Ebay charging 20+% fees for sales?

[its_jofae]

I was recently running some numbers on my latest sales on Ebay, and I realized that as of January 2024 I'm consistently being charged ~20% fees for every item I sell.

I deducted the standard $0.30 per sale from the transactions and ran a percentage off of the remainder, and found I'm consistently being charged 19.25% for every transaction. 

Example item sale:

- Item Price: $28.75

- Sales Tax: $2.37

- Fee: $6.29

That brings the fee to 19.248% ((6.29-0.30) / (28.75 + 2.37)

What is the reason for being charged 19.25% all of the sudden? Has Ebay updated their rates?

[mam98031]

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@luckythewinner wrote:

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@its_jofae wrote:

What is the reason for being charged 19.25% all of the sudden?

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Your Seller Hub has a transaction detail that will show you exactly how the fees were calculated. 

Without you giving us that detail, all we can do is guess. 

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It was explained in detail in the post below.  Not by the OP, they haven't been active on the thread.

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Selling/Ebay-charging-20-fees-for-sales/m-p/34210710#M2336045

[isaiah53-57]

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@chariot_badges wrote:

All of this ^^^ 

PLUS, sales tax is NOT a fee charged by eBay.

It is a fee charged by your state and/or local governments.  In California, it is high, as high as 9%.  What's your sales tax rate?

My total selling costs for last month were 33%.  That's all costs before rent and payroll.  But then, I volunteer for promotion which adds 10%.  

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1st off, the OP obviously knows sales tax is not a fee or a charge to him/her if you look at the percentage formula used...

And then you say you pay a 10% promotion fee plus an approximate 12% FVF which is 22% of the entire sale in just selling fees alone and your selling costs are 33% before rent and payroll?? I would have to guess you are getting your items for free then, such as a car salesman I know who steals the extra set of trade-in and even new car keys and then sells them.

Also your shipping costs metrics suck, so there that, which I can only assume means you ship your items in some less than viable fashion for extra profit...

Then there's that "Payroll" statement you made... You have 7 feedback last month out of 870 items listed... What kind of "Payroll" do you need to have to accomplish that amazing business feat?

Yup...you're killing it and just the kind of seller I look to for advise...

[kh-stanley1]

Hi everyone,

This discussion has gotten a bit heated and personal. Please remember that, while it is fine to disagree with others, discussion should always remain friendly and respectful as required by the Community Guidelines.

Thank you for your cooperation.

[luckythewinner]

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@mam98031 wrote:
It was explained in detail in the post below.  Not by the OP, they haven't been active on the thread.

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By directing the OP toward the transaction detail, I was attempting to educate the OP and other readers of this thread that fee calculations should not be a mystery, and that eBay provides the information they need. 

i.e. teaching a man to fish vs. giving him a fish.

[monroe67]

"In California, [the sales tax percentage] is high, as high as 9%."

I believe Los Angeles and some of its suburbs have 10%-plus sales tax rates. 
Still glad I moved from the Hollywood area to San Diego some 40 years ago . . . . . . 

[mam98031]

What is very important to remember is that if any seller uses Promoted Listing, it is the seller that selects the additional amount of FVFs they are willing to pay if the item sells.  If they feel it is too much, then they should either lower the percentage THEY chose or not do Promoted listings.

With that said the OP never said they were using PL.

[mam98031]

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@monroe67 wrote:

"In California, [the sales tax percentage] is high, as high as 9%."

I believe Los Angeles and some of its suburbs have 10%-plus sales tax rates. 
Still glad I moved from the Hollywood area to San Diego some 40 years ago . . . . . . 

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Sales tax varies by states and within each state depending on the city and county.

[isaiah53-57]

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@mam98031 wrote:

What is very important to remember is that if any seller uses Promoted Listing, it is the seller that selects the additional amount of FVFs they are willing to pay if the item sells.  If they feel it is too much, then they should either lower the percentage THEY chose or not do Promoted listings.

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Whaaaaaat? Who knew?...

[mam98031]

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@isaiah53-57 wrote:

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@mam98031 wrote:

What is very important to remember is that if any seller uses Promoted Listing, it is the seller that selects the additional amount of FVFs they are willing to pay if the item sells.  If they feel it is too much, then they should either lower the percentage THEY chose or not do Promoted listings.

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Whaaaaaat? Who knew?...

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Apparently a whole lot of sellers as the complaint of high FVFs is a common complaint on the threads and they are including the rate they pay for PL.  So clearly some do not understand they have control over part of that because they use PL.  It is all over the threads, I'm surprised you missed the posts.

[soh.maryl]

In addition to that info, many states will have varying sales tax rates within various jurisdictions.

For instance, in my town, state sales tax is about 6.8%.  In several locales somewhat north of me, the state sales tax is approaching 8% and could be more, haven't shopped there in awhile.

However, there are several areas somewhat south where it's less than the 6.8%.

[soh.maryl]

When I checked out the OP's "Sold" listings, saw that he is consistently offering free shipping.  That could be part of his problem.  

[mam98031]

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@soh.maryl wrote:

In addition to that info, many states will have varying sales tax rates within various jurisdictions.

For instance, in my town, state sales tax is about 6.8%.  In several locales somewhat north of me, the state sales tax is approaching 8% and could be more, haven't shopped there in awhile.

However, there are several areas somewhat south where it's less than the 6.8%.

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Yes and per the graphic I posted earlier there are other areas that are even lower than that.  I believe the national average is around 8.5%.

[its_jofae]

Whoops. That's what it was. I wish Ebay had sent me an email to tell me I suck as a seller and need to clean up my act so I knew what was going on. Thanks for the quick and conclusive response.

[dy42963]

Ohio "state" sales tax is 5.75%

as you state..........................  some areas have additional sales tax added

[mam98031]

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@its_jofae wrote:

Whoops. That's what it was. I wish Ebay had sent me an email to tell me I suck as a seller and need to clean up my act so I knew what was going on. Thanks for the quick and conclusive response.

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Ebay does send sellers an email when they fall below standard and subject to penalty fees.  You may have just missed it.