If you’re curious about how much money you can make selling on thredUP, keep reading! I am detailing my personal experience using the online consignment store and whether it is worth your time.
Growing up, my family was on a tight budget. To help make ends meet, my sister and I used secondhand clothes from family and friends, and my mother sold our old clothes at yard sales and thrift stores. Having been brought up in this way, it was natural for me to resell my old clothes for money as well.
The first time I resold my clothes was in college, at a buffalo swap. I sold a few pairs of jeans and some shoes. I didn’t make a lot of money, but with the money I did make, I was able to buy a couple of new clothes for myself.
From there, I started selling directly person-to-person through online search ads, like Craigslist and Facebook groups. When you take the middleman out of the equation, your profits are much higher, but you have to spend more time writing your ad, taking photos, responding to potential buyers, and ultimately meeting them in person to complete the transaction.
so when thread came on the scene, I was excited to try them out.
How does thredUP work?
thredUP is an online consignment and thrift store where you can buy and sell gently used women’s and children’s clothing, footwear, bags, accessories and jewelry.
I’ve been selling clothes on thredUP since 2015, and their process is ALWAYS changing. When I first started using thredUP, there were no fees to start selling; just ordered a cleaning kit and got it back. Usually it would take them a few weeks to process your kit and then they would buy the items they wanted directly. Now, they have a lot of fees, and every item is put on consignment.
To start selling on thredUP, go to your website and click on the clean up tab. From there, you can choose to use a free shipping label with your own box or pay a $2.99 fee to get a cleaning kit like the one below. With the cleaning bag, all you have to do is fill it with your gently used clothing and take it to the post office for shipping.
From there, you’ll decide what to do with the clothes that aren’t accepted for resale. According to thredUP, they only accept about 50% of the articles on average; however, I feel that it is less than that. If you want your items returned, you must pay a fee of $10.99; otherwise, you can choose to donate what’s left.
The last fee is a $14.99 service fee that is deducted from your earnings for using their service. When I started selling on thredUP, they didn’t have this fee.
It usually takes thredUP a month or more to process cleaning kits and then you have to wait for the items to be sold. So if you are looking for a quick way to make money, I would explore these other options.
What items does thredUP accept?
If you want to make money selling on thredUP, you must follow their quality standards:
- Your clothes must be clean and freshly laundered.
- well-known brands
- In trend and with less than five years
- Items free of rips, stains, or tears
- High quality items that are in good condition.
thredUP prefers designer brands like J. Crew, Gucci, and Lululemon, which get the highest consignment fees. Mid-price brands like Nike and Gap receive mid-rate commissions, value brands like Old Navy and Forever 21 receive low commissions, and some brands are worth zero.
How much can you earn using thredUP?
Now the question everyone wants to know is: how much can you really earn selling on thredUP? According to their website, approximately 50% of your items will be accepted, and from there, you will earn anywhere from 3-80% of an item’s sales price based on its sale price, demand, brand, and quality. .
You can claim your earnings via thredUP shopping credit or cash via Stripe, PayPal or direct deposit.
Clear as mud?
To give you an idea of what sellers can really earn, I am sharing the contents of one of my bags and the actual payout numbers.
womenswear
- White House Black Market Leggings
- Merona ballerinas
- Embroidered denim jacket > 5 years
- Banana Republic trousers > 5 years
- Juicy Couture Jeans > 5 years
- Loft jumper > 5 years
- Merona sweater
- J Crew blouse
- cache tank top
- high blouse
- Banana Republic jumper > 5 years
- Old Navy Jeans > 5 years
- Hooded cabi sweatshirt > 5 years
- Express skirt > 5 years
- Gap skirt > 5 years
- Gap skirt > 5 years
- Banana Republic Pants > 5 years
- Kut de Kloth jeans > 5 years
- Banana Republic Pants > 5 years
- Citizen of Humanity jeans
- Banana Republic skinny jeans
girls clothes
- Old Navy jean shorts
- Miss Me denim shorts
- Old Navy print denim shorts
- Austin Trading Co Western Boots (Faux Leather)
- old navy leggings
- Cherokee Long Sleeve T-Shirt
- DKNY long-sleeved T-shirt
- Arizona Jeans, denim shorts
- Cherokee tank top
- Miss Me Jeans
- jumper with opening
- hello kitty jacket
- Xhilaration Swim Coverup
- glee dress
- jessica simpson jumper
- Jayne Copeland Cape > 5 years
- GB Girls Dress
- cherokee vest
- Matilda Jane Sweater
- Faded Glory leggings
- Nickelodeon T-shirt
- Faded Glory T-shirt
- Circus T-shirt
From this tour they accepted 13 items, only 30% of the bag. If I were to remove my outdated articles, I would be more on target (43% accepted) with your average acceptance. Five items were sold on consignment ($24.95) and the remaining eight were purchased outright ($9.99) for a total of $34.94.
Is thredUP worth it?
I have been selling on thredUP since 2015 and over the years I have made a total of $493.02 from the 251 items they accepted. In fact, I sent a bunch of stuff that they didn’t accept, and it went to charity, which I’m happy to donate.
Another thredUP user, Alice WoodardYou have won $540.00 using thredUP.
So would you suggest using thredUP to sell your clothes?
It depends.
Past experience with thredUP
In the past, I used thredUP because it was easy and I would have donated my clothes to Goodwill or given the items to a friend. Of course, if I had a higher value designer brand (think Michael Kors bag or Lululemon tank top), I would sell it online using a site like eBay, Poshmark, or Facebook Marketplace because I knew I would make a lot of money. more, and the extra time and effort that went into the list would be well worth it.
Another factor is that I tend to store my clothes for a long time, so many of the items I sent to thredUP were over 5 years old, and I thought, why not give it a try?
Personally, I found that thredUP accepts more items for children than for adults (probably because I keep my clothes for so long and they are out of style). So if you tend to update your wardrobe each season and have current styles to ship, you can earn more money.
It’s also best to send clothing that is seasonally appropriate, which means that you may need to store the items in your closet for a few months before sending them.
Current experience with thredUP
Having used thredUP for years, I personally feel that the platform is no longer worth using.
First is the service fee of $14.99 that they deduct from your earnings.
Second, they receive so many clothes that it takes months to process your cleaning kit, so this is not a quick way to make money online.
Third, when they accept your items, they no longer buy outright. Instead, they put them on consignment, and then they can sell them or not. In the last batch of clothing I submitted, only four items were accepted, and only one sold for a total of $1.47.
Instead of cashing out my winnings, I used to take thredUP credit. And over the years, I’ve gotten some great pieces from them. However, now they have a $3.99 restocking fee if you need to return items, which eats up your earnings even more.
Conclusion
In the past, I have enjoyed using thredUP to both buy and sell clothes. The process was simple and they did the hard work of quoting, taking photos and handling the transaction. But for me, with its new structure, it’s not worth it.
If you sell on thredUP, you should have a realistic idea of how much you will earn, how long the process will take, and how much time you will save by using them compared to selling directly.
I like the general concept of thredUP and its sustainable business model; I just don’t feel like they give sellers a fair price for their items. You can find some great deals if you’re interested in buying clothes off the site, but they have a restocking fee for returns, which often puts me off shopping there.
If you are looking for other online marketplaces to sell your clothes, please explore this article!
Have you sold clothes on thredUP? What was your experience? Send us a note; We would love to hear from you! If you enjoyed this post, please share it on your favorite social media site.
Originally published on January 7, 2019. Content updated April 2023.
