Mercari vs Ebay vs Poshmark – You would need a marketplace for your products and services if you are looking for a side job or want to start your own company. Poshmark, eBay, and Mercari are examples of simple marketplaces for vendors, but how do they compare and which is better for your needs?
We can equate Mercari vs Ebay vs Poshmark so you can make an educated decision on your new source of income.
Mercari vs Ebay vs Poshmark: Let’s begin!
Mercari
Mercari is widely used buy and selling platform with more than 100 million users all around the world.
Mercari Pros:
Small Commissions: Mercari has one of the lowest commissions in the industry, at just 10%.
Easy to List: Mercari has made a lot of updates, including the ability to list up to 12 photos. You can list with your phone or a screen, and Mercari is constantly improving the ease and speed at which you can list products.
Mercari also has some excellent discounts for those who want to list their pieces. This may include commission discounts on specific groups on specific days.
Private Chat: You can contact sellers directly to ask questions or discuss the price in private.
Mercari Cons:
Lack of sophistication: Mercari believes it is lacking in refinement. When you browse for objects, for example, it defaults to showing available and sold items. This means you will have to look for a lot of things. Furthermore, you must browse through all of your listings, which can be inconvenient if you need to track a particular object.
Increased Shipping Costs: Mercari recently increased its shipping costs. Although it is less costly than standard USPS delivery, it makes products weighing more than 1 pound more expensive than Poshmark. This means you will either have to persuade the buyer to pay extra or accept the increased prices.
Slow Payments: The funds will be kept until you and your buyer both rate each other. This can be done within 48 hours of arrival, but if your customer does not score you immediately, you will have to wait several days for your funds to be automatically released. Free payment transactions can take up to 5 working days, or you can pay $2 a month for transfers up to $500.
Scammers: While every purchasing and selling website is open to scammers, Mercari has been the subject of a variety of reports. Mercari, on the other hand, is working to strengthen policing and practices in order to reduce this.
EBay
Unlike Mercari and Poshmark, eBay helps you to sell anywhere in the world. This opens up the possibility of still more profits, and you can sell almost everything.
eBay Pros:
Call Customer Support: If you have a pressing issue, you can contact eBay's phone customer service for prompt assistance. It is open every day from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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eBay needs a limited time investment, including the fact that you must log into your machine. You can list your things in minutes and do not have to worry about sharing or endorsing them.
Optional Extras: On eBay, returns are optional, and if you ship with PayPal, you can take advantage of commercial shipping prices. This will not only save you a few bucks, but it will also be more environmentally friendly.
eBay Cons:
Slower Payments: Just because you bought something or won an auction does not guarantee you will get paid right away. You must wait for the customer to pay you, which may take many days. You may need to contact the customer by email or invoice if they do not pay. You can file a complaint against a non-paying customer, so you may have to leave the item on the shelf before the dispute is settled.
Returns up to 180 days: If customers pay via PayPal, they have 180 days to file a return. This ensures that even though you claimed on your eBay listing that you do not allow refunds, the buyer will challenge their payment. This means you could get a note months after you have spent your money that your customer wishes to refund the piece.
Slower Listing: As compared to other sites, listing on eBay takes a little longer. For each object, there are many screens to go through. You can, however, duplicate listings if you are selling multiples or make minor changes to the listing if you are selling slightly different products.
Poshmark
Poshmark is a social marketplace where you can leave comments, post photos, organize virtual events, and even invite new Poshers. Poshmark gatherings and parties take place in real life in various locations.
Poshmark Pros:
You can list as many things as you want, and the process is incredibly simple. All you have to do is take some photos with your phone, talk or type a synopsis, and press a few buttons. This ensures that each listing takes just a minute or two to complete without requiring you to log into your machine.
You can give private discounts, offer discounts for multiple orders, and directly share your goods, among other selling features. Poshmark also provides free authentication on premium goods worth more than $500, giving shoppers peace of mind when making larger transactions.
There are no returns after your customer has purchased and approved your piece. There is no reason to be concerned with putting money aside in case of a return. The only exception is whether you are the subject of a lawsuit, but otherwise, no refunds or returns are allowed.
Only positive feedback is displayed: Only positive reviews are shown, whereas offensive remarks or racial slurs are not.
Fast Payouts: Anytime you buy something, the payment is accepted right away. When a customer receives an item, he or she has three days to approve it before it is accepted instantly.
Poshmark Cons:
High Commission Rates: For goods under $15, there is a flat commission rate of $2.95, but for purchases above $15, the origination fee is 20%. Although this is not the biggest resale site commission, it will eat into your earnings. You can only get $4.05. if you sell an item for $7 and the buyer pays $13.79 for it, including delivery.
Shipping costs are off-putting: With orders under 5 pounds, shipping is $6.79. Although this is ideal for a pair of boots or a larger piece, it is much too much for a bracelet or a pair of earrings.
Poshmark's Time-Consuming Sales Process: If you want to build a serious side business, you should be mindful that Poshmark is time-consuming. Although listing your things just takes a few minutes, you will need to devote time to publicizing them. This means you will have to devote a considerable amount of time to the app, which translates to very little every hour as you consider your earnings.
Lack of Immediate Customer Support: Poshmark's customer service is only available by email, and responses will take up to two business days. These responses are frequently repetitive and do not specifically answer your query.
Lots of Wholesale Items: Poshmark's wholesale site has been flooded with sellers since the Boutique section launched. This means fierce rivalry, making it more difficult to make a living.
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Which is the best option: Mercari vs Ebay vs Poshmark?
These platforms have its own set of advantages and disadvantages, making it difficult to pick the best one for you. Fortunately, each website attracts a different set of vendors, which we will go through in detail here to help you decide which one is right for you.
It is impossible to answer a question like “Is Poshmark or Mercari better?” so it all based on what you are offering. Poshmark caters to those who wish to make money off their wardrobe. Poshmark might be just what you are looking for if you have a few designer pieces you would like to sell to help fund your next investment.
While there is a boutique segment, it is usually crammed with supermarket products, making the competition very competitive. To sell on Poshmark, make sure your pieces are in good shape and that you have the required designer credentials.
When you look at the goods for sale and see any bargains you wish to purchase for yourself, you can find that your earnings are reduced.
Mercari does have more versatility. Your pieces do not have to be exclusive to in-good-condition designer clothes. You can sell almost anything, but you must restrict your sales to Americans and be upfront about the item's quality.
The commission rate is reasonable, and the products are simple to list. However, some of the shipping prices can be prohibitively expensive, particularly if you wish to provide free shipping and must bear the cost.
You must still anticipate having to wait for the funds to arrive. You must not only wait for the customer to pay, but also for the funds to be transferred, which takes 5 business days unless you wish to pay an additional fee.
eBay is a long-established online marketplace that allows you to sell almost everything. There is a tiered fee system that can take some getting used to, as you may need to add these charges into your sale prices and weigh it to figure out your delivery costs.
Since the listing process is a bit more cumbersome than the other two alternatives, it allows you to sell vast quantities of goods without having to advertise them.
Although, like Mercari, you will have to wait for your customer to pay, if you use PayPal, the funds will be eligible in your account for other payments or bank transfers.
Cross Listing: Mercari vs Ebay vs Poshmark
You may want to try cross-listing if none of the sites are shouting that they are the best one for you. With free listings and other discounts, listing the products on different channels can be advantageous to reach a larger audience.
If you only have a small number of products, you will need to be fast because you will need to remove it from one site if it sells on the other. Cross-listing, on the other hand, can be very helpful if you are coordinated and can keep track of the listings.
If you are looking to clean out your wardrobe or start a side business to augment your salary, there are some excellent buying and selling opportunities.
Poshmark, Mercari, and eBay all have certain fantastic features to fit your needs. Only make sure you read the fine print to ensure that you get the best out of these sites and keep your future customers happy.
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