If you’re anything like me, your wardrobe will be in a constant state of flux, with new additions going in until the drawers don’t shut and the doors pop open. Only then will a big clear out take place.
I’m not really one for fast fashion, I prefer to buy good quality clothes that I fully intend to wear long term, but sometimes I get carried away. I’m only human.
Back when I was younger I would give the clothes I didn’t want to friends or charity. Then one year, I had a holiday to save for and a couple of nice summer coats I no longer needed, so I decided to try selling them on ebay.
It changed everything for me, because I got more than I was expecting for them and it made me realise that my old clothes still had value. For a girl who was on and off broke, it was game changing.
That was a long time ago, and since then, apps like Vinted and Depop have come along to offer even easier ways to sell your old clothes, and it’s something I now do regularly.
I think you should too, and here’s why.
It’s good for the environment, it’s good for your pocket, and it’s good for all those people out there looking for a bargain.
Selling vs Donating
The big question for a lot of people, is whether to donate the clothes they no longer need, or try selling them.
First off, I want to tell you that there is no right or wrong answer to this question. They are your clothes so it is totally up to you.
What you choose to do will depend on you, the clothes you are looking to get rid of, and your needs at the time.
Ask yourself a few questions:
- Do you need the money?
- Do you have the time?
- Are any of your old clothes valuable/branded?
If you answered yes to all 3 questions then selling is definitely the way to go. If you answered no to all 3 then donating is probably for you. If you got a mixture of both then you will have to work it out for yourself, I’m afraid, but it should at least be easier to get to some sort of decision.
Donating is quick, easy, and you will get a nice fuzzy feeling because you have done something nice for charity. On the other hand, those clothes may never end up sold, and even if they are, you won’t be any better off for it.
Selling takes more effort but any money you make is yours to keep, and if you have clothes in good condition or any items by sought after brands, your chances of making the sale are high. It can also feel rewarding to have a big sell off – believe me, I’ve done it plenty of times!
How Much Are Your Old Clothes Worth?
This depends entirely on their brand and their condition, and to a lesser extent, when you are trying to sell them.
A well-worn pair of Levis will be worth more than a well-worn pair of jeans from Burton, for example, but a barely worn pair of Burton jeans might be worth almost as much as the well-worn Levis.
Think about what is in season too.
A big heavy winter coat will probably fetch less in Summer when there isn’t much demand for it than it would in the Autumn, when people are starting to think about wrapping up warm for Winter.
The value of second hand clothes can range wildly, from a single pound into the thousands, there are just so many factors that impact how much someone will be willing to pay for what you are selling.
As an example, an evening dress by a high street designer like Karen Millen, can fetch anything from £30 to £300, but equally, I’ve just looked on Vinted and found a rare Versace piece for £1,800. People even sell dresses from the likes of Primark for £1 or £2 each.
Shoes are another popular second hand buy, although these will generally need to be in comparatively better condition than other items, because let’s face it, who wants to wear someone else’s smelly trainers?
People try though, look at the state of these Ralph Lauren pumps:
Would you part with a quid for these doggy chew toys? I wouldn’t!
You can also find limited edition high end items like a pair of Dior trainers I saw costing £2,500, but it’s more usual to see trainers costing between £10 and £100 based on brand and condition.
On top of all of this, an often-overlooked factor is the quality of your photographs.
No one wants to buy a crumpled t-shirt photographed in a dark room surrounded by kid’s toys. You can get better prices for your clothes by displaying them somewhere neutral with plenty of natural light, presenting them neatly, and including a range of images.
Do Clothes Need to be New? Do People Buy Used?
A new or nearly new item will understandably be more appealing to buyers than something older and more heavily worn, but people definitely do buy clothes that are used.
Depop has more than 3.5 million active buyers in the UK, Vinted has 16 million users in the UK, and just about everyone has an ebay account by now, right?
These platforms would not exist if there was no demand.
And yes, there are new items on these platforms (with and without tags!), but the majority are not. Even then, the items that are new are not usually being sold by a business, but another member of the public. Maybe they bought a hat and never wore it, or didn’t fit into that dress and forgot to take it back in time.
For some people, buying used is a way to dress beyond their means. If someone on a £30k salary is interested in the sort of expensive designer gear found on platforms like Vestiaire, then buying used is the only affordable way to do it – the retail prices can be more than the mortgage.
What is important though, is that you are honest about the condition of the items you sell and highlight any imperfections. I have seen garments with small stains and missing buttons sell minutes after being listed – as long as people understand what they are buying there isn’t usually an issue.
So don’t think that just because your old clothes have a few bobbles or they are slightly worn around the cuffs that people won’t want them. Us Brits seem to have taken to the idea of buying second hand clothes with great enthusiasm, because who doesn’t love a bargain?
That said, don’t try and sell a pair of boots that are scuffed to the skin and have one heel missing – there are limits to how far people are willing to go with ‘used’ clothes.
Oh, and no underwear, there are other ‘marketplaces’ for that!
Top Marketplaces
There are more platforms for selling your old clothes than you might expect, especially in the high-end designer market.
For my money though, there are only a handful that your average person should be considering, and I will give you a quick rundown on them all here.
I’ve included one for selling more expensive items too.
Vinted
This is my favourite platform, and it’s where I buy and sell clothes approximately 80% of the time.
I love how simple and transactional the process is, and how quickly I can upload items, plus, the user base is so big that my clothes have always sold within a few days. People can make offers on Vinted, but you don’t have to accept them.
It has also started to expand to include homewear and entertainment, which I hope is as far as it goes or it risks becoming bloated, but at the moment, it’s the best dedicated platform for selling used clothes in the UK.
Fees: None! Vinted make their money from charging buyers a small percentage of whatever they pay the seller, so selling on Vinted is free.
Depop
In many ways Depop is the same as Vinted, but you will find more business sellers on there so the quality of items is probably higher.
This will attract a slightly different type of buyer who is willing to pay a little more, so if what you are selling is in very good condition, Depop might be right for you.
It also has a reputation for having more unusual items, stuff that is a little bit quirky – think comic strip jackets – so this would be another reason to choose them over Vinted.
It’s still a very simple platform to use when selling, but for me, not quite as good as Vinted.
Fees: Free to sell, but a 2.9% + 30p payment processing fee applies to sellers, and buyers also pay a small fee on top of their purchase price.
Ebay
If you want to sell in bulk or sell something high value, ebay could still be a viable option for you, especially since they scrapped selling fees for private sellers. On most items anyway, including clothes. This is doubly advantageous because they used to take a percentage of the delivery fee too, the big robbers. Not anymore.
It is also a better option for anyone who doesn’t like using their phone, since it’s much easier to use their platform on a laptop.
However, it is such a huge marketplace that it isn’t the most user friendly journey when listing items. It’s a more laborious process.
The platform processes its own payments though, and pays out quickly, and with it being such a long-established business your items will be exposed to a huge number of people that other platforms can’t match.
However, for low value items I would suspect ebay is more effort than it is worth.
Fees: Free for private sellers since April 2024.
Facebook Marketplace
We all know what Facebook Marketplace can be like – it’s a bloomin’ minefield at the best of times, and not ideal for selling clothes, but if you need actual cash in your hand, it’s the easiest way to do it. Unlike Vinted or Depop, both of whom process payments through their platforms, Facebook Marketplace is a cash on collection/delivery situation.
So, you might end up in a scenario where someone turns up at your door with less than the agreed amount, or where you agree to deliver only to turn up at the buyer’s house and find they are out and you have wasted your time.
There are genuine buyers on there, but if you choose to sell via Facebook be prepared for lots of time wasters, scam artists, and questions that you have already answered in the listing.
On the plus side, it’s localised so will show your items to people closest to your first and foremost.
Fees: None. You wouldn’t pay for this sort of service.
Shpock
Shpock used to be a bit of a halfway house between Marketplace and platforms like ebay, connecting buyers and sellers but letting them handle the payments themselves.
However, it now allows payments through the app, which it releases once both parties confirm they are happy with the transaction. This makes it a bit fiddly with extra steps to complete.
On the plus side, it can display items based on proximity, so you can arrange to pick up rather than waiting for delivery if that suits you better.
It’s not ideal for selling clothes, and you do tend to find more tat on there, so the sort of buyers you can expect will be similar to those on marketplace. I have included it here as an alternative to Facebook Marketplace because payments are safer, but it still has the local classifieds feel.
Fees: No fees unless you want to promote your items to make them appear higher in the listings
Vestiaire
If you have something expensive to sell, this is the place to do it.
There are other platforms available for selling luxury labels, but Vestiaire seems to be the most popular, and lists items from the hundreds of pounds to the thousands.
I have never used it myself, but my friend once had a Louis Vuitton handbag to sell and did so successfully via Verstiaire. The company check the authenticity of products so it is more expensive, but when you are dealing with high value items it is to be expected.
Professionals and regular folk can sell on the platform, which is a breeze to use.
Fees: Certain brands free, others 10% of listing price plus £3 or 3% transaction fee, depending on the price of the item.
Is it Worth it?
If you’ve only got one old Next t-shirt to sell for £4, then maybe not. However, if you are having a big clear out and have 30 items all worth a fiver or so, well, that’s £150 if it all goes, which I would say is well worth the effort.
If you photograph everything in batches, upload in batches, then pack and post in batches, it doesn’t take a great deal of time or effort to get your old togs sold. You can do it in front of the TV.
If you use a specialist platform like Vinted, you can do it all from your phone too, and it is 10 times quicker than a more general platform like Ebay. Plus, it attracts serious buyers unlike localised platforms like Shpock or the dreaded Facebook Marketplace.
If you only have a small number of items but they are of higher value then it is definitely worthwhile spending a few minutes uploading them for sale.
Even if what you have isn’t worth much, there are still ways to sell your clothes that will make an impact.
For example, some people sell their old clothes in trickles throughout the year, a few pairs of trousers here, that old jumper there, a set of t-shirts at the end of summer, etc. Then they keep all the money they make in a separate savings pot and use the money at the end of the year to help pay for Christmas.
You can structure it however you like, but this is a way to make something that might feel a bit fruitless actually worth the effort at the end of it.