eBay vs. Poshmark vs. Mercari: Where Should You Actually Sell in 2026?
When deciding between eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari, new resellers often ask the wrong question. They ask, “Which app is the easiest to use?”
The “Operator” asks a different question: “Where is the liquidity?”
Liquidity is speed. It doesn’t matter if an app is “easy” if your item sits there for 6 months. In this eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari showdown, we are going to look at where the buyers actually are and how to protect your margins.
Stop being loyal to a platform. Be loyal to the profit. Here is the breakdown of the Big Three.
eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari: The Cheat Sheet
To understand the core differences in the eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari debate, you have to look at the fee structures and shipping models side-by-side.
| Feature | eBay | Poshmark | Mercari |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selling Fees | ~13.25% + $0.30 | 20% (Flat) | 10% (Flat) |
| Traffic (Liquidity) | High (Global) | Medium (USA/Canada) | Low/Medium |
| Shipping | Complex (Calculated) | Easiest (Flat 5lb label) | Medium (QR Codes) |
| Best For | Everything / Collectibles | Clothing & Shoes | Toys / Quick Flips |
1. eBay: The Global Ocean
The Vibe: The world’s biggest garage sale mixed with Amazon.
If you have something weird—a vintage VCR remote, a 1995 car part, or a specific replacement lens cap—it goes on eBay. Period. No other platform has the search volume for obscure items.
✅ The Wins
❌ The Headaches
The Operator’s Take
eBay is non-negotiable. It is the backbone of any serious reselling business. It is harder to learn, but it is where the serious money lives.
2. Poshmark: The Social Mall
The Vibe: Instagram meets a thrift store.
Poshmark is king for clothing, shoes, and handbags. It is built around brands. If you are selling a pair of Nike Dunks or a Lululemon hoodie, they will often sell faster and for a higher price here than on eBay.
The “Shipping Hack”: This is Poshmark’s superpower. They charge the buyer a flat fee, and you get a label that covers anything up to 5 lbs. Selling a heavy winter coat? On eBay, that costs $20 to ship across the country. On Poshmark, it costs the same as a t-shirt. Huge margin saver.
The Operator’s Take
The “Sharing” requirement (where you have to click share on your items daily) is a waste of human life. Use an automation bot (like Nifty or PosherVA) to handle this, or don’t bother with the platform.
3. Mercari: The Digital Yard Sale
The Vibe: Cleaning out the closet. Fast, cheap, no-nonsense.
Mercari has struggled to find its identity, flipping its fee structure back and forth. As of 2025, they have settled back to a 10% seller fee.
However, there is a silver lining: they eliminated the “payment processing fee.” So while Poshmark takes 20% and eBay takes ~13%, Mercari sits comfortably at a flat 10%. The catch? They charge the buyer a service fee now, which can scare some customers away at checkout.
The Operator’s Take
Mercari is perfect for “bread and butter” items that don’t fit on Poshmark—like used toys, video games, or kitchen gadgets. The 10% fee is competitive, but don’t rely on it as your main store. Use it to clear out lower-value inventory.
The Verdict: The Hybrid Strategy
So, who wins the eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari battle? None of them.
If you list a pair of boots only on eBay, you are invisible to the millions of people shopping on Poshmark. If you list only on Mercari, you miss the global reach of eBay.
The “Operator” strategy is to list once and sell everywhere. But let’s be honest: manually copy-pasting photos and descriptions to three different sites is a nightmare. It kills your hourly rate.
That is why we use Nifty. It lets you create one perfect listing and “clone” it to eBay, Poshmark, and Mercari in seconds. It lets you win the eBay vs Poshmark vs Mercari game by playing all fields at once.
