Ebay Vs. Mercari
Mercari has been my go-to lately instead of Ebay. I have accumulated a lot of nerd collectibles and have overcrowded the spaces I have to store them. So might as well as get some money for them if I can! Ebay and Mercari are perfect for helping me de-clutter AND get some extra cash in the process.
Ebay has been around way longer than Mercari. However, there’s something about it that I just don’t like. It could be the bidding system, or the fact that they have a lot of hidden fees.
Mercari was started in 2013 and Ebay was founded in 1995. In my experience Mercari is specialized for more collectible things. Ebay is for anything and everything you just want to get rid of. I decided to do my research and see which one was better.
Ebay:
100 free listings a month, after you reach 100 its a fee of $.30 for each listing. However if you get a monthly subscription you can pay $22 a month to raise that listing limit to 250.
relatively straight forward listing application. Auction or fixed price formats available.
usually a 10% fee they will take once you sell the item. Then an additional 2.9% from paypal to process the payment. THEN a $.25 per item you sell processing fee.
Last I checked Ebay doesn’t calculate these fees for you up front. This may have changed but I used to have to use a third party rate calculator to figure out how much was actually profit.
Ebay is HUGE. So its easier to get lost among the all the weird stuff posted to that site.
Mercari:
No listing fees. Easy to use posting system.
I create the listings on my computer, save them in the drafts, then go and take the pictures on the app with my phone afterwards. Super simple. I’ve even done a few completely from the app. Just need to include what the item is, the condition, any additional information about it, and the price. They offer to do the shipping prices for you but it seemed too high for me. I could ship them myself for lower. So I choose to do free shipping then just calculate the shipping prices into my final price.
10% sales fee with Mercari and an addition 3.2% processing fee.
They calculate the fees for you when the listing is made so you can see what your profit will be after the sale which is nice.
They also have this annoying little feature that will tell you what you should set your price to. Which usually low-balls the price you want to set. So do your research before you listen to that. There’s also a smart pricing tool that will automatically lower it for you over time. Make sure that feature is off or your prices will start dropping without you realizing why.
Hopefully you aren’t in a rush to get your money. You don’t actually get your funds until the buyer rates your transaction or up to 3 days after the item arrives to them if you supply a tracking number when filling the order. THEN you have to wait up to 5 days to get the money in your account after you withdraw unless you pay a fee to get it faster. Luckily I’m patient.
In conclusion:
Ebay is Walmart. Mercari is target.
Walmart has a lot more stuff and at cheaper prices but its the worst experience when you’re there.
Target has less and can be pricier but you don’t feel dirty after going. It is the convenience of it all!
I’ve been selling collectible figures, cards, games, comics and many other things on Mercari that have sold very fast. I did my research and made sure I was one of the lowest prices for items on the site. I made around $1000 in the first month. Of course there’s fees, shipping, and handling and other things that take away from that sum. Mercari seems to have a slight higher percent that they take but only by like 0.3%
Mercari is very easy to navigate for me. There is a offer system people can use to offer a discounted price for your item. You can also offer the people that liked your item a special price first before you lower it for the public. I’ve gotten a bunch of sales and bought from a bunch of people this way.
Ebay seems to make things a little too complicated in my past experiences whereas Mercari will walk you through everything and is very user friendly. They let you know the fees right up front and calculate it into your listing so you know exactly how much you’re making. The browser version seems to have a few bugs every now and then but I haven’t had a problem with the app. Even if it crashes it will open right back up where I was or save the listing I was working on.
I’ve been really enjoying selling my extra stuff on Mercari. The people buying are usually very reasonable and the rating system has really helped my little shop get exposure. Most people just rate 5 stars without even looking at it since Mercari kind of shoves it in your face. Which is great for the sellers. Better the rating, the more exposure you get.
Mercari is my site of choice for selling collectibles or getting rid of things I know I could get money for. Maybe one day give Ebay another shot but at this point I’m pretty content with Mercari.
If you’re interested in random collectibles (mostly marvel) check out my Mercari here! I collect too many things, and quickly run out of room. So the things that don’t bring me immediate joy anymore get put up on Mercari.
A fascinating discussion is worth comment. I think that you should write more about this issue, it may not be a taboo matter but usually folks dont discuss these topics. To the next! All the best!!