Price comparison sites in Czechia (Heureka, Seznam Nákupy) charge mainly per click to your online store. Selling on marketplaces (Allegro, Heureka Marketplace) relies on a commission from purchases made directly on their platform. What pays off depends on your margin, catalog, brand strength, and product feed quality.

Here is the landscape in Czechia as of November 2026, including changes at Seznam and Heureka, the Google Shopping CSS program, and how marketplaces affect your margin. At the end, you will find a comparison table and a feed checklist.

Czech e-commerce in numbers

Czech online stores generated CZK 206 billion in 2025 (up 6% year-over-year) and account for about 15% of retail, according to APEK and Heureka.cz cited in January 2026 by Zboží&Prodej. Shoppers go straight to known stores, compare prices, shipping, and reviews on comparison sites (Heureka, Zboží.cz, Google Shopping), or buy from multiple sellers on a marketplace.

In a 2025 Seyfor and B-inside survey of over 430 Czech and Slovak e-shops (MediaGuru, August 2025), 54% use marketplaces and 14% plan to. Yet for 70% of them, marketplaces generate at most 10% of revenue, and satisfaction is very low (NPS −71).

Treat sales channels as a portfolio: they differ in order cost, return rates, and customer ownership. Keep only those that remain profitable after deducting all expenses—see our guide to customer acquisition cost for the math.

Heureka: pay-per-click or commission?

Heureka offers two models. With pay-per-click (PPC), you also pay for visits without a purchase, but the shopper buys on your site—giving you their contact for your newsletter and database.

On Heureka Marketplace, shoppers buy directly on Heureka. According to its help center, Heureka acts as intermediary and guarantor, while you handle everything from order confirmation to returns. Setup and account management are free and you pay only a sales commission, but the customer remains mainly with the platform. PPC is like an ad pointing to your shop; commission is like renting a shelf in someone else's department store.

The commission on the item price (including VAT, excluding shipping) depends on the category—for kitchen appliances, the commission price list as of November 2026 ranged from roughly 4% to 15%. Compare it against your margin beforehand.

When prices match, trust decides. The Ověřeno zákazníky (Verified by Customers) program sends automated surveys to real buyers across all channels and awards a blue or gold certificate. As of November 2026, the help center lists the Start tier as free (15 surveys per month), while paid Profi and Enterprise tiers have higher limits. You improve your rating through fast dispatch, accurate stock status, and fair returns handling.

Seznam Nákupy: what changed

Since September 15, 2025, you manage Seznam Nákupy (formerly Zboží.cz campaigns) inside Sklik alongside text ads. According to the agency Conviu, campaigns were renamed "Nákupy" without needing to create new ones. Ads appear on Zboží.cz, Seznam.cz search, Obrázky.cz, and—for used or open-box items—on Sbazar. Seller Center (Centrum prodejce, the former Zboží.cz admin) handles feed management, diagnostics, shipping, and reviews.

Since April 1, 2026, dynamic pricing applies with no free listings. Per Sklik's help center, the minimum CPC depends on the category and price bracket and shifts with demand. The auction charges the minimum needed to hold your position, never below the listed floor price. Download the price list for your categories and check your feed and shipping in Seller Center.

Zboží.cz product pages use two sorting modes. "Recommended offers" rely on max CPC and relevance, though paid slots appear only when at least three stores sell the item. "Offers by price" weigh price, stock, and other factors—with a good price and items in stock, you can succeed without a high bid.

Google Shopping and the CSS program

Google Shopping displays product ads with an image, price, and store name above search results. You pay per click in the Google Ads auction. You upload your product feed via Google Merchant Center, and free listings can also appear on the Shopping tab.

Today, paid ads typically run in Performance Max campaigns. Using one feed and budget, they advertise across Search, YouTube, Gmail, and the Display Network. Because the campaign decides where to spend your budget, track how many orders come from products versus searches for your own brand that would have arrived anyway.

Since 2017, other comparison sites in the European Economic Area and Switzerland can place shopping ads on Google under the CSS (Comparison Shopping Services) program. According to the Czech platform Upgates, this stemmed from a European Commission ruling. CSS partners report lower CPCs—in October 2024, Upgates wrote about savings of up to 20%. That is a partner claim rather than a Google guarantee, and results vary by partner, category, and competition. With a larger budget, test a CSS partner on part of your catalog and compare the cost per order. We compare Google and Seznam's ad network in Google Ads or Sklik.

Watch your tracking: Heureka, Sklik, and Google each attribute orders using their own tracking pixel. If a buyer touches multiple channels, each platform claims the sale, making reported totals exceed actual orders. Rely on your own store backend and analytics. We cover the setup basics in how to run a successful PPC campaign.

Marketplaces: Allegro, Kaufland, and others

A marketplace brings many sellers together under one brand, helping you reach new buyers quickly without your own marketing. Active platforms in Czechia include Allegro.cz, Kaufland.cz, Alza's marketplace, and Heureka Marketplace. Allegro Group notes that with Allegro.cz, Allegro.sk, and Allegro.hu live, you can list items once and sell across multiple countries.

Selling on marketplaces makes sense in three cases:

• Stock clearance. Move slow-turning inventory where buyer traffic is higher.
• Testing new products. Validate demand before stocking items for your own store.
• Cross-border expansion. Enter Slovakia, Hungary, or Poland without a local website or marketing.

Marketplaces can erode both margins and brand equity, though. The Seyfor survey notes they rely on price comparison, add little value, and restrict customer communication. When ten sellers list the exact same item, the lowest price wins.

Before joining a marketplace, decide which products to list, set floor prices, and plan how to measure profit after commissions, returns, and shipping. Keep your own brand and bestsellers exclusively on your store.

Marketplaces also monitor dispatch speed, cancellation rates, and response times. Missing their targets can restrict your account. Read the terms upfront and verify your warehouse can handle the Christmas peak.

Price comparison sites vs. marketplaces: what fits your margin

Price comparison sites and marketplaces work well for easily comparable goods (electronics, cosmetics, tires) where your price and shipping are competitive. For private labels or unique catalogs, search ads, content, and customer retention usually deliver better returns.

Calculate profitability per channel. Advertising cost of sales (ACOS / PNO) alone falls short because it ignores your margin. Focus on contribution margin: what remains after product cost, shipping, commissions or clicks, payment fees, and returns.

Take a sample item priced at CZK 1,000 excluding VAT with a 30% margin (CZK 300). On a marketplace charging a 12% commission on the VAT-inclusive price, you pay roughly CZK 145, leaving about CZK 155 before shipping and returns. On a comparison site at CZK 5 per click and a 2% conversion rate, an order costs CZK 250, leaving CZK 50. The marketplace wins on the first order, while the comparison site can catch up through direct repeat purchases. Track repeat orders too.

Roll out a new channel step by step:

1. Calculate cost caps per category to stay profitable.
2. Start with a small slice of your catalog—bestsellers with healthy margins.
3. Track each channel separately via conversion pixels and your own analytics.
4. Evaluate after four to six weeks based on contribution margin, returns, and share of new buyers.
5. Refine products and bids—pause unprofitable items or lower CPC bids before adding another channel.

Your product feed matters more than your bid

A product feed is a file (usually XML) that supplies your product data to comparison sites and Google. Errors prevent products from matching, show wrong stock levels, or block listings entirely.

Five elements matter most:

1. Titles and attributes. Brand, model, variant, and specs (size, color, volume) place items into categories and filters.
2. Product card matching. EAN and manufacturer part numbers group your offer onto the shared product card alongside competitors.
3. Stock and shipping. Both affect product card placement and price-based sorting.
4. Price matching your website. Mismatches deter buyers and can get your listing suspended.
5. Clean images. Plain backgrounds with no watermarks or promotional text.

We build online stores integrated with comparison sites, inventory, and accounting, and evaluate channel ROI as part of our marketing campaigns. If you are unsure which channel fits your store, get in touch.

Frequently asked questions