Levin Roy · October 23, 2024 · 7 min read A garage sale isn’t the only way to sell items locally. Thanks to the digital age, plenty of mobile apps are out there that let you sell stuff in your area. These apps come in various flavors, from simple classifieds that list items for potential buyers to proper online marketplaces that let you sell things.
What are the best-selling apps for used or secondhand items? Let’s find out.
1. eBay
eBay is probably the best-known app for selling unwanted items online. All you have to do is post photos of your items and set a sale price; eBay takes care of the rest. Buyers can pay using Paypal or a credit card, creating a hassle-free experience.
2. Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is a bit of a doozy. On one hand, it offers little more than glorified classifieds, leaving the payment and delivery details up to you. On the other hand, the massive reach of Facebook means that finding local buyers is easy, which makes handing over the items simple.
3. OfferUp
OfferUp is one of the newer apps in this space and offers a much smoother experience than most. You can just upload photos of your items to get offers from interested buyers. You don’t have to remain limited to local sales either, as nationwide shipping is also available.
4. Letgo
Most sales apps levy some charge upon each successful transaction. If you are looking to avoid selling fees and meet up with local buyers yourself, then Letgo is just the app for you. It simply gives you a platform to advertise your products and chat with buyers, after which you can sell to them directly.
5. Craigslist CPlus
Craigslist gets a bad rap for being cluttered with useless ads, but the new CPlus app is a great way to sell items online. With a revamped user interface and a notification feature that alerts users when a new item is listed, it helps you make a sale much faster.
6. Decluttr
Finding local buyers interested in your second-hand stuff can be hard. Wouldn’t it be much better if a service would buy your used stuff directly, letting you declutter your home?
That’s exactly what the appropriately named Decluttr is all about. Instead of posting classifieds for local selling, you scan barcodes of your electronic items to get an immediate quote. A prepaid shipping label helps get the items out of your hands, and you get paid by the app, just like that.
7. Poshmark
When you think of second-hand items, things like video games or old electronics usually come to mind. But something that has a better resale value and you go through far more quickly is clothes. Keeping up with the latest fashion trends can create a pile of hardly used clothes and handbags that you can sell on Poshmark to make some extra cash.
Like Decluttr, Poshmark offers a prepaid shipping label to help you ship the products to the buyers, and handles payments as well. After deducting listing fees from the sale, Poshmark transfers the money to you by a check or direct deposit into your bank account.
8. Etsy
It can be difficult to get a good value for vintage or handcrafted products. Rather than trying to find a suitable buyer on social media, you should list them on a platform specially designed for such goods.
Enter Etsy. An e-commerce website centered on vintage and craft items, it allows sellers to set up their shops and start selling. If you have a lot of such items or know someone who makes them, this can be a good side hustle to make some extra money.
9. Mercari
Another similar platform to Poshmark, Mercari allows you to sell lightly used clothes and fashion accessories online. Its main advantage over the other app is the lower transaction fee; Mercari takes only 10% of every sale rather than the 20% you see in Poshmark.
10. ThredUP
ThredUP is a great app for clearing out your old stuff. This is because even when you have things that aren’t really saleable, ThredUP will take them and donate them for you. Selling through ThredUP works a bit differently than most other reselling apps.
Instead of taking photos and listing the items you want to part with, you request a “cleanout kit”. This cleanout kit is basically a bag in which you can enclose all of the items, along with a prepaid shipping label to make sending it easier. You then drop this bag at a USPS or FedEx office. ThredUP pays for any items worth selling, while recycling or donating the rest.
11. NextDoor
Another app that gives you the option to give away items in addition to selling them, NextDoor is a great app for finding local buyers. The listings appear in the newsfeed of people in a set radius around your location, ensuring that the buyer would be a stone’s throw away. Like any other classifieds app, you have to deal with the payment details directly.
12. Tradesy
With most second-hand items, you would be lucky to find a single buyer. When it comes to selling luxury items, though, you’re virtually guaranteed a good price. Tradesy is an eCommerce platform geared toward reselling high-end fashion, facilitating delivery and returns to make the process seamless on both sides.
All you have to do is to set up a Tradesy “closet” including designer labels and upload a few photos. The app will clean up the pictures and post the product online, providing you with a prepaid shipping label when the item is sold. The proceeds can be withdrawn using a debit card, Paypal, or even a direct bank transfer.
13. Vinted
Available in only a few countries, Vinted is another app for selling clothing and accessories. It accepts other categories like toys, so that box of legos lying around is fair game. In a departure from other such sites, the transaction fee is levied on the buyer rather than the seller, making listing your product on Vinted completely free.
14. Chairish
So far we have looked at websites for selling used clothes and electronics for the most part. But what about high-quality vintage furniture? Old school furniture – or decor – commands a good resale value, so giving it up for a pittance at a yard sale isn’t the best idea.
That’s where Chairish comes in. A curated site for chic home decorations and furniture, Chairish is an amazing platform for selling antique furniture sets and getting a good valuation. Buyers can use its iPhone app to get a feel for how the product will look like in their homes, a feature that is unfortunately only available on iOS devices for now.
What is the Best Way to Sell Your Used Stuff Locally?
The best way to sell any of your second-hand stuff depends on the items in question. As you might expect, valuable items with good resale value can be sold through proper e-commerce channels, while you can offload everyday stuff through local listings.
Thus you get two distinct categories of selling apps. Specialized fashion or luxury marketplaces like Tradesy or Poshmark help get you a good price for your designer clothes, while general classifieds apps like OfferUp or Craigslist CPlus allow you to create listings and connect with locals directly.
Whichever method you decide to use, it is always a good idea to get rid of unused stuff to clear up space and net some extra cash.
