eBay vs Craigslist for making money

[234amps]

Which format is better to make the most money for selling stuff? What things should I only sell on eBay and what things should I only sell on Craigslist? What are the positives and negatives for both formats?

[disneysteve]

ebay is international. craigslist is local. I think that's one big difference. Also, ebay has a ton of fees. craigslist has none, so that's important too. If you are selling items with a small potential market, go with ebay for the best exposure. If you are selling more common stuff, craigslist is fine. Since craigslist is local, you also want to use that for things that would be difficult or costly to ship. Nobody across the country wants to buy your used sofa but somebody across town might. On the other hand, you may not find a local buyer for your mint in box 1977 Star Wars toy but there are people around the world who will bid on it on ebay.

[shaggy]

Depending on what you're selling, you might have better luck on sites like Bonanza (similar to ebay but with fewer fees), Sold.com, Etsy (good for vintage items), or even a consignment place like Yoogi's Closet (designer clothes & accessories).

If the item you have for sale is listed in Amazon's catalog, I have found that to be far and away the quickest way to get the highest price. I just sold an old digital camera for $200 on Amazon. But you can't sell one-of-a-kind items there.

[jeffrey]

My general rule is that big items that would be difficult to ship and items with small profit margin go on Craigslist. Items that are easy to ship and collectible with the potential of a large profit margin go on eBay.

[AbbyTN]

Craiglist seems to be better for small scale money earning. It is widely used it will grow bigger.

[AceDet]

Ebay is my choice. I have found dropship companies that will dropship with no shipping.

[bigdaddybus]

I prefer craigslist, and have sold $17,250 in items this yr using it. With the amount of craigslist search engines out there, I don't shop using craigslist regional sites anymore.

I used to like ebay, but it's really declined in the last few years IMO as I think it's packed with too much overseas junk nowadays.

[lisaSm]

Ebay is my choice. I have found dropship companies that will dropship with no shipping.

You mean shipping fee? I'm interested to know.

[disneysteve]

I used to like ebay, but it's really declined in the last few years IMO as I think it's packed with too much overseas junk nowadays.

Of course, the flipside of that is that if you are a buyer, you can find stuff incredibly cheap. My wife just bought 250 yards of craft ribbon for about 12 cents/yard including shipping. The same stuff is $1.00/yard at the local fabric store. I buy refills for my pens for under $1 each straight from China including shipping. At Staples, they're over $2 each plus tax.

[AceDet]

If you work your business right on Ebay and place in the proper titles......you get a ton of business. If you study the many books and information on the internet it will help you accomplish this.

The real way to pull off this in no inventory and being able to dropship. This takes good research but it pays off.

[AceDet]

Many companies allow dropshipping if you use Paypal. Paypal is a more secure method that a credit card. No one gets ripped off....

Randy

[mortgagereport]

What to sell on CL

It really does seem to depend on the product. Houses, cars, and bicycles seem to do decently well on Craigslist. Basically, they are the kind of things you might sell by sticking up a sign in your front lawn hoping passersby will jot down the number and give you a call later. Novel products or less common items should probably be sold somewhere else.

[luckykate]

You won't have to worry about shipping if you sell thru Criaglist. Sell to someone local, agree on meeting them somewhere (public just to be safe!) and do the sale there.