March 26, 2021 Dave Desmarais

The 10 Best Clothing Resale Apps For 2021

The globe is slowly getting back to normal after the pandemic. It has many looking for new and different ways to make extra cash. Selling  pre-loved apparel is one of the easiest and best ways to do this. There is an abundance of unique styles out there and people are seeking them out. Additionally, the vintage and secondhand clothing market is booming. It’s growing so fast that many of the major global retailers you know are getting into the game. There’s no better time then now to declutter that closet. If you’re looking for the best clothing resale apps to sell your used clothes, here’s a list of the 10 best (sorted alphabetically) for 2021.

Be sure to also check out our articles on measuring clothes with an app and what measurements you should provide in your listings.

Depop

Depop app

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 21 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: 10% when it sells

2021 is the 10 year anniversary for Depop. Founded by Simon Beckerman, Depop was originally envisioned as a way for readers to purchase items featured in his magazine (PIG magazine). What began as a social network of sorts quickly turned into one of the globes premier places for buying and selling clothing secondhand. Depop was founded in the United Kingdom, though their largest user-base comes from the United States and Italy.

Depop’s app is minimalistic in design and a bit reminiscent of Instagram. Their fee structure is simple with no cost to list an item. You can sell more than just clothing – including art, illustrations, books, and records. There is a strong community surrounding Depop and the company has global aspirations for improving the circular economy. Read more about their sustainability goals here.

eBay

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 182 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: First 250 items free

Cost to sell: Varies by type, price and category

eBay has been a pillar in the resale community since its start in 1995. The fist item that sold on eBay was a broken laser pointer. The founder was so nervous the buyer did not know the item was broken, he actually reached out to him. The buyer told him he in fact was a collector of broken laser pointers. That was the moment he knew eBay would be a successful venture.

There are literally millions of clothing items for sale on eBay. It’s been one of the best clothing resale apps for many years. Sellers have the option to sell with or without creating their own store. This is where eBay’s fee structure varies. For those selling under 250 items per month, there is no need to setup a store and there are no fees to list. But if you’re looking to sell more than 250 items per month, creating your own store is the way to go. Given their longevity and number of users, eBay is always looking for ways to help sellers. For instance, in spring of 2021 they’re revamping their fee structure by making it more attractive to sellers. They even offer unique features like Time Away, because we all can’t be attached to our stores 24/7.

Grailed

Grailed app

Community Type: Men’s peer to peer

Users: 4 million

Get the app: iOS only

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: 9% when it sells (up from 6% in 2020)

Similar to ThredUP being a platform for women and children, Grailed is menswear only. They’re also the first on this list that when it comes to mobile apps, they’re iOS only. Grailed does a great job of organizing items listed for sale and the app is very user friendly. They’ve built a strong global community of shoe and fashion brand enthusiasts. Thus items on Grailed tend to command higher selling prices. Grailed is also the place to list if you have speciality or highly sought after brands. This is a reminder to do your homework before you list and price.

Items listed on Grailed are charged the same commission regardless if they sell domestically or internationally. Though they are a site for men only, Grailed launched a platform for women in 2017 called Heroine.

Letgo (now part of Offerup)

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 20 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: Minimum of $1.99 or 12.9% of shipped items

Letgo is a marketplace unique from most others on this list because it’s designed for localized buying and selling. This puts Letgo in the same category as Facebook Marketplace. The company has raised over $500 million since its inception in 2015 and it originally came to be as a competitor to Craigslist and eBay. In late 2020 Legto was officially acquired by Offerup. Now they support domestic and international shipping, meaning sellers now have the best of both worlds.

Like eBay and Facebook Marketplace, Offerup attracts millions of users each month because any used item is fair game. In addition to selling clothes, users can list cars, furniture, video games and more. Offerup boasts the ability to list an item in 30 seconds with their mobile app. One of their most beloved features is their messaging tool. Buyers can instantly communicate with you via a private chat, meaning some price negotiating may take place. To help items sell faster, Offerup allows you to promote items you have listed for sale. For a fee of course.

Poshmark

Best clothing resale apps for 2021Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 70 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: $2.95 for items under $15, 20% fee for items above $15

Having recently gone public, Poshmark is one of the globes most well known vintage and secondhand clothing resale apps. They do a great job at providing resellers with the tools they need to be successful. Each seller has their own store and there is strong support for promoting these stores.

With the Poshmark app, each seller can list items in around 60 seconds. Once an item sells, Poshmark sends you a prepaid, pre-addressed shipping label that tracks the package and covers you in the event it’s lost. Poshmark allows returns and they make it convenient by providing a prepaid shipping label for you to track the item. This allows sellers to provide the ultimate in customer service without the hassle.

Rebelle

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 2 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: Commission paid to Rebelle when your item sells, starts at 17% and goes up depending on selling price

If your pre-loved fashions consist mostly of designer items, Rebelle is the app for you. Similar to The Real Real, Rebelle offers two ways to sell. The first option is to sell on your own using their app. The second way is through their concierge service. Though unlike The Real Real, who offers the option to have someone come to your house to source your items, Rebelle requires you send your items to them. After which they take care of the entire photographing and listing process. You simply collect your money when items sell.

Swap.com

Swap.com app

 

Community Type: Consignment

Users: 3 million

Get the app: Android (could not find iOS app link)

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: 85% for items $8 and under, 30% for items over $8

Swap.com is more similar to ThredUP than to other apps on this list in that you ship your clothes to them to be sold. This makes Swap.com feel more like a consignment store than a peer-to-peer resale app. If you’re not the do it yourself type, this is the app for you. Simply gather up your old clothes and send them in.

The company has a documented selection criteria for the articles they will accept and put on their site. They will actually charge you a fee if 40% or more of the items you send in don’t meet their criteria, so be careful what you send in. If the first set of items you send in meet their criteria, you’ll be invited to become a Premier Seller and thus will be invited to participate again. Like most consignment, they handle the photography and listing process, hence the reason for the higher selling fees.

Tradesy (now part of Vestiaire Collective)

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 11 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: $7.50 for items under $50, 19.8% on items above $50

Tradesy is another marketplace boasting luxury items only. They advertise a 100% authenticity guarantee, meaning if something is sold on the platform that isn’t authentic, the buyer gets their money back. So don’t be out there selling fake goods.

Tradesy offers free shipping options for sellers and pays for and processes returns. Truly taking the hassle out of resale. Designer buyers expect an upscale experience, and to accommodate this, Tradesy retouches all of your photos at no charge to keep a clean look on the site. Image retouching is somewhat common for the best clothing resale apps an is much welcomed.

Tradesy was acquired by Vestiaire Collective in March of 2022.

Vestiaire Collective

Vestiaire Collective app

 

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 10 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: Varies depending sale price

All of the apps on this list care highly about the quality of the products sold on their platforms. Vestiaire Collective takes it to a different level. The listing process looks the same as others at the start. Simply download their app, take photos and create your listing. Though when an item sells, you ship it to them, not the buyer. At this point VC performs a quality and authentication inspection.

All the product images on the VC platform have the same look and feel. This is because VC wanted a clean look, and thus they edit each photo that comes through from sellers to remove the background.

Vinted

Community Type: Peer to peer

Users: 37 million

Get the app: iOS or Android

Cost to list: Free

Cost to sell: Free

Vinted is a popular resale clothing app if you’re located outside of the United States. Though Vinted is available in the US, their primary user-base is located throughout the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, Austria, and France.

Vinted changed the game by implementing a no sale commission when selling on their platform. How is this so? This makes Vinted unique and one of the best clothing resale apps of 2021. The way the company allows sellers to list and sell for free is through their Vinted Balance and Buyer Protection services. The selling fees are actually passed onto the buyer. Great news for sellers!

Vinted offers both web and app based selling. Setting up an account is simple and listing is always free. The focus of the platform is apparel, but Vinted also allows the selling of accessories and women’s and men’s grooming products.

About Tailored

Tailored is the creator of Capture, a patented garment measuring app for your phone. With a single photo, Capture instantly provides the physical dimensions of a garment.

The Capture app was developed to help clothing resale businesses reduce manual tasks required to list clothing for sale online. Capture integrates seamlessly with many of the best clothing resale apps on the market today.

For an in-depth look into how to be great at all things resale, check out our ultimate how to guide.

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