Selling fees should not factor in shipping, taxes & should be less.
Every time I sell an item on eBay these days I always check the fee breakdown and ask myself "why?" I don't understand why our selling fees factor in both taxes and shipping. I also don't understand why the percentage we are charged at is so high. 13.25% is too much especially when the entire total of the listing is factored in. I can't tell you how many things I wanted to sell on eBay but decided not to because I felt the current fee percentage wasn't worth the time.
I feel like the selling fees need to change. We either need a new system to determine what each listing fee percent should be or just lower the percentage overall. Does anyone else feel this way?
105 comments
dy60609
·1 year agoI was at the grocery store today. One of over 100 in the chain. As they are big and have lots of money, I suggested that they take about 3% off what was showing as a total at checkout. They just looked at me in disbelief.
Then I went to Dollar General. They have over 16,000 stores. As they are big and have lots of money, I suggested that they take about 3% off what was showing as a total at checkout. They just looked at me in disbelief.
casey-86
OP1 year agoDo you help them make money by selling goods through their outlets or do you just buy from them? Yea, you didn't really think about this before hitting that reply button, did you?
krazzykats
·1 year agoLower fees could also mean of flood of common junk on the site and new sellers.
And it's already jam packed with old stuff that only a few people want. âŒ
casey-86
OP1 year agoI'm sorry but this seems very selfish. You would be surprised at how much "old stuff" people still want these days and can't find it anywhere else but here on eBay. My mom's Christmas gift was a vintage item from the 70's that I literally could not find anywhere in the world but here on eBay.
krazzykats
·1 year agoWell, we will just have to disagree then.
People who lived in the 1970s may still collect old items, but younger generations do not. And it's not selfish, just realistic. My children in their 30s have no interest in old thing. The only items my daughter expressed interest in was old 1960s Breyer Horses. She does not want my 1950 barbies, Italian dishes, large Hummel plate collection, Hallmark figurines, or any number of other nice things I have. They are heavy, take up too much space, collect dust and are simply not practical. Just stuff.
I am downsizing, as I am sure many people my age and older are doing, so not buying much, but when I do, it's not the really old stuff either.🤔
casey-86
OP1 year agoI guess it just depends on location. Where I'm from most people tend to lean towards vintage items more than the newer stuff. We have flea markets everywhere and I always find the best things in them. Things you can't find in stores anymore these days and things that withstand the test of time. I have also bought all of my clothes from flea markets and yard sales for about 20 years now, many of them new with tags, and rarely paid more than $1-2 for most of them and I'm talking often times like new, name brand clothes including jeans.
glorybells
·1 year agoI haven’t read every comment in this thread, but I wanted to chime in with some “comparison shoppingâ€.
Awhile back I sold on Etsy briefly, the fee was 18%.
I also briefly sold on Amazon, fees were close to 20%
I participate in a local craft show each February, fees are 20% of how much we sell.
im currently an Uber driver, they keep roughly 30% of what the rider pays.
ebay is a bargain!
youn2240
·1 year agobut think about this concept. 3.5% less. you can't even argue because it's 3.5% less.
casey-86
OP1 year agoeBay felt more like a bargain 10+ years ago in my opinion.
youn2240
·1 year agoeven if they reduce fee 3.5% they could still fund building a time machine to take us back a decade! that is a wild and crazy idea when you think about what could be!
marnotom!
·1 year ago10+ years ago, payment processing (i.e. PayPal or Billpoint) fees were separate from eBay selling fees. A lot of sellers comparing eBay’s present fees with its fees in the past forget that they were paying payment processing fees on top of selling fees. Now those fees are folded together.
youn2240
·1 year agobut what you are not understanding is if ebay reduces their revenue stream by 35% then this site will become better for seller and buyer! imagine it!
fern*wood
·1 year agoDid you actually feel that way ten years ago? I’ve never seen a time that fees were praised.
casey-86
OP1 year agoEver heard of comparably speaking?
krazzykats
·1 year agoWhat are you talking about? Fees dude, not horses.... don't derail the thread...🙄
luckythewinner
·1 year agoDoes anyone else feel this way?
Every seller wants lower fees.
I feel like the selling fees need to change.
Right now there are 20 million sellers with 1.5 billion listings actively using the site. Selling fees will only drop when enough of those sellers refuse to sell here. So lets all stop selling! You go first.
youn2240
·1 year agowhat if the horse was 3.5% less of a horse? then wouldn't that be great for horse man? you can't even disagree because it's 3.5% less horse and that's going to attract more stables.
jerseyboymusic
·1 year ago@casey-86
Post 2,459,862 in a series.
I would say let's beat a dead horse, but I like horses
krazzykats
·1 year agoNever heard of lowering prices or fees on anything. Who does that?
á“šá˜á—¢
krazzykats
·1 year agoHi Casey!
Just thought I would mention, I live in Oregon. Most items are purchased from outside Oregon, so I pay a fee percentage on the sales tax charged by the buyer's state.
Oregon doesn't have sales tax, and I pay eBay fees on a sales tax for other states.
It is, what it is.
á“šá˜á—¢
doc-holmes
·1 year agoIf they got more sellers charging 10% imagine how many more they would get if they charged 5%, or 1%! At what point is it no longer profitable? Please show your work.
fbusoni
·1 year agoThat's your first mistake.
greatstuff80
·1 year agoDo you want to do all the paperwork for every state tax yourself? eBay does that for you and it's part of the fees.
1786davycrockett
·1 year ago@greatstuff80
@casey-86
"Do you want to do all the paperwork for every state tax yourself? eBay does that for you and it's part of the fees."
Exactly.
As I pointed out earlier, there are 39 separate tax districts in Minnesota alone (where I live) -- without eBay calculating all those monthly, bimonthly, semi-annual or annual payments on my behalf, I would be spending most of my time filing tax reports for probably thousands of tax districts, all over the United States -- as well as calculating all the overseas fees for international shipments.
No thanks -- I'm a one-person operation, working from my basement and kitchen table. I'm not an accountant, and I couldn't afford to hire a full-time accountant to file all those mountains of tax documents.
Let eBay do it -- that's why they charge me 14.9% final value fees.
buyselljack2016
·1 year agonot a requirement, and would not be for many sellers.
internet/interstate sales laws were written with the intent to "not harm" the little guy and ............... and for those that will counter with the states will change those laws.............no, they are not going to change them so that they can harm the little guy.
The way the laws were written, selling on my own I would not be required to in any way be responsible to register/collect/remit sales taxes to 99.99 % of jurisdictions outside of my state. I would never meet the thresholds that they have set. There are some that want it all no matter the sales level but would be hard pressed to get it in most situations.
Off eBay I would be responsible, as I always had been, to only worry about my own state sales tax collecting/remitting. Now, eBay even does that for me.
youn2240
·1 year agobasically i just subtract 20% from the sale prices I look up and then I know what it's actually valued at irl dollars then knowing that information I can decide how much I am willing to pay for it. it's that easy for me. I can move that 20% up or down if they lower or raise the fees. the fee does not matter at all.
youn2240
·1 year agomy issues boils down to the fee is completely irrelevant to how I value the item before i list it. the fee is considered I just do a little math in my head when I look things up I am not 100% sure about and if the buy price is low enough that I am satisfied with my perceived sell price after fees that's how I make money here. the fee presents 0 issue to me because I agreed to it and also because I already know it's there. lowering the fee will have a non effect on anything. If you want eBay to be more profitable you have got to learn how to source better and sell more. harder work always pays off. preserving your profit margins is not anything I care to be involved in.
youn2240
·1 year agolets put things into perspective If you took those 2 shirts you just sold for 29.99 plus shipping to the flea market do you think you would sell them for 12.50 each? you would be lucky to get 5 there. so any complaints about the high fees (which are not high) is absurd. If you can make more elsewhere do it and let me know where.
casey-86
OP1 year agoYou wouldn't complain and would welcome lower seller fees here on eBay. There is absolutely no reason whatsoever for any seller to not be in favor of this.
youn2240
·1 year agoIt would work out the same. more sellers lower prices I'd call it a wash for me. but more costs on ebay with more items and sellers and all the complainers that will still be unhappy about how it's working out.
casey-86
OP1 year agoI think you're more interested in just defending your stance on this. Out of curiosity, at what point would you complain about eBay seller fees should they ever get there?
youn2240
·1 year agoI wouldn't complain. I'd figure out what things I want to buy to sell are worth and compare that to how much they are to buy. If I couldn't make it work I'd stop doing it. fees to sell are irrelevant to this equation. I feel like lots of newer or smaller sellers ( I am not a big time seller) see an item sells for 20 bucks free shipping and they think it's worth 20 bucks so they over spend and it becomes not profitable. as of my entire ebaying I make more per item here than anywhere I've ever sold things with way less work and hassle involved. It's free real estate. I know what booths cost I know what tables or flea market spaces cost eBay is the best around for me. you just need to list more then you'll sell more and you'll buy better and you'll forget all about this. The people making the most on here with used items are seriously listing hundreds of items a day. they aren't worried about these metrics you're making because they aren't real.
1786davycrockett
·1 year ago@casey-86
Frankly, I don't mind paying 14.9% in fees, since eBay is responsible for computing and filing all the paperwork necessary for all the various sales tax factored municipalities in the United States.
There are 39 separate and individual sales tax factored municipalities in Minnesota alone -- so there are probably thousands scattered across the United States, each requiring their own separate reporting mechanisms.
Not something that I'm financially prepared to handle on my own, and it's worth 14.9% in fees to have eBay doing it for me.
gone.c-33
·1 year agoNo one here (except that one shareholder) is saying they’re against lower fees, we’re saying eBay has absolutely no reason or motivation to lower fees (they’re already on the lower scale of online selling platforms so highly unlikely that lower fees would result in more sellers) and therefore it’s useless to hope for.
casey-86
OP1 year agoThey do, actually. Happier sellers with the potential to bring in more sellers and current sellers selling more is, in fact, the reason and should be the motivation. But go on saying how you think eBay raising seller fees is the best path to take.
gone.c-33
·1 year agoI never said anything about raising seller fees, I said it’s extremely unlikely that eBay would lower them.
I’ll echo a previous poster and agree that it’s extremely naive to believe that lower seller fees would attract more sellers.
Ebay and Amazon used to be the only games in town. Now you have platforms specializing in musical instruments, in physical media, in books, in clothing, in handmade/vintage items, Shopify and others have made it easier than ever for people to launch their own website which they can advertise themselves through Insta, TikTok, etc.
You also have the reselling bubble that is stagnating, less and less people are willing to pay inflated prices for stuff they can find for pennies on the dollar if they’re willing forgo instant gratification and thrift on the semi regular.
Buyers also have more options, now you also have your Temu and SHEIN and Wish selling new, badly made but good looking stuff that will work for now, look good for the pictures but end up on a refuse container destined for Ghana or Thailand.
I could go on and on but I’d bet a $20 lowering seller fees, while causing a small surge for a month or two, would have no lasting effect on the number of active sellers on eBay, and even less on eBay’s revenue.
casey-86
OP1 year agoThere should be more incentives to sell on eBay and one of those incentives should be lower selling fees. Why not lower seller fees for long time eBay users? How about a system that offers lower fees the more items you sell with positive feedback and high ratings? Something, anything would be better than what we have now. There needs to be a new system instead of just this 13.25%.
youn2240
·1 year agoKinda sounds like when you sell things you think they are worth more than they are so you're taking out your frustrations on the site you voluntarily signed up to use. The fee structure is so good here I even volunteer more of a percent to eBay so the listing shows up better. all you have to do is a tiny bit of simple math on what sell prices are and you'll know how much you're going to get depending on if you priced it correctly. this is not hard you are making it hard on yourself. the fee is completely irrelevant to the value. you are using eBays infrastructure and eBay does not have a lack of sellers or buyers these are things you're misleading yourself with. This is completely an issue of having a skewed mentality there is plenty of motivation to sell here because I make money when I sell things. I buy for less then I sell for more that's my motivation. a fee reduction or raise is not going to effect this mentality I have. it will be considered when I purchase items to sell but that's the game right there. is you figure out the value and you buy at a price where it can be profitable or you just want to get rid of things or you want to put higher prices on things. you can do whatever you want but it's fair you literally agreed to it. if 3.5% is making it too hard to use I just don't know what to say.
kennys-kollectibles
·1 year agoThe original poster really does have a point.
but the new normal in business is to price gouge as much as possible.
In today's world, rent, food, gas, etc. all cost alot more money than it should.
All of these companies including ebay are making insane amounts of profits while the
average person is losing money and more and more people are becoming homeless.
Some businesses, raise their prices so much they price themselves out of business and
sooner or later go out of business.
I have watched the trends for years.
When a burger gets to $20, how many are going to pay that before they just stay at home
and make thier own, and putting hamburger joints out of business?
It is possible that if ebay had kept it's prices lower then they might be making more money
on volume.
I used to sell on Amazon but stopped because of high fees.....So, now they make nothing off of me.
And the perspective is this.....I have been doing this for over 20years and I do ok, because
I have been doing it for so long, and I bought my inventory for lower prices back in the day.
but....if I was just starting out today, it would be near impossible to make as much money
on my items as ebay does. It would be a waste of my time, and I wouldn't do it. The name of the game is price gouge. Look at apt. rental companies. They would be making a profit at a third of what they charge, but they charge rediculous amounts of money on cheap one bedroom apts.
Back in the day, I was able to actually save money at the end of the month. No more.
I saw on the news most American's are living on credit cards and debt is the new normal as well.
Were living in sad times.
marnotom!
·1 year agoI prefer to look at the overall charge that eBay levies on sellers rather than get obsessed over percentages.
I wouldn't sell an item on behalf of a friend for the amount that eBay gets for the sale of a low to moderately-priced item. It wouldn't pay for half of the resources I used and the work I did to prepare the listing, sell the item, and get it shipped out.
Also consider some of eBay's services and infrastructure. As an example, sellers using the eBay International Shipping service get a heckuva lotta bang for their buck in terms of incentives and protections. Buyers buying from sellers who use that service can't be paying for it all.
inhawaii
·1 year agoWhy don't you let ebay know that their selling fees should not factor in shipping, taxes & should be less?
pastimpressions
·1 year agoThe day an altruistic billionaire decides to create a similar platform & personally finance it with similar results that is free or very low cost many people will give that a look. I surely would.
But as the man once said, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride!"
I digress, so, following your logic eBay is being usurious & somewhat greedy for the size of their slice of the pie?
Are sellers that want that extra piece of the pie to come their way instead being equally usurious & greedy?
No one here is ever going to say that the platform is perfect in any way or not able to be improved upon.
Try to see all the good that you get out of it.
Best of luck with shop & sales.
casey-86
OP1 year agoDid you take more than a moment to think about what you said before you said it? You're acting like I am calling for no seller fees at all. How do you read a post like this and think posting what you did was in any way substantive, thoughtful or in any way considerate at all? How could you possibly compare the sellers and what they make to eBay and what they make? I have said multiple times here that if the seller fees were less, or if we had a better system around it, I believe more people would sell and would sell more stuff. That would be good for everyone. I'm quite certain if the seller fee was a flat 10% eBay would still be making good business and the sellers would be better off too. Why do people here lash out at the idea of less fees? I swear this world consumes people's minds in more ways than they know.
dy60609
·1 year agoI think Walmart should lower its prices. They make money.
I think the gas station that I stop at should lower its prices. They make money.
I think you should lower your prices. You make money.
casey-86
OP1 year agoI lower my prices on my listings all the time. Besides that, this is a non argument and is just you being rude for the sake of being rude. No seller would complain about lower selling fees. Every seller would welcome it.
theteamsetguy
·1 year ago@casey-86 ,
As a seller who takes some some of my profits and invest it my IRA. I would not be happy if eBay made less money because as a shareholder I want eBay to make as much money as possible.
The index fund I own has had shares in eBay for many years.
Bot 8675309
casey-86
OP1 year agoSmaller fees would encourage more selling in my opinion. How do you know it wouldn't be better for them especially in the long run? What if higher fees discourages selling?
dy60609
·1 year agoNot rude.
Just examples that demonstrate the absurdity of your entitled expectations.
Sure, every seller would welcome it, but the idea is unrealistic.
casey-86
OP1 year agoThis isn't about entitlement. If I felt entitled I would say I want no seller fees, but I didn't do that now did I? You're throwing that word because you know there is nothing intrinsically wrong with asking for lower seller fees and you also know you and everyone else here would in fact benefit from that but you don't want to admit it. Your "examples" were not examples as you attempted to compare me (an individual) to corporations.
1786davycrockett
·1 year ago@casey-86
As a corporate entity, eBay is motivated to make profits for its shareholders, whom eBay values over and above eBay sellers.
Since eBay sellers have no financial clout over eBay's decisions, sellers can either agree to the conditions which eBay has clearly established, or sellers can choose to leave eBay to sell elsewhere.
Complaining about eBay's fee structure is just as rewarding for sellers, as howling at the moon is for wolves.
The eBay fee structure will only grow higher (as historically it has), and the moon is not afraid of wolves.
casey-86
OP1 year agoI believe more people would sell on eBay and more often if the fees were a bit lower. Why not 10%? That seems like a good spot. 13.25% is so random.
1786davycrockett
·1 year ago@casey-86
"I believe more people would sell on eBay and more often if the fees were a bit lower. Why not 10%? That seems like a good spot. 13.25% is so random."
Many years ago, it was 10% -- and it was even lower before that time.
But times change -- and so does the cost of doing business.
When I was a kid back in the 1950s, a first class stamp cost 3 cents -- and today they cost 73 cents.
Unless a majority of individuals have the financial clout to force corporate change, that change will not occur.
And eBay is not a charitable organization -- it is in the business of making the maximum profits for its shareholders -- and is rarely interested in the whines and whims of eBay sellers.
t'll do you just as much good as complaining about eBay's fee structures (and, by the way, I pay 14.9%, so you have it better than I do).
There's a fingernail of a moon tonight -- howl away.
dhbookds
·1 year agolol........why settle for 10%.......sounds so common.......try for 7.45%....
inhawaii
·1 year agoDear ebay,
Please lower your fees to 10%.
More people would sell here.
Sincerely,
inhawaii
ed8108
·1 year agoFees too high ?
Your thoughts on how to help draw more buyers with deep pockets of money to regularly buy on ebay ?
susanb1872
·1 year agoSell locally (CL or FBM) or have a garage sale and then you won't have any fees.
bonanza125
·1 year agoHere is the situation. This is how Ebay has charges set up. If you think they shouldn't take out of shipping and taxes that's fine. They will just raise there percentage rate on the FVF. Fees will never be lowered. You are provided a service. Even though sellers would like to pay less fees unfortunately that's not going to happen.
johnrj1226
·1 year agoMaybe you should lower your prices then the fees will be less. - e.g. 90 bucks for a parts only thing sees high from here.
casey-86
OP1 year agoI had already sold that listing once recently but the buyer asked me to cancel for personal reasons. I think its just fine at that price. I'm also guessing you missed the "make offer" option I have on every single one of my listings. Also your "maybe you should lower your prices" argument is a non argument. The same percent is charged even if I lower the prices.
buyselljack2016
·1 year agoIf enough money cannot be made selling an item after fee deduction, then likely not something that should be sold online or the selling price/shipping charged may need to be increased.
As fees have risen slightly, and postage costs have climbed again, and again some items that I sold handfuls of (hundreds of) ........................... no longer get listed.
Each seller has to maintain/modify their own business model in a manner that benefits them. eBay isn't going to change the eBay business model in a way that is less profitable for eBay.
stainlessenginecovers
·1 year agoSo, you believe you should pay LESS in fees than someone that does 'Free Shipping'??
$20 plus $10 shipping is the same $30 as the seller that sells for "$30 Free Shipping".
casey-86
OP1 year agoI believe all sellers should pay less in fees.
slippinjimmy
·1 year agoI feel that it should be sunny and warm EVERY day, I think this cold wet weather must stop, it's so unfair.
I also think that you should lower your prices and offer free shipping.
casey-86
OP1 year agoYou're just being rude for the sake of being rude. Asking for lower selling fees is not a problem and I guarantee you sellers would not complain if they got to pay less money in fees for selling their stuff. No one ever looks at this, and many other things in life, through any other perspective than one they've chosen.
stainlessenginecovers
·1 year agoAnd no one ever will.
In the 1960's
Stamps were .06c
A Taco was .19c
Burger at Carls Jr was .65c
Gas was .21c gallon
Southern Cal house was $19k
New Camaro was $3k
on and on and on...
To 'wish' a company would 'lower prices' is the same as @slippinjimmy said, you might as well 'wish' for perfect 70 degree days 365 a year.
casey-86
OP1 year agoTimes change indeed, but it doesn't mean it always has to change against us. Bringing things to light is always the first step towards change. No one should be criticized for wanting to make that effort.
stainlessenginecovers
·1 year agoThis has been 'brought to light' about 1,395,302 times since 1997 when ebay was 1 year old.
With $73,000,000,000 (that is 73 BILLION) in gross sales (2023) and $11,000,000,000 (that is 11 BILLION) in 'revenue' (ie. profit off those sales)...this site is about to 'reduce their fees' the same day that the IRS decides 'no more taxes for anyone!'
casey-86
OP1 year agoIf lower fees encourage more selling wouldn't that be a good thing for eBay and us?
1786davycrockett
·1 year ago@casey-86
"If lower fees encourage more selling wouldn't that be a good thing for eBay and us?"
You are attempting to show a causal relationship (lower fees = more selling) which has not been established.
Where is your theoretical study that supports that hypothesis?
mordecai8614
·1 year agolower fees encourage more selling
Tell that to Mercari
stainlessenginecovers
·1 year agoIt would be a good thing for Me and Me only. Don't care about ebay. Don't care about you or anyone else, because so far, nobody has sent me a check to help pay my mortgage or groceries.
But, you should step off that Fantasyland Ride and just be glad that you don't have to put out $8000 to lease a small 1000 sq.ft place, provide shelving, millwork, lighting, flooring and pay for employees and a monthly $2000 bill for lease/utilities before you MAKE ONE PENNY!!
Sitting in your jammies at 3 in the morning allowing you to 'list' and 'take pictures' and then 'pack and ship' your items WHENEVER you want (you CAN do 10 day handling if you want) and run on down to the nearest Post Office once every 2 weeks, if you like, is a BARGAIN at 14% of items that actually sell.
Think about it, you'd have to sell $4000 a month worth of stuff to cover that $2000 monthly lease before you saw 1 NICKEL!!
I think you should just thank your lucky stars that a place like this even exists.
glorybells
·1 year ago@casey-86 ,
“lower fees encourage more selling wouldn't that be a good thing for eBay and us?â€
Its not more sellers/selling that is needed, its more buyers.
slippinjimmy
·1 year agoRevenue is not "profit"!
eBay Operating Profit for full year 2024 will be in the 2.2 - 2.4 Billion range (before taxes).
mordecai8614
·1 year agoNo one should be criticized for wanting to make that effort.
Let's be real, making a thread on the seller forum that very few people will see (non of which who have any authority on the matter) is not really much of an effort, it's venting.
loose_goose_garage
·1 year agoYou would stop complaining about the fees on taxes if you had to file tax returns in every state you sell to
As for shipping portion, this has been covered many, many times. Sellers would list items for $1.00 with $200 shipping fees, and only be charged Final Value Fee on the $1.00 Sale Portion.
No one is forcing you to sell on eBay. Some items just aren't worth it, that is true, but to reach the global market you can through eBay would be a tough find anywhere else on the internet.
casey-86
OP1 year agoSo why should everyone be punished for the actions of some?
carlmarxx
·1 year agoSeller fee avoidance issue played a small part of ebay charging FVF on shipping . in 2009 Ebay under former Ceo John Donahue wanted sellers to offer Free shipping across the board on all items with out taking into account that shipping prices where based on shipping zones and surcharge fee's for Dim size ,baloon rate. if we sellers did free shipping then they wouldn't charge FVF . I had talked with a seller Coo support Rep. at the San Jose Ca. on phone that confirmed it .
kensgiftshop
·1 year agoNo, I don't have a problem with the fee's, not paying much more then when Pay Pal processed payments.
If you don't like the fee's here, you can always set up your own web site.
You'll only have a domain fee, hosting fee and processing fee for your payment processor.
casey-86
OP1 year agoI'm quite certain eBay, being as large of a company as it is, would be just fine if they lowered the selling fees, or simply redesigned how it works.
gone.c-33
·1 year agoBased on what reason should fees be lowered? Most similar online selling platforms charge equal or higher fees, I don’t see any motivating factor for eBay to lower their fees.
casey-86
OP1 year agoSo that seller's fees for selling stuff can be lower. Anything else?
gone.c-33
·1 year agoWhy would eBay reduce its revenue?