Loot Lister
How eBay works out its fees
eBay charges one final value fee when an item sells. It is a percentage of the total amount of the sale, which includes the item price, the shipping the buyer pays, handling and the sales tax eBay collects, plus a per-order fee of $0.30 on orders of $10 or less and $0.40 on orders over $10. Payment processing is included, so there is no separate charge for it.
eBay’s own example is a phone that sells for $400 with free shipping. With 6% sales tax the total sale is $424, so the final value fee is 13.6% of $424 plus $0.40, which comes to $58.06. Add a $0.35 insertion fee for a seller past their free listings and the seller keeps $341.59, about 85% of the price. The calculator above gives the same $58.41 in fees for that sale.
Because tax is in the base, the same item costs more in fees when the buyer lives somewhere with a higher sales tax rate. You can’t choose your buyer, so check the calculator at a few rates if your margin is thin.
eBay final value fees by category
Sellers without a Store and sellers with a Starter Store pay the same rates. Basic, Premium, Anchor and Enterprise Store subscribers pay lower rates in most categories, and their rates step down at $2,500 instead of $7,500.
| Category | No Store or Starter | Basic Store and up |
|---|---|---|
| Most categories, including clothing, home and garden, toys, collectibles, sporting goods and vinyl records | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 12.7% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Books and magazines, movies and TV, music other than vinyl | 15.3% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 15.3% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Trading cards, collectible card games, comic books | 13.25% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 12.35% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Coins and paper money, except bullion | 13.25% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 9% up to $4,000, then 2.35% |
| Bullion | 13.6% of a sale up to $7,500, 7% of a sale over | 7.5% of a sale up to $1,500, 5% up to $10,000, 4.5% over |
| Women’s bags and handbags | 15% of a sale up to $2,000, 9% of a sale over | 13% of a sale up to $2,000, 7% of a sale over |
| Athletic shoes | 8% of a sale of $150 or more with no per-order fee, 13.6% under $150 | 7% of a sale of $150 or more with no per-order fee, 12.7% under $150 |
| Jewelry, except watches | 15% of a sale up to $5,000, 9% of a sale over | 13% of a sale up to $5,000, 7% of a sale over |
| Watches, parts and accessories | 15% up to $1,000, 6.5% to $7,500, then 3% | 12.5% up to $1,000, 4% to $5,000, then 3% |
| Laptops, desktops, tablets, monitors, printers, CPUs, RAM, hard drives, video game consoles | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 7.35% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Most cameras, cell phones, consumer electronics and other computer gear, DJ and pro audio | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 9.35% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Accessories for phones, computers, cameras and electronics; video games | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 12.7% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Guitars and basses | 6.7% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 6.7% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| Other musical instruments and gear | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 10.35% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
| eBay Motors parts and accessories | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 11.5% up to $1,000, then 2.35% (tires: 9.5%) |
| Stamps | 13.6% up to $7,500, then 2.35% | 9.7% up to $2,500, then 2.35% |
“Up to $7,500, then 2.35%” means the lower rate applies only to the part of the sale above $7,500. “Of a sale over” means the whole sale is charged the lower rate once it passes the line. eBay’s Store fee page lists a few more subcategory exceptions, such as memory cards, which the calculator counts under the nearest group.
Other eBay fees
Insertion fees
Every seller gets 250 listings a month with no insertion fee. After that, a listing costs $0.35 without a Store, $0.30 with a Starter Store, $0.25 with a Basic Store, $0.10 for fixed price listings with a Premium Store and $0.05 with an Anchor or Enterprise Store. Guitars and basses have no insertion fee, and neither do athletic shoes listed at $150 or more. Good ’Til Cancelled listings are charged again each month they renew.
eBay Store subscriptions
| Store | Yearly plan, per month | Monthly plan | Free fixed price listings a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $4.95 | $7.95 | 250 |
| Basic | $21.95 | $27.95 | 1,000 |
| Premium | $59.95 | $74.95 | 10,000 |
| Anchor | $299.95 | $349.95 | 25,000 |
| Enterprise | $2,999.95 | Yearly only | 100,000 |
A Basic Store pays for itself through lower final value fees once you sell enough. In most categories the rate drops from 13.6% to 12.7%, a 0.9-point saving, so the $21.95 a month on a yearly plan is covered at about $2,440 a month in total sales. In electronics the drop is 4.25 points or more, so it pays off far sooner.
Promoted Listings
With a general Promoted Listings campaign you pick an ad rate between 2% and 100%, and eBay charges it on the total sale amount, including shipping and tax, when the item sells within 30 days of someone clicking the ad. The calculator adds it on top of the final value fee.
International fee
eBay adds 1.65% of the total sale when the buyer’s shipping or registered address is outside the US, unless you ship through eBay International Shipping.
Fees for missing eBay’s seller standards
A seller rated Below Standard on the 20th of the month pays an extra 6% on the next month’s final value fees, rising to 7% after four months in a row. A Very High rate of “item not as described” returns in a category adds 5%, rising to 6%. Top Rated Plus listings get the opposite: 10% off the percentage part of the final value fee, though not the per-order fee.
How to keep more of each sale
Price with the fee in mind. On a $20 item with free shipping and 6% tax, the fee is $3.28, which is 16% of the price, because the $0.40 per-order fee weighs more on cheap items. Bundling small items into one listing pays that $0.40 once.
Count the label in your price either way. eBay charges its fee on the shipping a buyer pays, and with free shipping you pay the label yourself, so the shipping cost comes out of your sale in both cases.
Open a Store when your volume earns it back, aim for Top Rated Plus, and treat promoted listing ad rates as a real cost per sale. A 5% ad rate on a $40 sale costs about $2.12 with tax included.
If listing time is what limits how much you sell, Loot Lister writes the eBay listing from your photos and prices it from matching eBay listings, so more of your hours go to sourcing. For what to list, see what sells best on eBay and how to list on eBay.
Sources
- eBay, Selling fees, read November 3, 2026.
- eBay, Store selling fees, read November 3, 2026.
- eBay, General campaign strategy, read November 3, 2026.
- eBay, Seller standards policy, read November 3, 2026.