I’ve received questions about how to delete an eBay account a lot lately, especially from sellers who have a better alternative to this marketplace. Is it hard and time-consuming to delete your eBay account? I’ll say no. In fact, you can do it in just a minute from your iPhone or desktop.
Ready to learn how you can delete your eBay account and start a whole new journey? Let me walk you right through my step-by-step guide below. In this article, I’ll cover the following highlights regarding deleting eBay accounts:
- What to Know Before Deleting Your eBay Account?
- How to Delete eBay Account In 5 Minutes?
- How to Delete eBay Account on Mobile App?
- What Happens When You Delete eBay Account?
- Understand eBay Data Deletion Policy
Let’s start one by one!
What to Know Before Deleting Your eBay Account?
Knowing how to delete an eBay account is a big decision and one that should not be taken lightly. Regardless of the reasons, there are a few important things you should know before you hit that “delete your eBay account” button.
- Once you delete your eBay account, it’s permanent.
- You won’t be able to buy or sell on eBay or access any eBay features anymore.
- All feedback, whether given or received, will disappear, along with your overall rating. This might affect your reputation on other platforms where online transactions matter.
- Your past purchase and sales records will no longer be available, so make sure to download or save any important information before closing your account.
Additionally, there are a few conditions you’ll need to take care of to make sure your “closing eBay account” process goes smoothly:
- You cleared all fees and selling costs.
- Your available balance is zero.
- There are no active bids on your listings.
- No transactions are pending (this includes bids, payments, returns, disputes, or payouts still processing to your bank account).
- Your account details are accurate (you’ll get a confirmation about the closure via email).
- You canceled any active subscriptions linked to your eBay account (such as eBay Stores or Selling Manager Pro).
- You backed up all important listing information and customer details before closing eBay account.
How to Delete eBay Account In 5 Minutes?
If you’ve made the decision to permanently close your eBay account, here’s a simple how to close eBay account guide to help you do it on your PC, laptop or Mac:
1. Visit the eBay website and log in.
2. Go to your name in the top-left corner and select “Account settings.“
3. Click on “Close account.“
4. A page will appear with details about closing eBay account. Scroll down and hit the “Close account” button.
5. Choose a reason category from the drop-down menu for why you’re closing your account.
6. In the next window, select a specific reason, check the box to confirm you want to close your account and click “Submit.”
You may also like: How to manage multiple eBay accounts.
After completing the steps, you’ll get an email or eBay message confirming the status of your account closure within 24 hours.
Another reason why many sellers choose to delete their eBay account is due to eBay suspension. Learn more details about eBay suspended account with LitCommerce here!
How to Delete eBay Account on Mobile App?
You can also close account on eBay using the eBay app. Follow these steps to do so:
1. Open the eBay app and tap the three horizontal lines in the top-left corner.
2. Scroll down and select the “Help” option.
3. In the “Help & contact” window, type “Close account” in the search bar. Then, tap on “Closing your account.”
4. Scroll down and tap the blue “Close account” button.
5. Choose the reason category for closing your account from the drop-down menu.
6. Select a specific reason, check the box for “I want to close my eBay account,” and tap “Submit.”
What Happens When You Delete eBay Account?
Once you’ve made the decision to delete your eBay store or account, it’s important to understand what happens next. In this section, we’ll go over what you can expect to happen to your data and information after you delete eBay store or account.
When deleting eBay account permanently
When you permanently delete eBay account, your store fees and benefits will no longer apply from the first day of the following month.
Additionally, any add-on packages like Selling Manager Pro will be automatically canceled when you unsubscribe. Auction-style listings will stay active until their end date or until they’re sold. However, active fixed-price listings may incur standard fees after the store’s closure.
Keep in mind that eBay will charge standard selling fees for new or renewed listings after the cancellation request is processed. Therefore, plan accordingly and assess the impact on your selling strategy to minimize eBay fees.
When processing an eBay delete account
Closing your eBay seller account means that you will no longer be able to sell on the site or access your My eBay page. As you delete My eBay account, you will also lose your feedback, purchase history, and sales history. Therefore, do consider the benefits that eBay provides to your business before closing it.
Remember that closing your eBay seller account is a permanent decision, and you won’t be able to reactivate it or retrieve any lost data once you decide to close eBay account.
On the other hand, deleting your general eBay account involves the removal of all personal data associated with the account. eBay will delete your personal data within 30-60 days of receiving your request, provided that your account has no outstanding balance, pending transactions, or legal obligations to retain data.
To delete your personal data, eBay uses approved methods such as encryption, pseudonymization, and aggregation. You will also need to clear your browser’s cache, cookies, and history and delete any eBay apps on your mobile devices.
However, if you wish to use eBay again in the future, you will need to create a new account.
It’s important to note that eBay grants all users the right to delete their personal data, regardless of the applicable law in their country or region. However, certain exceptions may apply, such as data retention for detecting and preventing fraudulent or illegal activities or for compliance with legal obligations or court orders.
Understand eBay Data Deletion Policy
Before closing eBay account, it’s important to check their data deletion policy. Like many eCommerce platforms, eBay keeps some of your data for different reasons.
At the same time, eBay removes your data using methods like deleting, anonymizing, or combining it. They’ll let you know once this is done and your account is closed. It’s also a good idea to clear your browser cache, cookies, and history after.
However, eBay keeps certain information, to follow legal and financial rules, which include:
- Basic account details like your name, email, and the date you signed up.
- Record of transactions, including your listings, bids, purchases, sales, and feedback.
- Financial info such as payments, invoices, and receipts.
- Information on dispute resolutions, including messages and how issues were solved.
- Security and policy data, like account suspensions, restrictions, and any violations of eBay’s policies.
To learn more about how eBay handles your data, check out the user privacy notice on their website. You can also reach out to eBay and request to have your data deleted.
How to Delete eBay Account – FAQs
To delete your eBay account, follow these steps: Once your request has been processed and any outstanding balances or transactions have been settled, eBay will delete your personal data within 30-60 days. You can cancel eBay monthly subscriptions at any time without an early termination fee. However, for yearly subscriptions, eBay will charge early termination fees. It’s important to note that when you delete eBay account, the subscriptions does not affect any fees associated with listings or other eBay services that you have already used. You will still need to pay those fees in full. Normally, deleting an eBay account typically takes 30 days from the date eBay receives the request. However, if there are any outstanding balances or legal obligations to retain data, eBay will keep your account open for 60 days to complete any outstanding transactions. If you have active listings as a seller when you close your eBay account, those listings will be automatically ended, and the items will no longer be available for sale. Make sure to complete any ongoing transactions before closing your account. No, once you delete your eBay account, it cannot be reactivated. All your data, purchase history, and seller information will be permanently removed. If you wish to use eBay again in the future, you will need to create a new account. Yes, you can delete your eBay account through the mobile app as well. The steps are similar to those mentioned above for the website. Access the “Help & Contact” section and proceed with closing your account. To delete your eBay account on an iPhone, you’ll need to access the eBay website through a web browser since there isn’t a direct option within the eBay app to delete your account. Here’s how you can do it: 1. Use a web browser on your iPhone (Safari or Google Chrome) and go to the eBay website (www.ebay.com). 2. Log in to your account if needed. 3. Once logged in, navigate to the top left corner and tap the menu icon (usually three horizontal lines). 4. Scroll down and tap on “Account settings.” 5. Under “My Account,” tap on “Close my account.” 6. You’ll be asked to sign in again for security purposes. 7. Follow eBay prompts to confirm the closure of your account.
Wrapping Up
In conclusion, closing your eBay store can be a straightforward process if you follow the right steps. It’s essential to understand the impact of canceling your subscription and the potential fees associated with it.
Any questions on how to delete your eBay account? Check out my other articles about eBay on LitCommerce Retail Blog. Also, if you need my consultancy when selling on this marketplace, feel free to reach out at any time.
Happy selling!
