Reseller Fees Explained: What Each Marketplace Really Takes

Fees are where reseller profit quietly disappears. You sell a $50 item, feel good about it, and then the payout lands at $40 and you're not totally sure where the other ten bucks went. Every marketplace takes a cut, but they all take it differently, and a few of them changed how they do it in the last two years. So the number you remember from a couple years ago is probably wrong.

This is the plain version of what each major marketplace actually charges a seller in 2026, with the math worked out, so you can price your stuff to actually keep money. Fees move, so treat these as current as of 2026 and check the platform's own fee page before you bet a margin on them. The platforms changed these recently enough that the warning is doing real work.

Don't want to run the math by hand? The reseller profit calculator and the per-platform fee calculators do it for you.

What counts as a fee

Before the platform-by-platform breakdown, here are the four things that come out of your sale.

First, the selling fee (or commission). The marketplace's cut of the sale, usually a percentage. This is the big one.

Second, payment processing. A smaller percentage, sometimes plus a flat per-order charge, for handling the card payment. Some platforms fold this into the selling fee, some charge it separately.

Third, shipping. Either you pay it, the buyer pays it, or it's a prepaid label baked into the fee. This varies more than anything else, and it quietly changes who actually "pays" the fee.

Fourth, optional add-ons. Promoted or boosted listings, where you pay extra to get seen. Optional, so treat it as ad spend, not a base fee.

Poshmark

Poshmark keeps it simple, and a little expensive. On any sale of $15 or more, Poshmark takes 20%. On sales under $15, it's a flat $2.95. That covers everything: no separate listing fee, no monthly fee, no separate payment processing, and a prepaid shipping label is included (the buyer pays a flat shipping rate, and you pay nothing on standard packages up to 5 lbs).

So a $50 sweater nets you $40. A $12 top nets you $9.05.

Worth knowing: Poshmark tried to overhaul this in 2024 with a buyer-paid "Buyer Protection Fee," sellers hated it, and Poshmark rolled the US back to the original structure in October 2024. So if you read an older guide describing something different, that's why. Run your own numbers in the Poshmark fee calculator.

Mercari

Mercari is a flat 10%. Since January 2025, sellers pay 10% of the item price plus the shipping the buyer pays, and that's it. The old separate payment-processing fee (2.9% plus 50 cents) is gone.

So a $50 item with $6 of buyer-paid shipping costs you 10% of $56, which is $5.60. The item itself nets about $45.

That flat-10% simplicity makes Mercari one of the easier platforms to price for, and one of the cheaper ones for mid-priced items. Run your own numbers in the Mercari fee calculator.

Depop

For US sellers, Depop is currently the cheapest of the big four, because it dropped its seller commission to 0% in 2024. What's left is payment processing: 3.3% plus $0.45 on the total the buyer pays (item plus shipping).

So a $50 item with $5 shipping costs you 3.3% of $55 plus 45 cents, which is about $2.27. You keep roughly $47.70 of the item price.

Two caveats. One, that 0% is a US thing. Sellers in the UK, Australia, and elsewhere still pay a commission. Two, Depop's Boosted Listings add 8% when a boosted item sells, so only boost when the extra visibility is worth giving up the margin. Run a Depop deal through the profit calculator.

eBay

eBay is the most variable, because its fee depends on the category. For most categories the final value fee is about 13.6% for sellers without a store (a bit lower, around 12.7%, if you pay for a store subscription), plus a per-order fee of $0.30 on orders of $10 or less and $0.40 on orders above $10. The final value fee is charged on the total, item plus shipping.

The category swing is real. Books run higher (around 15.3%), and some categories like guitars run much lower (under 7%). eBay also raised several categories' fees in February 2026, so a rate you remember from last year may be a point higher now.

So a $50 item in a standard category, with $5 shipping, runs roughly 13.6% of $55 plus $0.40, which is about $7.90. You keep around $42 of the item price. Run an eBay deal through the profit calculator.

The side-by-side

Here's what the big four take on a $50 sale, item price only (shipping is handled a little differently on each, see the note under the table).

*Rough, item price only. Mercari and eBay also apply their fee to buyer-paid shipping, Poshmark includes a shipping label, and Depop's processing applies to item plus shipping. Figures as of mid-2026.

Why this matters when you cross-list

If you cross-list, and you should (see the cross-listing guide), the same item nets you a different amount depending on which platform the buyer comes from. A $50 item is worth $40 to you on Poshmark and almost $48 on Depop. That's a 20% swing in your take on the exact same sale.

Two things to do with that.

First, price per platform when it makes sense. On the higher-fee platforms you can list a little higher to land in the same net range, as long as it stays competitive.

Second, know your net before you source. When you're deciding what to pay for an item, the fee on your most likely sale platform is part of the cost. The reseller profit calculator bakes it in so you're not guessing.

ResellerIQ prices each marketplace listing for its own fees automatically, using real sold-comp data, so the number you see is what you'll actually keep. Try ResellerIQ free →

A few common questions

Which marketplace has the lowest fees?

For US sellers right now, Depop, because it dropped its seller commission to 0% and only charges payment processing. Mercari's flat 10% is next. Poshmark's 20% is the highest of the big four, though its included shipping label takes some of the sting out.

Do these fees include shipping?

It depends on the platform, and that's the confusing part. Poshmark includes a prepaid label (buyer pays a flat rate). Mercari and eBay charge their percentage on the item plus the shipping the buyer pays. Depop's processing fee applies to the item plus shipping. Always check whether shipping is in or out before you compare two platforms.

Do buyers or sellers pay the fees?

Sellers pay the selling fee and processing on every platform here. Buyers pay shipping, and sometimes a separate buyer fee depending on the platform and the moment, since that part keeps changing.

Why did all these fees change recently?

The whole category has been shuffling fees between buyers and sellers to look more competitive. Mercari dropped its processing fee, Depop dropped its US commission, Poshmark tried a buyer-fee model and reversed it, and eBay nudged several categories up. The net effect is that any fee guide more than a year old is probably wrong somewhere.

How do I keep fees from eating my margin?

Know the fee on your likely sale platform before you source, price with it baked in, and lean toward the lower-fee platforms when the item will sell anywhere. The fee calculators make it a quick check.

The short version

Every marketplace takes a different cut in a different way, and several changed it in the last two years. For US sellers in 2026, Depop is cheapest (0% plus processing), Mercari is a clean flat 10%, eBay is around 13.6% but swings by category, and Poshmark is 20% with the shipping label included. The same $50 sale can net you anywhere from $40 to $48 depending on where it lands. Know the number before you source, price for it, and you keep more of every sale.

Fees reflect each marketplace's published rates as of mid-2026 and change often. Confirm the current numbers on the platform's own fee page before relying on them.