How to Sell Clothes Online & Make Money From Cleaning Out Your Closet
Here’s how to sell clothes online while organizing your closet.
Your closets could be your payday!
I personally love purging my stuff; partly because I discover things I’ve forgotten about and partly because I can sell clothes online and make money cleaning your closet! As someone who is far too guilty of thinking, “I’m going to keep this because I’m sure I’ll wear it someday,” I RARELY end up wearing it someday. It’s better to just let it go.
Check out these easy ways to make some cash when you let go of those gently-loved (and sometimes brand new) cleaning treasures. Cha-ching!
Here are some places you can sell clothes online after cleaning out your closet:
1. Poshmark
The great aspect of selling on Poshmark is the control you have over the buying and selling process. You set your prices and you’re free to negotiate with offers that come in below asking. This means you can determine the piece’s end value.
Poshmark also hosts Posh Parties where you can browse, buy, and list products within a particular category. Shipping is super easy from the seller’s side. They also take a pretty standard commission from your sale (they share what that is before you decide to list on the site).
“I’ve bought and sold quite a few pieces on Poshmark and it’s been a great experience every time! I’ve purchased designer shoes that were discontinued, and have sold multiple bridesmaid’s dresses that had been collecting dust. Anything that has some sort of value, I always opt to try to sell on Poshmark before donating, and I can usually get pretty lucky with a sale.
For the best exposure, you’ll want to promote your clothes when a Posh Party is happening, that way they get in front of prospective buyers’ eyes who are interested in that brand or style of attire. You can negotiate price or swap with clothes from another seller’s closet’. It’s pretty fun honestly, but you’ll just want to be sure you aren’t spending more on the site than you’re making! 😂” – Emily at Hip2Save
2. OfferUp
Looking for a super simple way to buy and sell things locally? Look no further than OfferUp! You can browse and sell clothes, furniture, and even cars. Simply open the app, snap a pic (or multiple pictures) of your item, add in a title, description, and price, and list it — it really doesn’t get any easier than that!
From there, you can message buyers who are interested, and they’ll be able to rate your profile based on their purchasing experience. Being quick to answer any questions, promptly shipping (or arranging a meeting to make the transaction in person), and ensuring your description matches your item are all simple ways to earn yourself a good rating.
3. Depop
Depop is my personal favorite site to shop and sell! It’s such a stylish place that fits all tastes, and the selling system is super easy. They have a very detailed item-listing section. You specify the brand, color, what occasion the item fits, who you want your target audience to be, and more. They either give you a shipping label that is added to the cost of your item or you can do your own.
Note that your items are way more likely to sell with free shipping; I had a dress listed for two weeks, and once I added free shipping, it sold the next day. 😆
All your payments are through Paypal, which I feel super safe about. When someone buys one of your items, Paypal holds the money until you ship the item, and once you do, it’s automatically added to your account. Easy peasy!
4. Mercari
Similar to Poshmark and eBay, Mercari sells things from apparel to toys to home decor and more. It follows the same system as the other two mentioned site where you create a listing by adding pictures, product description, and setting a price.
When it comes to sending out your goods after a sale, you pay for the shipping, and Mercari takes a 10% cut of your profit. Looking to reap the benefits of your sale right away? Opt in to “instant pay” where for a $2 fee, you can get paid in minutes at any time of the day! There’s also direct deposit, making it the perfect side hustle!
5. eBay
The original online selling platform has come a looong way from when it first launched. Even better, eBay allows you to think outside the closet when it comes to selling your cleaning finds! Books, toys, decor, and pretty much anything that has value can be sold on eBay.
Keep in mind that there are millions of other sellers, so getting your listing noticed will take a little extra finesse. It’s worth it to get the max value on your items in the long run.
“Selling on eBay is pretty easy. You set your prices so you always get what you’re asking. Just be really careful because they charge fees on the total amount (shipping + item) and they don’t take those fees out right away (they send you a bill at the end of the month). Name brand and hard-to-find items move a lot faster than off-brand items, but everything seems to sell eventually!” – Chelsey at Hip2Save
6. Tradesy
Are you a high-end shopper? Take a look at Tradesy! Very similar to Poshmark, you list products yourself and set your own prices for high-end designer goods.
What sets Tradesy apart is the seller support. The site offers TONS of resources to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward (or maybe best hanger forward) like free shipping kits, photo enhancement, and 24-hour customer service. 👏 This is crucial when trying to get offers on your name brand and designer goods! Listings only take a few minutes to set up and once you make a sale, the site takes a standard commission off the transaction.
Looking to buy? Use our exclusive link and get $20 off your first order of $50 or more! 🎉
7. Facebook Marketplace
The same place you share family photos and engage with friends is where you can sell your new or gently used goods. You can sell pretty much anything on Facebook Marketplace! It’s similar to Craiglist in that the transaction itself doesn’t take place on the website, rather it lets buyers in your area know what you have for sale. Think of it like a virtual yard sale! You can even mark items as free if you just want to get some stuff off your hands.
All that said, there appears to be more and more ads popping up from 3rd party sellers on this site, so keep an eye out for items marked for shipping which typically indicates it’s not a Facebook user. Of course, you can still buy them, but know these are generally from companies using Facebook as another platform to sell their products, rather than family, friends, or local sellers in your area.
However, some Facebook users will offer shipping if they’re really trying to move something out of their home, so the moral of the story is to read all listings carefully to know the finer details of the transaction.
Check out even more tips on buying and selling through Facebook Marketplace!
8. Swap
Originally launched as a kids’ clothing consignment shop, Swap.com is now one of the hottest internet e-tailers offering over 2 million unique products! The process is a little bit different from your typical online sale.
Instead of creating a listing yourself, you mail in your clothing to Swap using a pre-paid shipping label for their team to analyze and come up with an offer to purchase your items. From there, they do the selling for you, and anything that doesn’t make the cut can either be sent back to you or sent to one of Swap’s textile recycling partners.
While it’s super easy to mail in clothes for sale on the site, the payout for the pieces can be a little on the low side. That said, they pretty much do all the work for you, so if don’t have free time to do all the work yourself, this could be a good way to go!
9.
If you want to sell clothes online with minimal effort, ThredUp may be for you! The selling process on is very similar to Swap, but ThredUp lets users get an estimate on of how much their clothes are worth before sending anything in. Then the actual selling process starts by ordering a FREE cleanout kit where ThredUp will send a shipping label and bag to fill with your new or gently used clothes. As items sell, you cash out or get shopping credit to do some of your own purchasing on ThredUp!
Similar to Swap, sometimes the payout can be a little low, but they’re taking care of listing, selling, and shipping. So even if you’re not rolling in dough, you’re still making more money than if you’d kept those clothes and never ended up wearing them.
10. Bonus: Donate to Goodwill for the tax deduction.
Put those old Amazon shipping boxes to GOOD use! With GiveBackBox, you simply fill your old Amazon box with clothes or household goods to be donated, enter your zip code and email address, and print your generated shipping label.
Drop the package off at your local post office or schedule a FREE pickup. While it’s technically not a way to sell clothes online, it’s an easy way to cut down on your rarely used belongings and pay you back with a small tax deduction* (and karma), all without leaving the house. 😁
*Keep in mind, since the standard deduction has gone up under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, people may have less opportunity to claim charitable contributions.
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