Temu vs eBay: Which is Better? [2024]

Temu vs eBay: Shopping at malls and department stores is still an active preference for many – but it has clearly lost value because of online shopping since you get more options and offers along with less hassle. 

For the same reason, we have so many online shopping platforms ruling the globe – two of them being the recent giant Temu, and one of the veterans – eBay.

Now, looking closely at both these platforms – they are quite different with the main similarity of being an online shopping platform because, while Temu is an e-commerce site, eBay is a marketplace. 

However, there are many of you still confused between these for choosing favorites. But, it’s time you end your research because we have presented a highly informative comparison article between Temu vs eBay right below in this article – filled with all the details you must know before deciding your favorites. 

Forget TEMU! Here's 55 Ridiculously Cheap Alternatives to Temu!

Temu vs eBay: Intro

Temu

If you are a veteran shopper in the US – there’s no way you have never heard about Temu — an online marketplace that surprisingly got millions of customers' attention in a few days.

As of June 2024, it is one of the leading e-commerce websites in the nation — shipping in the US and a couple of more countries only. The main highlight of it is that it offers highly discounted items from its origin country, China. 

Apart from that, it’s also famous for offering a vast collection of categories to choose from – probably offering each and everything you need to buy for different events and occasions, everything from clothes to garden essentials. 

eBay

eBay is one of the popular multinational e-commerce companies where you get to meet and buy from popular brands as well as from other consumers. 

While it offers products from name brands, it’s also a good and trusted website to sell and buy used items that can still work pretty well. Additionally, it acts as the best online marketplace with low prices guaranteed for the majority of the items. 

Along with that, it has many more highlights like a good list of categories to choose from, some more customer-friendly terms and policies, and free shipping on most of the items.

Temu vs eBay: Site and App UI

Temu

Not going to lie – as soon as we visited its website and app, it kind of seemed a bit confusing and crowded – but it was super easy to navigate and understand what goes where after a couple of minutes. 

The homepage of the platforms is, as expected, filled with all types of crucial data, like the available deals, popular headlines, popular categories that have massive sales ongoing, and the big list of categories you can shop from. They also have over 100 listings available if you scroll a bit down. 

Overall, the user interface of both the website and app is user-friendly, and one can hardly get lost with its clear instructions and map.

eBay

Compared to Temu, eBay has a decent and spacious homepage, even when it has mentioned all the important notices and data right in front.

The homepage is filled with the list of categories it offers, all the available deals and promotions, and at the right side of the top header — you get the sign-in space along with an option to navigate to the sellers’ section.

When you tap on a listing – similar to Temu, it is filled with all the information you need about a specific product – from the available deals to its payment options, returns information, delivery & shipping details, and more.

Winner: eBay

Temu vs eBay: Categories and Quality

Temu

Since its big list of categories is one of the main highlights of the brand – it’s of course not going to disappoint you. Its list of categories includes over 100 subcategories and over 20 main categories.

Bags, luggage, apparel, appliances, pet supplies, footwear, baby, maternity, tools, home improvement, industrial, commercial, smart, home accessories, musical instruments, games, beauty, home decor, kitchen essentials, health, craft, garden supplies, automotive, and many such categories are included in the list. 

Talking about the quality, since we’re talking about Chinese products – they seem to be quite durable and can last a good set of months, but, definitely not more than that, which can vary according to warranties.

eBay

Compared to Temu, eBay doesn’t have a massive list of departments to offer but has a decent number of departments available. 

It offers you a variety of products through categories such as electronics, motors, fashion, sports, industrial equipment, home decor, garden, beauty, health, fashion, collectibles, and art. 

As for the quality, if you’re talking about new products – they are from name brands, and the quality has to be satisfying. But, for eBay refurbished items, the durability and quality vary, but won’t last much longer since they’ll still be used products. 

Winner: Temu for categories and eBay for quality

Temu vs eBay: Prices

Temu

Another main highlight for Temu, as already mentioned, is the prices. There are a couple of sites offering you similar prices in the market since they directly come from original factories – but all of them have a minimum order quantity, which you can’t find at Temu – a big advantage.

The prices are the cheapest and all our factory-based. Since Temu is a subsidiary of one of the top Chinese e-commerce giants – it has connections through which it offers cheap prices with tens of discount offers available all the time of the year.

eBay

eBay is only seen to be offering new products from well-known and trusted brands and individuals, so the prices will not be much different from the original market value, compared to which, all the refurbished items will be priced accordingly. 

They will be moderate, cheap, and expensive as per the brand you are choosing.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs eBay: Dispatch and Shipping 

Temu

The dispatch time for Temu warehouses is 1 to 3 days for processing the order. As for the delivery estimate – the parcel usually comes around in 7 to 15 days.

eBay

The days of dispatch for individual sellers depend on their will, but for better services – most of them opt for 2 days of dispatch. As for the delivery time — it can take from the same working day to 30 business days for your parcel to be delivered.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs eBay: Returns and Refunds

Temu

You are given free returns for your first order within 90 days from the date of purchase. After that, you will still get 90 days to return, but the shipping fee will be charged.

The credit time for a refund depends on your financial institution, but it’ll probably take 5 to 14 business days — even 30 days for some, to credit the refund to the original payment account. 

eBay

Since eBay is a marketplace, it depends on the seller to set the return policy – and most of them offer a 30-day return policy. The number of days can vary for others and can be reduced to 15 days or so accordingly.

Similarly, the refund time depends on the sellers, but in the majority of the cases, most of the individual sellers pass the amount as soon as they receive the returned parcel, but others can take more time. 

Also, refunds take about 3 to 5 business days to go back to the original payment account.

Winner: Temu

Temu vs eBay: Which is Better?

Starting with the user interface — both platforms seem to be having a user-friendly UI for both their apps and websites. But, compared to Temu, eBay has a bit simpler UI which makes it the winner.

However, Temu is the winner for both categories and pricing because its list of categories is clearly bigger than eBay and the prices are also cheaper. 

On the contrary, the quality of the new items bought from eBay is better than the Chinese products from Temu. Of course, eBay’s refurbished items may not hold better quality — but, they are still professionally refurbished. 

Yet, Temu takes another victory for having less dispatch and delivery timing compared to eBay. eBay’s parcels from well-known brands may take fewer days to dispatch – but, since individual sellers can take more time — it’s quite sad because not all buyers can be that patient.

Along with that — Temu also has more days for its return policy. The refund might take longer than on eBay, but, at eBay, you are not certain while Temu offers 100% assurance.  

As you might have already guessed, Temu has a clear win over eBay. On the contrary, we’d actually suggest you go for eBay if you are interested in buying items from popular brands. It’s also a good marketplace to sell the things that can still work but you don’t need them anymore.

But, Temu is the ultimate destination for those who wish for cheaper prices, many options to choose from, and massive deals available all the time. So, giving both the platforms a try and then making a decision sounds like the most satisfying option. 

Frequently Asked Questions