Does eBay charge you to sell? eBay, like other platforms, charges sellers for services such as listing fees, fees per sale, and promoting items fees. These are known as eBay seller fees. While some eBay fees for selling are mandatory, others are optional—you pick what services you want and pay accordingly.
Is selling on eBay worth it when there are many costs that add up to final sales? However, learning about these fees might help sellers minimize their expenses. So, how much is eBay selling fee? In this guide, we will help you understand all the eBay seller fees you encounter. We’ll go through:
Let’s dig into detail to know how much does it cost to sell on eBay!
Have You Tried to List on eBay?
Ever try to list on eBay and start your selling journey on this dynamic marketplace? Try listing on eBay with LitCommerce now!
Mandatory eBay Fees for Selling
How much does eBay take from a sale? There are various kinds of eBay seller fees. Some sellers, therefore, might be discouraged from joining eBay due to eBay fees too high.
However, there are main eBay fees for selling and optional ones. It’s a good idea to know the fees you’ll face on eBay before you begin selling to calculate the product’s price, ensuring high profits. Here are the primary fees every seller pays on Etsy.
If you are an eBay seller and want to maximize your store’s profit, scaling up your business on other platforms is a good idea. Don’t know how to? Check our guide on eBay integration now!
1. Insertion fees
Insertion fees are what you pay eBay to put your goods up for sale. You pay these eBay fees for selling every time you list something, even if it doesn’t sell. But when you start selling on eBay, they give you 250 free listings ( also known as zero-insertion listings) each month. So if you wonder: Is eBay free to sell? Basically, it is. As you start selling on eBay, you can use a free seller account with hundreds of free listings.
If you have an eBay Store subscription, you might even get more free listings based on the subscription package you pick.
Once you’ve used up your free listings, here’s what you need to know about the cost to list on eBay:
- If your item doesn’t sell, you won’t get a refund for the fee you paid.
- You’ll pay a fee for each item you list and for each category you list it in. So, if you put your item in two categories, you’ll pay a fee for both.
- Whenever you relist your item, you’ll be charged again.
- If you create more than one auction-style listing for the exact same thing, you’ll pay a fee for each of those duplicates.
- If your listing has multiple items for sale, you’ll only be charged one fee for the whole listing, no matter how many items are in it.
If you don’t have a Store subscription, the free listings you get will only work in the country where you live. For instance, if your address is in the United States, the free listings will only apply when you’re selling on the US site.
2. eBay final value fees
The biggest eBay fees for selling you’ll pay are called the “final value fees.” It’s what you owe eBay for each sale you make. This fee changes depending on:
- Product category
- Total amount of the sale, including the item price, handling costs, shipping fees, eBay selling taxes, and other charges
They calculate this eBay commission fee as a percentage of what you sell, based on those factors mentioned, plus an extra $0.30 for each sale.
The trickiest part in working out your final value fee is getting the eBay shipping fees right in your total sale amount.
- If you provide one-day shipping or international shipping with any cheaper option (for domestic) or free shipping, eBay will calculate the eBay sales fee based on the cheapest domestic option.
- If you only offer 1-day or international shipping without a cheaper domestic choice, the total amount of sale will be calculated based on which option the buyer picks.
- In certain Asian countries, if the item isn’t in the US, they base the sale amount on the buyer’s shipping choice.
- If using eBay International Shipping, eBay calculates the fee based on shipping costs to the US hub.
- For sneakers with Authenticity Guarantee and a free label, eBay charges a flat fee from the buyer but no fee for shipping.
While your final value fees are charged per item, an additional $0.40 fee is charged per order. So, if a customer buys four items from you on eBay in one order, you pay an eBay commission fee on each item (four in total) but pay only one additional $0.40 fee for the entire order.
Starting March 15, 2024, the per-order fee on orders over $10 will increase from $0.30 to $0.40 across all categories. For example, if they sell a trading card for $25 including shipping and tax, they’ll now pay a fee of $3.71 instead of $3.61, an increase of $0.10. This change could impact the economics of selling lower-priced items. Therefore, for orders $10 and under, there’ll be no change, and sellers will continue to be charged the current rate of $0.30.
3. eBay fees by category
In the table below, you’ll find the basic eBay category fees. They include the number of zero insertion fee listings, cost to list on eBay, and percentage of final eBay sale fee you’ll get each month.
Category | Insertion fee | Final value fee % + $0.30 per order |
Most categories (exceptions apply | First 250 listings free/month, then $0.35/ listing | 13.25% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $7,500. 2.35% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $7,500. |
Books & MagazinesMovies & TV Music (except NFTs-related categories) | 14.95% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $7,500. 2.35% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $7,500. | |
Bullion | 13.25% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $7,500. 7% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $7,500. | |
Women’s Bags & Handbags | 15% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $2,000. 9% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $2,000. | |
Jewelry & Watches (except Watches, Parts & Accessories) | 15% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $5,000. 9% if the total amount of the sale is over $5,000. | |
Watches, Parts & Accessories | 15% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $1,000. 6.5% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $1,000 to $7,500. 3% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $7,500. | |
NFTs | 5% | |
Heavy EquipmentCommercial Printing PressesFood Trucks, Trailers & Carts | $20 | 3% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $15,000. 0.5% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $15,000. |
Guitars & Basses | Free | 6.35% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $7,500. 2.35% on the amount of the sale that exceeds $7,500. |
Athletic Shoes | Free if starting price is $150 or more | 13.25% is calculated per item if your sale is up to $150. 8% on sale, which is $150 or more. The $0.30 per order is not charged. |
4. Payment processing eBay seller fees
eBay introduced a new payment system called eBay Management Payment a few years back to make things easier for sellers and buyers. It simplifies eBay fees for selling and gets rid of extra charges from third-party payment processors like PayPal fees for selling on eBay. Therefore, sellers now only need to pay $0.30 for each order to process payments. This fee is combined with the final value fee.
Note that eBay has multiple account types, known as Personal and Business. These accounts will charge you different fees for selling on eBay. So, remember to check carefully the comparison of eBay Business Account vs Personal!
Optional Fees for Selling on eBay
Besides mandatory eBay fees for selling, there are some optional ones that can add up and cut into your profits. By understanding what they are, you can know how to reduce selling fees on eBay to get the most from your sales.
1. Store subscription fees
You don’t need a monthly or yearly subscription to sell on eBay. But if you get a Store subscription, you can create your own area on eBay to display your brand and products. It comes with extra benefits like more free listings and lower fees. eBay has five subscription plans, and here are the yearly renewal prices and features of each plan.
Features | Starter | Basic | Premium | Anchor | Enterprise |
Price | $4.95/mo | $21.95/mo | $59.95/mo | $299.95/mo | $2,999.95/mo |
Free listings per month | 250 for both | 1,000 | 10,000 | 25,000 | 100,000 |
Free auction listings | 250 | 500 | 1,000 | 2,500 | |
Insertion fee for additional listing | $0.30 | $0.25 | $0.10 | $0.05 | $0.05 |
Lower final value fees | Unavailable | 2.5% – 14.6% | |||
Free subscription to Terapeak Sourcing Insights tool | YES | ||||
eBay branded shipping supplies coupon per quarter | Unavailable | 25 | 50 | 150 | 150 |
2. Additional final value fees
If you break eBay policies by buying or selling outside of eBay, you might have to pay additional final value fees. Also, if you don’t meet their performance standards, they also charge these eBay fees for selling.
If you share contact details or ask for them outside of eBay for buying or selling, you’ll still get charged additional eBay seller fees, even if your item doesn’t sell. Here’s how they figure out the sale amount:
- If it’s an auction, they use the starting bid, Buy It Now price, reserve price, or agreed price between you and the buyer, whichever is higher.
- If it’s a fixed-price sale, it’s either the set price or the agreed price with the buyer, whichever is higher.
Additional fees for not meeting performance standards
These eBay fees for selling are typically charged in two cases:
- If your seller performance falls below our standards by the 20th of the month, you might pay 6% extra on final fees for the next month’s sales. Check your Seller Dashboard to see your seller level. This fee doesn’t apply to Above Standard and eBay Top-rated Sellers.
- If you get a ‘Very High’ rate of ‘Item not as described’ returns in any category by the 20th of the month, you could be charged 5% more on final fees for sales in those categories the next month. You can see your personal service metrics on your Service Metrics dashboard in Seller Hub.
3. Fees for real estate listings
Real estate listings have their own special eBay fees for selling. These include the insertion fee, which changes based on the listing type and property. There’s also a notice fee sometimes. Here’s what they mean:
- The insertion fee is what eBay charges you to put up a real estate listing.
- The notice fee is charged when an auction-style listing ends, even if the property doesn’t sell. But you might not pay this fee if your auction-style listing has no bids, the bids are too low, or it’s a Classified Ad.
How much is eBay fee for selling real estate? The costs eBay charges for selling real estate are shown below.
Listing type | Duration | Insertion fee | Notice fee |
Land, Manufactured, and Timeshare homes | |||
Auction-style | 1, 3, 5, 7, or 10-day listing (1 and 3-day auction-style listings cost an additional $1) | $35 | $35 |
Auction-style or fixed price | 30-day auction or Good ‘Til Canceled | $50 | $35 |
Classified-Ad-style | 30-day listing | $150 | $0 |
90-day listing | $300 | $0 | |
Commercial, Residential, and Other Real Estate | |||
Auction-style | 1, 3, 5, 7, or 10-day listing (1 and 3-day auction-style listings cost an additional $1) | $100 | $0 |
Auction-style or fixed price | 30-day auction or Good ‘Til Canceled | $150 | $0 |
Classified-Ad-style | 30-day listing | $150 | $0 |
90-day listing | $300 | $0 | |
4. eBay seller fees for optional listing upgrade
When you sell on eBay, your products are among 1.5 billion active listings daily. Using listing upgrades can make your listings more noticeable. How much is the eBay seller fee for a listing upgrade? The details are shown down below:
Auction-style listings – 1 or 3-day duration | |
Optional listing upgrade | Fee |
1 or 3-day duration | $1.00 |
Bold | $2.00 |
Gallery PlusFree for listings in the Art, Antiques, Collectibles, and Pottery & Glass categories | $0.35 |
Subtitle | $1.50 – Item starting price up to $150$3.00 – Item starting price over $150$0.50 – Real Estate listings |
Reserve price | $5.00 or 7.5% of reserve price |
International site visibility | Item starting price |
$0.01 – $9.99 ($0.10 is charged) | |
$10 – $49.99 ($0.20 is charged) | |
$50 or more ($0.40 is charged) | |
Fixed price listings | |
Optional listing upgrade | Fee |
Bold | $4.00 |
Gallery PlusFree for listings in the Art, Antiques, Collectibles, and Pottery & Glass categories | $1.00 |
International site visibility | $0.50 |
Subtitle | $2.00 – Item price up to $150$6.00 – Item price over $150$1.50 – Classified Ads and Real Estate listings |
Note:
- Whenever your items get automatically relisted, you’ll face charges for insertion and any optional listing upgrades each time this happens.
- Sellers won’t be charged an extra fee for the 10-day duration on auction-style listings anymore. This allows sellers to increase visibility and use our longest auction-style duration without any additional cost.
5. Optional promoted listing fees
The promoted listing fees are for sellers who want to boost their items’ visibility on eBay search results or in related items on other sellers’ listings. Sellers pay the eBay fees for selling only if a potential buyer clicks on the promoted ad and buys the item within 30 days.
The fees you pay depend on the advertisement rate you set for each listing. This rate is a percentage of the item’s total sale amount. You will select a rate between 2% to 100% of the item’s total sale amount. A higher ad rate increases the chances of your ad being shown, boosting visibility.
6. International fees
If your registered address is in the US and you use eBay International Shipping for eligible listings, you won’t be charged international fees when those items sell.
However, if you don’t use eBay International Shipping and the delivery address or the buyer’s registered address is outside the US, you’ll face these international eBay fees for selling. The fee is 1.65% of the total sale amount and is automatically subtracted from your sales.
7. Dispute fees on eBay
If you’re responsible for a disputed amount per eBay policies, such as a chargeback, eBay will charge a $20.00 dispute fee, excluding sales tax, for each dispute. However, if you agree to the payment dispute and issue a refund, eBay will not charge the dispute fee. You’ll then be accountable for refunding the amount to your buyer.
Quick takeaways: What does eBay charge to sell?
- Insertion fees ($0.35) eBay seller fees for listing on eBay
- eBay final value fees (5%-15% of total sales + $0.30): Selling fees on eBay per order based on the total amount of sale.
- eBay fees by category (5%-15% of eBay final value fees): eBay fees for selling in different categories
- Payment processing fees ($0.30): Fees for processing payment via eBay Management Payment
- Store subscription fees ($4.95-$2,999.95): eBay fees for subscription plans to gain more benefits and features
- Additional final value fees (based on highest price): Selling fees on eBay if you break eBay policies or don’t meet their performance standards
- Fees for real estate listings ($35-$300): Cost to sell on eBay if you listing real estate, based on the listing type and property
- Fees for optional listing upgrade ($0.50-$50 or more): Selling fees on eBay for changing and optimizing listings
- Optional promoted listing fees (2% – 100% of the item’s total sale amount): eBay seller fees for using eBay ads
- International fees (1.65% of the total sale amount): eBay sales fee for selling to foreign customers outside the US
- Dispute fees ($20): eBay fees if buyers file a payment dispute and you don’t agree to refund
2 Examples of eBay Fees for Selling
To help you understand more how fees for selling on eBay work and calculate them correctly, we have made some instances for your reference.
#1. Example of an auction-style listing
Let’s say you’re selling an old compact camera with a 10-day duration on eBay. The starting price is $100, and there’s no Buy It Now option. You offer free shipping as well.
Assuming you’ve already used up your zero insertion fee listings for the month and you’re meeting eBay’s performance expectations.
If the camera sells immediately at the starting price of $100, with an added 8% tax and no additional costs for the buyer, your total amount of sale is $108.
Your total eBay seller fees for this sale would be:
- Insertion fee: $0.35
- Final value fee (13.25% of $108, + $0.30): $14.32
Total fees: $14.67
From this sale, you’d make $85.53, which is around 85% of the sale price.
#2. Example of fixed-price listing
You’re selling a TV at $8,000, offering free shipping. You still have free insertion fee listings this month, and your seller account complies with our performance standards when your item is sold.
To draw in more potential buyers, you opt for the Bold listing upgrade.
The overall sale amount is $8640, which incorporates an 8% sales tax.
Your total eBay fees for selling this item:
- Insertion fee: $0
- Final value fee (14.95%*7500 +2.35%*1140+0.30): $1148.34
- Bold fee: $4.00
Total fees: $1152.34
As a result, for the $8,000 TV, you’d make $6,847.66, which is approximately 86% of the sale price, not including shipping costs.
Selling Fees on eBay: FAQs
If your item sells on eBay, they charge fees for listing and retain a part of the total sale. Additionally, there are other optional eBay fees for selling to consider: Typically, eBay charges between 5% and 15% of the final selling price as final value fees. This percentage might rise if you sell internationally or utilize promoted listings. Clearly, your eBay fees for selling and additional expenses can accumulate quickly. It’s crucial to employ methods to lower your seller fees, ensuring your eBay business remains as profitable as possible. Below are some of the best ways you can do: If your item doesn’t sell, you won’t pay any final value fees. However, you’ll still be subject to an insertion fee (if you have no free listings), and this fee remains nonrefundable even if your product doesn’t sell.
Final Words on eBay Seller Fees
Knowing eBay fees for selling is vital for those wanting to sell on the platform. Although these fees might appear overwhelming initially, through research and preparation, you can calculate and minimize them. Successful eBay selling isn’t just about listing items; it’s also about comprehending the expenses entailed. If you need more detailed guides for eBay sellers, let’s explore our Blog.
Also, if you need further consultancy, don’t hesitate to contact us; the LitCommerce support team will reach out as soon as possible!
