When it comes to popular selling apps, Mercari is definitely at the top of the list.
You can sell almost anything on Mercari. And this massive marketplace is perfect for flipping or just selling unused things from around your home.
But like any resale platform, it's important to understand Mercari selling fees and how this might impact your bottom line.
I’m going to break down all of the selling fees on Mercari you’ll run into selling, shipping, processing payments, and more.
And, this post is even going to compare Mercari versus some other massive resale marketplaces like eBay and Poshmark so you can decide which platform is right for you.
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What Are Mercari Selling Fees?
High selling fees can hurt your profits, so it’s important to crunch the numbers before you list.
Luckily, Mercari is one of the most low cost platforms out there, and there are many popular things you can sell.
However, there are several selling fees on Mercari you should factor into your pricing and product sourcing so you ensure you turn a profit.
Mercari Seller Fees
Mercari is a popular selling app because you can list items for sale right from your smartphone and listing is completely free. However, you pay a 10% Mercari seller fee when you make a sale.
Paying 10% is fairly standard in terms of online selling fees, and Mercari is similar to eBay which usually charges around 12.5% in seller fees.
However, one advantage of Mercari is that you can relist your items as much as you want for free.
This is a good idea on Mercari since listings sometimes get lost if many people are selling similar items, so relisting helps refresh your listing.
Pro tip: Mercari offers smart pricing, a free program that lets Mercari set competitive pricing on your items depending on how many searches it’s getting. This can help you sell your items faster if you’re not too concerned about getting the highest price tag.
Payment Processing Fees
Mercari charges payment processing fees alongside seller fees when you make a sale. Mercari's payment processing fee is 2.9% of the sale price plus $0.30.
This means that if you sell a $100 item, Mercari takes $2.90 + $0.30 + $10 (the seller fee) for a total of $13.20. Leaving you with $86.80 in the bank.
Money Transfer Fees
Seller and payment processing fees are the two main fees on Mercari.
However, when you make a sale, funds appear in your Mercari account once the buyer confirms they received their goods and everything is as advertised and there aren't any disputes.
But, you have to transfer money from Mercari to your bank account, and this can sometimes lead to additional fees as well.
Thankfully, Mercari offers free direct deposits for amounts over $10. For direct deposit amounts under $10, you pay a $2 fee.
Mercari takes around 5 business days to transfer money to your bank account, so it's an effective way to make some quick money if you have lots of stuff to sell.
But if you need the money even sooner, you can choose the instant transfer option to get your funds immediately for a $2 fee.
Promotion Fees
One useful Mercari selling trick is to pay to promote your listings so more potential buyers see your products.
Promoting listings is honestly a good idea because Mercari is very saturated for some product categories. And if you're selling a high-ticket item, spending a bit of money on promotion doesn't eat too much of your profits.
You can promote your listing by using the “Promote” button.
Mercari reduces your listing price by 5% when you promote it, boosts it in search results, and also sends a notification to everyone that liked your listing.
You can also choose “Offer to Likers” and reduce your price by 10% (to a minimum of $6), and this sends it to everyone that liked your item. This promotion is available for 24hrs and sends to up to 50 likers.
These promotions aren't a direct Mercari seller fee, but you're reducing the price of your listings to try and get sales faster.
Other Types Of Mercari Fees
The main fees on Mercari are seller fees and payment processing fees. You don't have to promote your listings or use instant transfer.
However, you can incur some additional fees if you're not careful:
- Failed Direct Deposit: If your “free” direct deposit or $2 instant transfer fails for some reason, Mercari charges you $2, so make sure all of your bank information is correct.
- Instant Transfer Fee: I mentioned this one above, but the $2 is probably not worth it unless you really need the money right away.
- Transfer Under $10: I also mentioned this one, but you’re better off waiting until you have at least $10 in sales before transferring to your bank.
- Incorrect Shipping Details: This one is more tricky to avoid, but if you enter an incorrect package size or weight, Mercari charges the additional cost to your account after the item has been delivered.
The main way to avoid these extra selling fees on Mercari is to enter your banking information and shipping details very carefully.
And again, patience is another money-saver here, so avoid using instant transfer or making direct deposits under $10 if you can.
Does Mercari Charge Shipping Fees?
Unlike selling on the Facebook Marketplace which is great for in-person cash sales, you have to ship most Mercari sales to international buyers.
However, one perk of selling on Mercari is that you decide if you want to offer free shipping or if you want to charge the buyer with shipping costs.
If you're struggling to make sales and compete with other sellers, offering free shipping is definitely one way to gain a competitive edge.
When you ship stuff yourself on Mercari, you can choose any carrier you’re comfortable with. This is only recommended for experienced sellers with larger items.
You can also choose to use Mercari’s prepaid labels, but you need to make sure you’re weighing and packing your items correctly to avoid those additional fees I mentioned.
Mercari’s prepaid shipping labels cover items up to 150lbs and let you and the buyer track the item in transit. It also includes shipping insurance up to $200.
Unfortunately, Mercari’s shipping rates have gone up. They’re still offering a 43% rebate on retail shipping costs, but the increased rates are less than ideal for sellers.
Pro Tip: If you pay for shipping, make sure you factor the cost into your listing price! You need to ensure you're still turning a profit when you factor in Mercari's fees for sellers, payment processing fees, and shipping costs.
Mercari Fees vs Poshmark Fees Vs eBay Fees
Websites like Poshmark and eBay are incredibly popular resale alternatives to Mercari.
Poshmark is great for selling clothing and accessories online. As for eBay, it's one of the largest marketplaces in the world where you can sell anything from electronics to collectibles like Pokemon cards.
However, fees are an important consideration when choosing a resale platform. So, let's see how Mercari fees stack up against eBay fees and Poshmark fees.
eBay fees
eBay gives you 200 free listings a month, with every additional listing costing $0.35. These listing fees are non-refundable, so even if an item doesn’t sell you still have to cover the cost.
You can also pay a store subscription to up your free listings and get access to other promotional tools and discounted fees.
As for seller fees, eBay charges 10% to 12% for most item categories, up to $750.
This is fairly similar to Mercari's seller fee structure, although eBay gets a bit pricier if you're listing hundreds of items per month (although this isn't so common.)
Additionally, shipping on eBay is far more complicated because you have to set all of the rates yourself and consider things like:
- Carriers
- Shipping weights
- Package sizes
- Shipping classes
The Verdict: The fees are pretty comparable if you have under 200 listings, but the Mercari experience is much simpler and less time consuming. Experienced sellers can benefit from shipping through eBay as you can work towards cheaper shipping rates, but it’s a process that takes time and effort.
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Poshmark Fees
Poshmark selling fees are a little different from Mercari fees since fees are based on pricing.
Here's how Poshmark fees work:
- Items Under $15: Pay a flat fee of $2.5 per sale.
- Items Over $15: Pay 20% in seller fees.
Shipping fees are also different from Mercari since Poshmark charges buyers a flat rate of $7.95 for every sale.
This means you don’t have to worry about shipping at all, but buyers are less likely to jump on an item when they have to pay for shipping, so it’s harder to make sales overall.
You can offer shipping discounts, but this eats away at your overall profits if you don’t account for it in your item's price.
The Verdict: Mercari has much lower fees than Poshmark, even on cheaper items. The flat rate shipping Poshmark offers seems nice, but it’s much easier to cover the cost on Mercari and make sales faster by offering free shipping.
Overall, picking a winner in the Mercari vs Poshmark debate really depends on the type of products you sell online, but Mercari has lower fees.
Is It Worth It To Sell On Mercari?
So, are Mercari selling fees worth it?
Although Mercari is a pretty saturated market (meaning there are lots of sellers selling lots of stuff) it’s still worth it if you’re trying to get into resale.
More experienced buyers might have better luck on eBay, but Mercari makes selling so easy and pretty inexpensive– so it’s definitely a good place to start.
If you have a wide variety of things to sell, especially non-clothing items, Mercari is great. Plus, buyers on the platform are open to second hand items that might have a little wear to them.
Websites like Depop and Poshmark might be better if you’re focused on clothing, shoes, and accessories, but it’s not unheard of to sell clothes on Mercari.
There’s also no denying that the low fees and zero listing costs on Mercari are very enticing to sellers.
Most other selling platforms charge additional fees and have higher rates, which is an important thing to consider when looking for the right platform for you.
Extra Reading – The Best Side Gigs To Make More Money.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Percentage Does Mercari Take From Sales?
Mercari takes 10% in fees from sales. It also charges a 2.9% + $0.30 payment processing fee on every sale as well.
Is It Better To Pay For Your Own Shipping On Mercari?
Shipping on your own can usually be cheaper than relying on Mercari's prepaid shipping labels. However, you have to do more work and find couriers that can deliver packages for you at affordable prices. For beginner sellers, it might be easier to stick with shipping through Mercari instead.
Is There A Monthly Fee For Mercari?
Mercari is completely free for buyers and sellers, and you don't need to pay for a monthly membership to use the platform. However, Mercari makes money by charing various seller fees and payment processing fees, so you pay when you make sales on this marketplace.
Final Thoughts
Overall, there is really no harm in listing your items on Mercari.
Mercari fees for sellers are competitive, and the platform is extremely easy to use, which is great for beginners.
Plus, free listings mean you can set up shop without paying anything until you make a sale.
Mercari also informs you what you're going to earn from every sale after fees right away (unlike eBay which sends you an invoice weeks later) so you can know right away if a listing is worth it.
In any case, I hope this article helped you decide if Mercari fees for selling are worth it for you!
Just remember to factor in all the various fees into your listing price so you can turn a nice profit and make money online!
