Nowadays most platforms you’ll use to sell things directly to others will have fees, and Mercari is no different.
There are many different types of fees on the Mercari app but the one that most people will incur when successfully selling something on Mercari is the seller fee and payment processing fee.
The total fees for selling on Mercari come out to 12.9% + $0.30 per sale.
The seller fee is 10% of the final price for which you sell your item. Sell your lightly used Patagonia rain jacket for $50? Great! Your seller fee is $5, netting you $45 so far.
As of October 1, 2020 Mercari started to charge a payment processing fee of 2.9% of the final sales price PLUS a flat rate charge of $0.30. So that $45 from the Patagonia jacket is now $43.25.
Here’s the math on that example:
Final sales price = $50
Seller fee = $50 * 10% = $5
Payment processing fee = $50 * 2.9% = $1.45 + $0.30 (flat rate charge) = $1.75
Total fees = $6.75
Net proceeds = $50 – $6.75 = $43.25
Now you can keep that $43.25 in your Mercari account and use it like cash to purchase other things. If you buy on Mercari often, your best bet is to keep the balance in your account so you don’t get charged extra fees. The good news is that if your Mercari balance is more than $10, you can transfer it into your bank account for free.
Shipping Fees
You can leverage Mercari directly to ship your items with the standard 3 shipping companies: USPS, UPS, & FedEx. Mercari claims that going through them will save you an average of 40% compared to the retail price of shipping directly with one of these companies.
Here’s a cost breakdown of their shipping fees by weight & company.
Other Fees
There are several other fees you might encounter when selling on Mercari.
If your Mercari balance is less than $10, you’ll be charged a $2 fee to transfer it to your bank account via direct deposit.
If your direct deposit transfer is for some reason rejected by your bank, you’re looking at another $2 fee.
If you need an expedited transfer to your bank account, you can opt to use Instant Pay which can transfer your funds in up to 30 minutes. There is another $2 fee for using Instant Pay.
There are a few more fees that Mercari uses but they are pretty rare, so if you want more info on those you can see the full list of fees here.
Is it Worth It?
As far as fees go, Mercari’s seller fees are pretty standard. There are some cheaper options and some more expensive ones, too. Hell, there are even some free options like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. To us, the real consideration is where you can sell your item the quickest and for the most money.
Good luck out there and if you’re just getting into selling or buying on Mercari, be sure to avoid some common scams on the Mercari selling app!