Understanding eBay’s Sneaker Fees For A Better Reselling Experience

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Reselling branded sneakers on marketplaces like eBay always comes at a cost. We are, of course, talking about the fees that eBay levies on sneaker resellers. But, hey, it’s a small price to pay for all the perks you get in return.

Let’s dive into the various types of eBay’s sneaker fees and look at what the platform offers sellers in return.

eBay’s sneaker fees 101

eBay fees for selling sneakers vary based on whether you’re reselling them at less than $150 or more. The rate taken into account to calculate the fees includes taxes, shipping fees, handling fees, as well as any other applicable fees.

Let’s take a look at how the final value fees (a percentage of the sale price) for sneakers vary based on rate.

For sneakers valued at less than $150, the final value fees are:

• 13.25% for anybody who only has a Starter Store subscription or doesn’t have an eBay store subscription at all
• 12.35% for anybody who has a Basic, Premium, or Anchor Store subscription

Additionally, a pre-order fee of $0.30 is applicable. If the sellers have used up their monthly allotment of free listings, they will also have to pay the required insertion fees to create additional item listings.

For sneakers valued at $150 or more, the final value fees are:

• 8% for anybody who only has a Starter Store subscription or doesn’t have an eBay Store subscription at all
• 7% for anybody who has a Basic, Premium, or Anchor Store subscription

Additionally, the insertion fee as well as the pre-order fee of $0.30 is waived for these sneakers.

The above fees apply to all the sneakers listed in any of the following categories:

• Men’s and Women’s Athletic Shoes
• Girls’ and Boys’ Shoes
• Unisex Kids’ Shoes
• Baby Shoes

What happens if you list your sneakers under more than one category on eBay?

If you list your sneakers under two or more categories (for example, under unisex shoes and baby shoes), the final value fee will be applied based on the category that has the highest rate among them.

How do eBay sneaker fees differ from that of other marketplaces?

Did you know that a pair of sneakers are sold every 5 seconds via eBay in the U.S.? That’s because eBay has the lowest sneaker fees in the U.S. compared to other marketplaces like StockX, GOAT, and Stadium Good. Let’s see how they compare.

eBay	GOAT	StockX	Stadium Good
- 8% final value fee for sneakers over $150 - 13.25% final value fee for sneakers under $150	5 seller fee	$4 seller fee	- 20% commission fee for sneakers valued over $125 - $25 flat rate commission for sneakers under $125
0% processing fees	9.5% commission fee	9% transaction fee
	2.9% cash out fee	3% payment processing fee	1% payment processing fees

Let’s understand this better with an example. If you’re selling a sneaker for $200, here’s how your fees would differ on each of the above marketplaces:

• eBay: 8％ of 200 = $16
• GOAT: $5 + $19 + $5.8 = $29.8
• StockX: $4 + $18 + $6 = $28
• Stadium Good: $40 + $2 = $42

As we can see from the above example, eBay has the lowest sneaker fees, with StockX and GOAT occupying the second and third places respectively. Stadium Good has the highest fees by a long margin!

eBay’s sneaker authenticity guarantee

To protect buyers from purchasing knock-off sneakers, and to protect resellers from fraudulent charges, eBay has come up with a sneaker authenticity guarantee program.

Under this program, eBay basically acts as a middleman where it authenticates all the sneakers using professionally trained experts before shipping them to the buyers. In the same way, any returns are also authenticated before being sent back to the sellers. This ensures that only authentic sneakers are sold on the platform.

The best part is that the authentication is done at absolutely no cost to you! Some even better news? You don’t need to pay out of pocket to ship your sneakers to the official authentication center. eBay will give you a free FedEx shipping label.

However, the downside is that only select models within certain brands of sneakers are eligible for this program. Customized sneakers and listings that are sold as a ‘lot’ with multiple items together are a no-go.

Moreover, the sneakers must be listed in one of the categories mentioned in the first section. All new and pre-owned sneakers being sold at a value of above $75 are eligible. But, if you list your sneakers under the Baby Shoes category, your sneakers must be valued at over $100.

Here’s how eBay’s sneaker authenticity program works, and how you can check whether your sneakers are eligible:

Step 1: List your sneakers on eBay under the relevant category along with the brand, model, and style code. If your shoes are eligible for the authentication guarantee program, you’ll see a blue check mark next to it.

Step 2: Once someone purchases the pair of sneakers, eBay will give you a free FedEx shipping label. You’ll ship the shoes directly to the official authentication center.

Note: Sneakers eligible for the authentication guarantee have a maximum handling time of 3 days, which means you’ll have to ship the shoes to the center within 3 days.

Step 3: Here, experts will conduct a thorough multi-point inspection, which includes verifying the box, logo, sizing labels, soles, heel tabs, laces, stitching, and more.

Step 4: Once they verify that the pair of shoes are indeed authentic, they will attach a QR-enabled authenticity guarantee tag on the left sneaker.

However, if your sneakers don’t pass the authentication check, the items will be returned to you. You also won’t be charged for the return shipping fee, so that’s a small relief. The buyer will be refunded, and you must remove the pair of shoes from the marketplace immediately.

But what happens when your item is damaged or lost in transit? In such cases, eBay will cover the loss as well.

Step 5: Finally, your buyer will receive the sneakers via 3-day delivery.

It’s worth noting here that for any sneakers eligible for the authentication guarantee program, the buyers will have to pay a flat shipping fee of $14.95 in the U.S.

For buyers in Canada, the shipping fee goes up to $30 USD, while Australian buyers will have to pay a whopping $45 USD.

How does the return process work with the authenticity guarantee program?

If a buyer returns your sneakers for some reason, the authentication tag needs to remain intact.

Whether the buyer pays the return shipping fee or the seller will also be based on your return policy. Remember, that the refund amount will be credited only through one of eBay’s accepted payment methods.

These include credit and debit cards, Apple and Google Pay, and wire transfers in rare instances. You can’t process a refund via other payment methods outside eBay such as cash, cheques, bank-to-bank transfers, or cloud payroll in Australia.