eBay vs Mercari Fees (2026): Which Actually Keeps You More?

Q: How much does Mercari take from a $100 sale?

$10.00 - a flat 10% selling fee, with no separate payment processing fee since January 2025. You keep $90 before shipping costs and what you paid for the item.

Mercari charges 10%. eBay charges about 14%. Here's what each actually costs you on a real sale — and what the cheaper fee gives up.

SNAPLISTER GUIDES · RESELLING · UPDATED JULY 2026

Mercari charges 10%. eBay charges about 14%. That looks like an easy call until you notice what each fee is actually charged on, and what you give up by moving. Here's the real side-by-side for a US seller in 2026.

The short answer: Mercari is cheaper on fees — 10% flat versus eBay's 13.6% + $0.40. On a $100 sale you keep $90 on Mercari and $86 on eBay. The catch: Mercari's 10% is charged on the item price plus the shipping the buyer pays, and eBay's audience is far larger.

What you keep on a $100 sale

Mercari

$90.00

10% selling fee = $10.00
no separate processing fee

eBay

$86.00

13.6% final value fee = $13.60
+ $0.40 per-order fee

Before shipping and what you paid for the item, Mercari leaves you $4 more on a $100 sale. On a $50 sale it's $45.00 vs $42.80 — a $2.20 gap.

Fee structure side by side

	Mercari	eBay
Selling fee	10% of item price + buyer-paid shipping	13.6% for most categories (6.7%–15.3% by category)
Per-order fee	None	$0.30 (≤$10) / $0.40
Payment processing	None — removed Jan 2025	Included in the final value fee
Listing fee	Free	250 free/month, then ~$0.35
Payouts	Direct deposit free · instant transfer $3	Scheduled payouts, free
$50 sale costs you	$5.00 (10.0%)	$7.20 (14.4%)
$100 sale costs you	$10.00 (10.0%)	$14.00 (14.0%)

The detail most comparisons miss: Mercari's 10% applies to the item price plus the shipping the buyer pays. Sell a $50 item with $5 buyer-paid shipping and the fee is $5.50, not $5.00. eBay does the same thing — its final value fee also covers shipping — so neither lets you dodge fees by shifting cost into postage.

Mercari's 10% is newer than you think

Mercari ran a zero-seller-fee experiment from March 2024, then reintroduced a 10% selling fee on 6 January 2025. The same change removed the separate payment-processing fee, made ACH withdrawals free, and moved a 3.6% Buyer Protection fee onto buyers. If you last sold on Mercari during the free window, your mental model is out of date.

Verdict: Mercari genuinely costs less per sale — about 4 points cheaper than eBay. It suits lower-priced casual items where margin is thin and the fee difference matters. eBay earns its higher cut through reach: more buyers, more categories, and far better results on anything collectible, technical or high-value.

Fees aren't the whole story

A lower fee on a sale that never happens is worth nothing. Before you move your inventory somewhere cheaper, weigh three things the fee percentage hides:

Buyer volume. eBay is the largest of these marketplaces by a wide margin, and it sells almost every category. The cheaper platforms are narrower.
What actually sells there. Category fit beats fee percentage. The right item on the right platform sells faster and closer to asking price.
Your time. Listing the same item twice is real work. A ten-minute listing process makes any platform expensive once you count the hours.

Run your own numbers before deciding: the free eBay fee calculator shows exactly what you keep on an eBay sale after every fee, your shipping label and what you paid for the item. It's free, and so is the /fees version in the chat bot.

Get the free fee calculator

FAQ

Is Mercari cheaper than eBay?

Yes, on fees. Mercari takes 10% of the sale; eBay takes about 13.6% plus a $0.40 per-order fee. On a $100 sale that's $10 versus $14. Both charge their percentage on the shipping the buyer pays, not just the item price.

How much does Mercari take from a $100 sale?

$10.00 — a flat 10% selling fee, with no separate payment-processing fee since January 2025. You keep $90 before shipping costs and what you paid for the item.

Does Mercari still have no seller fees?

No. Mercari's zero-fee period ran from March 2024 until 6 January 2025, when the 10% selling fee returned. Payment processing fees were removed at the same time and buyers now pay a 3.6% Buyer Protection fee.

Should I sell on Mercari or eBay?

Use Mercari for lower-priced everyday items where the 4-point fee saving is meaningful. Use eBay for collectibles, electronics, parts, and anything where buyer reach and category depth decide whether it sells at all. Many sellers list on both.

Related guides

List in 30 seconds, not ten minutes

SnapLister turns photos into live eBay listings from a chat — your defaults, your approval, real profit tracking on every sale. Comes with a 7-day free trial.

Start free on Telegram

On Discord instead? Join the server and DM the bot — same features.