Look at your current data: where do visitors, enquiries and social media followers come from?
Choose markets where your product fits, competition is manageable and shipping is affordable.
Learn from the first markets, and then expand step by step.
VAT when you sell to consumers in other EU countries
Since 2021, the EU has a common threshold for distance sales to consumers in other EU countries.
When your total cross-border sales to consumers in the EU exceed €10,000 a year, you must normally charge the VAT rate of the customer’s country instead of your own.
To avoid registering for VAT in every country, you can use the One-Stop Shop, or OSS, and report all this VAT through one return in your home country.
Selling to businesses usually works differently, often with the reverse charge mechanism, where the business customer accounts for the VAT.
Outside the EU, for example in the UK, Norway or Switzerland, separate rules, customs and duties apply.
Set up your webshop so it can show prices with the correct VAT for each country, and talk to your accountant before you start.
Prices and currencies
Customers trust prices in their own currency.
If you sell to Denmark, Sweden or Poland, consider showing prices in kroner or złoty, not only in euros.
Many webshop systems, including Shopify Markets and multi-currency plugins for WooCommerce, can convert prices automatically or let you set fixed prices per market.
Round prices so they look natural in each currency, and remember that consumers in the EU expect prices to include VAT.
Payment methods customers expect
Payment habits differ a lot across Europe.
Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal work almost everywhere.
But Spanish customers like Bizum, Dutch customers expect iDEAL, Belgians use Bancontact, Danes use MobilePay, and in Germany, invoice payments and PayPal are popular.
Offering the local favourite can make a clear difference to how many people complete their order.
Read our guide on which payment gateway to choose for more detail.
Shipping and delivery
Shipping is often the biggest hurdle in cross-border e-commerce.
Customers want to know the price and delivery time before they reach the checkout.
- Compare carriers.
National postal services, private carriers and shipping platforms can have very different prices per country. - Offer pick-up points.
In many countries, such as Denmark, Spain and France, customers like to collect parcels at a local shop or locker. - Be clear about delivery times.
Show realistic times per country on product pages and at checkout. - Consider free shipping thresholds.
A threshold per country can raise the average order value while keeping costs under control. - Pack for the journey.
Longer routes mean more handling, so protect fragile products well.
Returns
In the EU, consumers who buy online generally have at least 14 days to cancel and return most products.
Your terms must explain how returns work, who pays for return shipping and how fast refunds are made.
Cross-border returns can be expensive, so think about whether to offer a local return address, a return label or partial refunds for small items.
Clear and fair return rules increase trust, especially among first-time customers in a new country.
Language and content
Customers buy more when they can read about products in their own language.
Translate the most important pages first: product pages, categories, shipping and returns, terms and the checkout.
Use a native speaker or a professional translator to check the texts, because poor translations damage trust.
Adapt examples, measurements, holidays and seasons to each market, rather than translating word for word.
Legal pages per market
Your terms and conditions, privacy policy and cookie information should be available in the languages you sell in.
Some countries have specific requirements, such as particular wording for the right of withdrawal or information about the company behind the shop.
The EU also has rules against unjustified geo-blocking, which means you generally cannot refuse customers from other EU countries just because of where they live, although you are not forced to deliver everywhere.
Customer service across borders
Customers expect help in their own language and within reasonable time.
Decide which languages you can support by email and chat, and be honest about it on the website.
Use templates for common questions, translated and checked once.
Consider time zones and local holidays when you plan opening hours.
A shared inbox or helpdesk system makes it easier to see all questions, whatever country they come from.
Marketing in new markets
What works in one country does not always work in the next.
Search habits, popular social media and even the best time to post differ.
Research local keywords instead of translating your existing ones, and look at which marketplaces, comparison sites and local portals are popular in each country.
Start with a small advertising budget per market, measure results separately, and spend more where it works.
Marketplaces as a first step
Selling through marketplaces such as Amazon, Zalando, Etsy or local platforms can be a fast way to test a new country.
They bring traffic and trust, and often handle payments and sometimes shipping.
The downside is fees, competition and less control over the customer relationship.
Many businesses use marketplaces to test demand, and then invest in their own webshop where sales prove strong.
Calculate if the market is profitable
A new country brings new costs, not only new sales.
Before you invest, make a simple calculation per market.
Start with your expected average order value and margin.
Then subtract shipping, payment fees, the cost of returns, translation, extra customer service and the marketing you need to get the first customers.
If the numbers only work with very high sales volumes, the market may be better served through a marketplace or a local partner at first.
Revisit the calculation after three to six months with real numbers, and decide whether to invest more, adjust prices or pause.
Build trust in a new country
Customers are more careful with a shop they have never heard of from another country.
Show reviews from customers in their country as soon as you have them.
Display trust signals they recognise, such as local payment methods, well-known carriers and clear contact details.
A local phone number or address, if you have one, and a page that explains who you are and where you ship from, make the shop feel safer.
Respond quickly to the first questions and complaints, because word of mouth spreads fast in a small new market.
A checklist before you open a new market
- Have you checked VAT, OSS and any customs rules with your accountant?
- Can the webshop show the right prices, currency and VAT for the country?
- Are the most popular local payment methods available?
- Are shipping prices and delivery times clear and competitive?
- Do your return rules and terms work for customers in that country?
- Are product pages, checkout and legal pages translated and checked?
- Can you answer customer questions in their language?
- Do you have a plan and a small budget for local marketing?
Stock, warehouses and fulfilment
As sales abroad grow, shipping everything from one warehouse can become slow and expensive.
Some businesses use fulfilment partners or marketplace warehouses closer to their customers, which shortens delivery times and simplifies returns.
Keep stock levels in one system, so a product sold in one country is not suddenly sold out in another without the shop knowing.
Start simple, and only add extra warehouses when volumes justify the cost and the extra administration.
Common mistakes
- Opening to every country at once without a plan.
- Showing shipping costs only at the very end of the checkout.
- Machine-translated pages that nobody has checked.
- Forgetting the VAT threshold until the accountant spots it.
- Offering no local payment methods.
- No clear return process for international customers.
Grow one step at a time
The businesses that succeed abroad rarely do everything at once.
They pick one market, learn what customers there need, fix the problems, and then take the next step with more knowledge and better numbers.
Need help selling abroad?
We build and adapt WooCommerce and Shopify webshops for several countries, with languages, currencies, local payment methods, shipping rules and marketing per market.
We work in English, Spanish and Danish, and with customers all over Europe.
See our prices or contact us for a free chat about your next market.
