Best Places for Selling Clothes Online
If you’ve got old clothes cluttering your closet, it could be worth selling those clothes online to make some extra cash. There are lots of options to sell clothes online or at a secondhand store and earn some of your investment back.
If you’ve been wondering how to sell used clothes, read on for the online consignment shops, mobile apps and brick-and-mortar secondhand stores where you can sell clothes for cash.
| Online | In Person | More Ideas |
|---|---|---|
Secondhand stores to sell used clothes |
Online consignment stores
Gone are the days of holding a yard sale in your driveway and hoping for passersby. Now, online consignment stores connect you with shoppers all across the world.
In fact, secondhand clothing stores exploded into a $27 billion industry in 2020, according to Statista, and are expected to reach $77 billion by 2025. Some stores pay you upfront for your preworn outfits. Others share a percentage of the profits once your item sells.
Here are some options for online consignment and secondhand stores for you to sell used clothes.
1. thredUp
If convenience is important, then look into thredUP because it does everything for you. All you need to do is order one of its signature “clean out kits” and send off your clothes.
ThredUP will sort your clothes and decide which ones to accept. When your items sell, thredUP will pay you on consignment, meaning you’ll earn a percentage of the item’s sale price.
Percentages can range from 5% to 80%. You’ll earn 5% on items that sell for $5 to $19.99, for example, but 80% for items that sell for $200 or more.
The company will donate unaccepted items to charity, or you can pay $10.99 to get them back. ThredUP accepts women’s and children’s clothes and accessories.
2. Tradesy
If you sell used clothes or accessories with Tradesy, you need to upload photos of your items to the site. Tradesy will enhance your photos so they look market ready.
You’ll set the prices, and Tradesy takes a flat commission fee of $7.50 for items sold for less than $50 and a commission rate of 19.8% for items sold at $50 or more. The company also sends you a prepaid, pre-addressed kit for shipping.
3. Poshmark
If you have any high-end labels or designer clothes, you can sell them with Poshmark. You’ll set your prices and Poshmark takes 20% of the selling price for items sold for $15 or more, or you’ll be charged a flat fee of $2.95 for items sold for less than $15.
The company also helps you with shipping by sending you a prepaid, pre-addressed shipping label once an item sells.
4. The RealReal
As long as your clothing comes from one of its accepted brands, The RealReal will pay out up to 80% of your item’s selling price. In addition to clothing and handbags, The RealReal also accepts accessories, home, decor, art and other items.
You can schedule a pickup, ship your item or drop it off at a retail location, and The RealReal will take care of the rest.
5. Swap.com
Swap.com is another marketplace for selling your used clothing, as long as it meets Swap.com’s standards for quality. After you mail your clothing, Swap.com will take care of the rest of the listing process, including pricing and photos. You can earn a 15% commission for items under $8.00 and a 70% commission for items over $8.00, minus a $4.95 processing charge.
6. Le Prix
Le Prix sells exclusively designer labels, like Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Gucci. To sell with Le Prix, you can reach out to one of its boutique partners near you or request a prepaid shipping label via its White Glove Consignment Service.
Le Prix has boutiques in various cities, including Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Washington, D.C.
Other places to sell clothes online
If you’d rather sell your clothes directly to the customer, you can use one of the websites below. You’ll have to do a little more grunt work, but you’ll get to keep most, if not all, of the profits.
1. VarageSale
VarageSale took the concept of a yard sale and moved it online. Here, you can sell clothes online to people in your area.
If you get any bites, you’ll set up a meeting spot to make the exchange.
2. eBay
People have been selling goods on eBay for years. You’re pretty much responsible for everything when you sell used clothes on eBay.
By selling high-quality items and shipping on time, you can build up a good reputation as an eBay seller. Keep in mind that eBay may charge you an insertion fee to list your item, as well as a selling fee that varies depending on your item category.
3. Facebook Marketplace
If you have a Facebook account, it’s free to list items for sale on Facebook Marketplace. You’ll need to handle the whole posting and selling process, from photos to pricing to the transaction itself.
4. Instagram
Like Facebook Marketplace, you could also advertise your clothes on your Instagram account. Thousands of people set up their own stores this way with the hashtag #shopmycloset.
While you can’t technically sell on Instagram, you can take bids in the comments and use Paypal to finish the transaction.
5. Mercari
Mercari helps you list and sell items right from your computer (or phone, if you prefer the app). You list your items and post photos, and once they’re sold, you can request a prepaid, pre-addressed shipping label and home pickup from USPS, FedEx or UPS.
Listing on Mercari is free, but you’ll need to pay a fee of 10% or more when your item sells. Plus, you might be responsible for a payment processing fee.
6. Vinted
Vinted is another app that helps you sell your old clothes. Once your item is sold, Vinted will send you a prepaid shipping label.
Vinted doesn’t charge any fees to list or sell items. Once you make money, you can use it to shop on the Vinted app or deposit it into your bank account.
7. Depop
You can sell used clothing, jewelry, art, sports equipment and more on the Depop app. When someone purchases your item, you can either ship it yourself or have Depop send you a shipping label for a fee.
Depop also charges a 10% on sold items. Once you get paid, you can have the proceeds deposited into your bank account.
8. Rebag
If you have designer accessories to sell, Rebag might make you an offer. After you upload photos and a description of your items, Rebag will tell you its current resale value. If you want to move forward, you can send your item to Rebag or drop it off at one of its retail locations.
After Rebag processes your item, you’ll get paid in three to four days.
Tips to sell clothes online successfully
On a site like thredUP, you don’t have to worry about marketing your clothes. Professional photographers will take care of it for you.
But if you use a site like eBay or VarageSale, then you’ll need to think about presentation. Consider these three tips when you sell clothes online:
1. Take lots of high-quality photos
Take high-quality photographs of your clothes. Use bright, consistent lighting and an uncluttered background.
You should also take pictures from multiple angles so customers know exactly what they’ll be getting.
2. Set a realistic price
If you’re responsible for setting your own price, consider the “one-third rule.” When you sell clothes for cash, you typically set the price at about one-third of the original retail price.
If you’re selling a preworn North Face jacket that you bought at $150, then you should set the price around $50. If the jacket is like new, then you could try selling it for more, perhaps $75 to $100.
3. Label the brand, color and size
Finally, make sure that shoppers can find your item. If you’re putting a label on it, write down the brand, color, size and any other important information.
By getting straight to the point, you ensure your item appears in search results. For instance, “Blue North Face Jacket, Size 4, in Great Condition” is nice and clear.
Online consignment shops connect you with a huge market, but they’re not the only option if you want to sell clothes for cash. You could also take your outfits to a brick-and-mortar store.
Secondhand stores to sell used clothes
If you’d rather take your clothes to a brick-and-mortar shop, you can hand deliver them to one of the following secondhand stores. These are four of the top secondhand clothing stores with locations across the U.S.
1. Clothes Mentor
Clothes Mentor has stores across the country, so you can likely find one near you. You don’t need an appointment but instead can walk in and get cash on the spot.
2. Buffalo Exchange
Buffalo Exchange sells preworn men’s and women’s clothing and has stores in 17 states. All locations normally accept walk-ins, or you can send clothes through its “sell by mail” program.
3. Uptown Cheapskate
Uptown Cheapskate has almost 100 locations. They accept walk-ins and donate leftover clothes to charity.
4. Plato’s Closet
If you have teenagers, you can sell outfits they’ve outgrown to Plato’s Closet. This used clothing store sells children’s and young adults’ clothes and accessories.
Tips for selling used clothes to secondhand stores
Most secondhand clothing stores have high standards for quality. The clothes should be fashionable, cared for and appropriate for the upcoming season.
Secondhand stores typically price items at one-third of the original cost. As for your profit, they might give you one-quarter to one-third of that.
For that $150 North Face jacket, you may only get $16. The payout won’t knock your socks off, but it does exceed the zero dollars you’d get from the jacket sitting in a closet.
What about those clothes that are a little too preworn for you to sell? Can you get any financial advantage from those?
Donating old clothes to charity for a tax deduction
Not only does donating old clothes to charity, like Goodwill, give you good karma, but it also has financial benefits.
Any donations you make are tax deductible. In a way, you’ll still be making some money on your old clothes.
Sell used clothes for cash: How to get started
Throwing things out is hard. In fact, more than 1 out of 10 American households rents offsite storage for extra belongings.
Rather than waste money on storage, sort through your wardrobe and sell used clothes to earn money.
If you sell clothes online or at a secondhand store, you’ll have a clean closet and extra cash in your pocket. If that sounds like a win-win situation, that’s because it is!