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Mercari vs eBay: Which is Better for Sellers in 2024?

Gravatar for Enoch Omololu
Written by Enoch Omololu
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One of the best ways to make money online today is through online resale.

In order to be as successful as you can be, you have to consider which selling platform you want to use.

Because of how many platforms are available, the task is no small feat.

Two popular selling platforms for 2023 are Mercari and eBay. Both of these sites are popular among both buyers and sellers, which means you can’t lose with either.

However, you have to make your ultimate decision, and it can be a tough call.

In this article, we are going to provide a Mercari vs eBay comparison. We look at the pros and cons of each and compare their offerings for sellers specifically. Scroll down for more.

Mercari vs eBay

Now that we’ve learned about Mercari and eBay, let’s take a close look at them both and compare their features.

What to Expect as a Seller

Selling on Mercari vs eBay is a loaded question. Both of these platforms offer their own benefits, but they have their own drawbacks too.

With Mercari, you can expect little hassle for all steps of the selling process.

From uploading pictures to shipping the product, Mercari has some of the easiest features. However, Mercari does not have fantastic customer support, and there aren’t strict guidelines about the buyers or sellers.

eBay has a lot more protection. Because it has strict guidelines for buyers and sellers, all users know that they are dealing with professionals.

As a trade-off, the sellers have to jump through a lot more hoops in order to sell and ship their products.

Mercari vs eBay Signing Up

Signing up for an account on both Mercari and eBay is easy.

Because these sites are designed for the modern user, They only require a few simple items to get started.

Most people agree that signing up on Mercari is the easiest, but there’s very little difference in the signup processes.

To sign up with Mercari, all you need is an email. Authenticate your account before you start listing.

You do not need to offer any payments or hassle. To upload an item, you don’t have to fill out many fields either. All you need is pictures, a short description, and a price.

The process on eBay is similar. Use your email or Facebook account to create an eBay account.

Listing your products is a bit more difficult. You need more information, including item dimensions and weight in order to list a product.

Winner: Mercari

Mercari vs eBay Features

Mercari stands out because they are one of the easiest sites to use.

You don’t have to list a ton of information about your products, and it doesn’t take much to set up an account. This is advantageous for individuals who want to sell products on the go.

eBay certainly is not the easiest site to use, but it is great because it offers a number of pricing options.

You can set a fixed rate, or you can have an auction. This auction feature is unique to eBay and it makes eBay worth the hassle for many.

Both of these features are great, but it’s ultimately up to your preferences which one is better. Some individuals prefer Mercari’s convenience, whereas others prefer eBay’s auction feature.

Winner: Tie

Mercari vs eBay Fees

When you are deciding on a selling platform, you want to consider fees. Mercari and eBay are both considered cost-efficient options.

With Mercari, the app will take a 10% cut after you’ve made the sale. There will be no cut if the product does not sell.

With every sale, there is also a fee of $0.30 and a processing fee of 2.9% of the purchase price.

There are also some other fees that are avoidable, such as fees relating to bank rejection.

In comparison, eBay provides its members with 200 free listings every month. Every additional listing you post costs you 35 cents.

Monthly fees have a tiered design. The platform will take 10% to 12% off of every sale in most categories.

In addition to the seller fees, there are also shipping fees. Mercari allows you to decide if you want to pay for shipping or if the buyer needs to pay for shipping.

The site offers shipping protection worth up to $200.

Shipping through eBay is more complicated. Several factors need to be considered in order to get the cheapest shipping rate, including carriers, product weight, and class.

Even though you can charge set shipping rates, you will often have to adjust them based on the buyer.

What this means is that the seller fees of Mercari and eBay are about the same, but Mercari wins out in terms of shipping fees.

You will definitely have to do a little bit more work and potentially pay more money when shipping through eBay.

Winner: Tie for seller fees; Mercari for shipping fees

Mercari vs eBay Seller Protection

To ensure you do not lose money on scams or difficult buyers, it’s important to select a platform with seller protection in place.

As you would expect, both of these platforms favor the buyer in most cases

On the one hand, Mercari requires returns to be requested within three days of arrival and has a viable reason.

However, the platform will hold your payment until the buyer rates you. If the buyer forgets to give you a rating, you might not see your payment for a while.

eBay makes sure that all of its sellers have stellar performance. They use a rating system and will mark your account if any defects are found.

Customers are required to request a return within 10 days, but sellers can deny the return.

If you don’t receive your payment after shipping the product, eBay offers a money-back guarantee.

Winner: eBay

Mercari vs eBay Customer Support

At some point or another, you will have to use customer support. For that reason, you want to have a customer support team you can count on when you need it.

Mercari offers a help center that answers any questions. You can email the support team if you don’t find an answer.

Serious issues, such as fraud, will be directed to a phone call conversation.

Comparatively, eBay has very strict rules, making it easy to find answers to any questions you may have.

They also have a customer support team available through phone calls or email.

Winner: eBay

Mercari vs Ebay

Mercari vs eBay: Which is Better for Sellers?

As you can see, there are a lot of similarities between Mercari and eBay. This can make it a tough call to decide which platform is better for your side hustle.

Ultimately, both of these platforms are great for selling, but it’s up to your preferences to determine which one is best for you specifically.

Mercari is better for sellers who want convenience and ease of use.

Because Mercari requires so little information and can allow you to sell products just by clicking a few pictures, it’s a great way to get extra money without much hassle.

As a result, Mercari is great for individuals trying to sell old stuff but not trying to make a career out of it.

eBay is better for individuals who want more flexibility over their prices and more customer support.

Because of these two benefits of eBay, eBay is better for professional sellers who are really trying to make money off the site.

That is not to say that you have to select eBay if you want to make a flipping career. You certainly can select Mercari instead, but you will have fewer options.

With this in mind, we recommend Mercari if you are selling products after cleaning out your closet, but we recommend eBay if you are consistently selling products every month.

Mercari Overview

Mercari is a Japanese selling platform. It only launched in 2013, but it has quickly become one of the most popular platforms for buyers and sellers.

Its app expanded to the United States in 2014. Since then, it has paid over $1 billion to the sellers of the sites.

The reason why so many individuals choose Mercari is that it is one of the simplest platforms to use.

Both for buying and selling, Mercari offers some of the simplest steps so that the process is as easy and convenient as possible.

Plus, you can sell practically anything on Mercari. Whether you want to sell Pokémon cards, car parts, or musical instruments, Mercari is a site for you.

Most of the products sold on Mercari are used, which allows the site to be called the largest online flea market.

Overall, Mercari is a popular sales platform. Whether you want to sell new or used products, you can likely find a buyer interested in what you are selling and sell the product with ease.

Pros of Mercari

  • Simple platform
  • Easy to use
  • Sell many items
  • Sell new or used items

Cons of Mercari

  • Less regulation
  • Moderate customer support

Related: Best Apps For Selling Stuff Online.

eBay Overview

More than likely, eBay needs no introduction. Today, it is the most widely used selling platform because of its reputation and how long it has been in circulation.

The site launched in 1995, and it is now available globally. You may have even used eBay before to purchase some items of your own.

Ever since its founding, eBay has had a gross merchandise volume of over $100 billion.

This means that you certainly will be able to find users on this site daily. eBay is especially popular for reselling a variety of items and flipping them for profit.

What is unique about eBay is that they have an auction feature. Although you can sell your product for a fixed rate, you could also set a minimum rate and have buyers bid on the product. The highest bidder gets the item.

Although eBay is one of the oldest players in the industry, it is far from being dated.

Whether you want to sell new or used items, eBay is one of the best sites since it has so many users that trust purchasing their items through this platform.

Pros of eBay

  • Reputable
  • Many users
  • Sell new or used items
  • Auction feature
  • Strick regulations and rules

Cons of eBay

  • More difficult to use for the seller

Conclusion

At the end of the day, both Mercari and eBay are fantastic selling platforms.

They are safe, convenient, and offer access to international markets. Since they aren’t exactly equal, you will need to select which platform is best for you.

If you are a seller wanting to get rid of old items from your closet but aren’t expecting to make a career out of selling items, select Mercari.

Its convenience is advantageous and will make the selling process as easy as possible.

For sellers wanting to make a side hustle or career out of selling items online, select eBay.

Even though it requires more work, it offers more pricing options and customer support to ensure your business is as professional as possible.

Mercari vs eBay FAQs

Is Mercari safer than eBay?

Both Mercari and eBay are safe, but eBay is safer because it has strict buyer and seller rules. These strict rules ensure that the sellers on the site offer what they say. If a seller is not reliable on eBay, they will mark them as such. In comparison, Mercari is more regulated by the sellers themselves, which means it is less predictable than eBay.

Is Mercari shipping cheaper than eBay?

Shipping on Mercari is much easier than shipping on eBay. Mercari shipping rates are pretty standard and do not require you to put in a ton of information about the product itself. eBay requires extensive work and a confusing shipping process for the seller.

Is eBay or Mercari better?

eBay is better than Mercari in terms of reliability and professionalism. Because of the strict guidelines, both the buyer and seller know that they are dealing with someone they can trust. Mercari is better for convenience because it doesn’t require a whole lot of information about the product you are selling.

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Gravatar for Enoch Omololu

Enoch Omololu

Enoch Omololu is a personal finance expert who has a passion for helping others win with their finances. He has a master’s degree in Finance and Investment Management from the University of Aberdeen Business School and has been writing about money management for over a decade. Enoch has been featured in several leading personal finance publications including MSN Money, The Globe and Mail, Wealthsimple, and the Financial Post.

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