# How much does eBay take from a sale? UK fees 2026

How much does eBay UK really take in 2026? Private vs business seller rates, the Buyer Protection fee, postage rules, and worked £50 and £150 examples.

Sell on eBay UK as a private individual and eBay takes nothing from most sales. Sell as a business and eBay takes 12.9% of the total in most categories, a 0.35% regulatory operating fee, and 30p or 40p per order, with 20% VAT on top of all three.

That is the whole answer in two sentences. The rest of this page is what those sentences mean for your money, because most fee advice online predates the 2024 change and quietly overstates what you will pay. If you want your own numbers rather than examples, the [eBay fee calculator](/ebay-fee-calculator) works either case out in a few seconds.

## Private sellers: nothing, since 2024

eBay removed selling fees for UK private sellers in 2024 on most categories. No listing fee, no final value fee, no percentage of the sale. If you last sold in 2022 and remember losing 12.8% plus 30p, that world is gone.

What "nothing" actually means in practice:

- **You keep the sale price.** Your take is what the buyer paid for the item, minus whatever the postage costs you to send it. eBay takes no cut.
- **The buyer pays more than your price.** eBay moved the cost to the buyer as a Buyer Protection fee added at checkout. You never see it and it never touches your money, but the buyer's total is higher than your listed price, so you are competing on their total, not your number.
- **"Most categories" covers the usual ones.** The no-fee rule applies across the categories nearly all private sellers use, so for ordinary items the answer really is zero.
- **Private means private.** If you are buying stock to sell, eBay expects a business account, and the business fees below are the honest ones to plan with.

## Business sellers: the maths

A business seller pays three charges on every sale, from eBay's rate card of 12 February 2026:

- **A final value fee** by category: 12.9% in most categories, 10.9% for trading cards, 11.9% for trainers and clothing, and 7% for trainers and clothing at £100 or more
- **A regulatory operating fee** of 0.35%
- **An order charge** of £0.30 on orders up to £10, and £0.40 above £10

eBay quotes all three before VAT. If you are not VAT registered, which covers most resellers, you pay the 20% VAT and cannot claim it back. Plan with the figure that includes it.

Three examples make it concrete.

**A £50 sale in most categories.** 12.9% is £6.45, the regulatory fee is £0.18 and the order charge is £0.40. That is £7.03, or £8.43 with VAT. You keep £41.57, and the overall rate is about 16.9%.

**A £50 Pokémon card sale.** The trading card rate is 10.9%, so the fee is £7.23 with VAT. You keep £42.77.

**A £150 pair of trainers.** At £100 or more the rate drops to 7%. The fee is £13.71 with VAT, about 9.1% of the sale. You keep £136.29.

## The fee is charged on the total, postage included

The percentage applies to the full amount the buyer pays, and that includes what you charged for postage.

Sell an item at £45 with £4 postage and the buyer pays £49, so a business seller's final value fee is 12.9% of £49, which is £6.32, not 12.9% of £45. Charging high postage to keep the item price low does not dodge the fee; it just moves the number the percentage bites on.

For private sellers this does not matter, since there is no fee either way.

## What does not come out of your money

The Buyer Protection fee. The buyer pays it at checkout on items from UK private sellers: 10p, plus 7% of the price up to £20, 4% of the part from £20 to £300 and 2% of the part from £300 to £4,000. A £50 item costs the buyer £2.70 on top. It never reduces your take. Plenty of fee calculators on the first page of Google subtract it from the seller's side anyway, which understates your profit on every sale. If a calculator shows a private seller losing money to eBay in 2026, it is wrong. For the formula and worked examples, see [eBay Buyer Protection fee UK](/blog/ebay-buyer-protection-fee-uk).

## Promoted listings, the optional extra

Promoted listings are the one genuinely optional fee. You choose an ad rate, and eBay charges it only when the listing sells through the ad. It sits on top of the business fees above, or on top of nothing for a private seller.

Promotion is worth it in crowded categories with dozens of identical listings, and on items that get views but do not sell. It is not worth it on items that already sell quickly, or where you are one of few sellers: you pay for a sale you would have made anyway. eBay's suggested rate is optimised for eBay's revenue rather than your margin, so start well below it. Promotion cannot fix a bad price, photo or title. Fix those first, because they cost nothing.

## Private or business account?

If you buy stock in order to sell it, you are trading, and eBay expects a business account.

| | Private seller | Business seller |
|---|---|---|
| Selling fees | None on most categories | Category fee, 0.35% and an order charge, plus VAT |
| Who it is for | Selling your own items | Buying to sell |
| Returns | Optional | 14-day right to cancel is mandatory |

eBay converts private accounts when the trading pattern is obvious. The choice also has tax consequences, so read [the tax position](/blog/do-you-pay-tax-on-reselling-uk) before you choose.

## How to keep more of each sale

Fees are only part of what you keep. Price, listing and postage decide the rest.

- **Price from sold listings, never active ones.** Filter to Sold and sort by most recent. Ignore results older than about a month on volatile items. A sealed item that is still in print has a ceiling at RRP.
- **Pick the format.** An auction from 99p finds a true market price when demand is real. Buy It Now at a researched price suits almost everything else, especially sealed product.
- **Write the title buyers search.** Product, set, condition, front-loaded, in up to 80 characters. "Pokémon Surging Sparks Elite Trainer Box Sealed New" beats "L@@K RARE".
- **Fill in every item specific.** Brand, set, language and condition feed eBay's filters. A blank field hides you from filtered searches.
- **Photograph the actual item** from several angles on a plain background. Stock photos look like drop-shipping.
- **Cost postage before you list.** Weigh and measure first: an Elite Trainer Box does not fit a Small Parcel in most boxes. Uncosted free postage is how a £20 profit becomes £8.
- **Use tracked postage above about £20.** Without tracking you will eventually lose an "item not received" case for the full amount. Double-box valuable sealed items, see [how to store and post sealed collectibles](/blog/how-to-store-sealed-collectibles).

## Common questions

### How much does eBay take from a sale in the UK?

Nothing on most categories if you sell as a private individual. Business sellers pay 12.9% of the total in most categories, a 0.35% regulatory fee and 30p or 40p per order, all plus VAT. The percentage is calculated on the full amount the buyer pays, including postage.

### Do private sellers pay eBay fees?

No. eBay removed selling fees for UK private sellers in 2024 on most categories. There is no listing fee and no final value fee; the buyer pays a Buyer Protection fee at checkout instead. Your take is your sale price minus whatever postage costs you.

### Does eBay charge fees on postage?

For business sellers, yes. The final value fee is calculated on the total the buyer pays, which includes what you charged for postage. Charging £4 postage on a £40 item means the percentage applies to £44, not £40. Private sellers pay no fee either way.

### Should I use a private or business eBay account?

If you buy stock in order to sell it, that is trading and eBay expects a business account. Business accounts pay the fees above and must offer a 14-day right to cancel. A private account used for trading can be converted or restricted.

### Are eBay promoted listings worth it?

Only in crowded categories, or on items that get views but do not sell. eBay's suggested rate is usually higher than you need, so start well below it.

### What percentage do eBay take?

Zero from private sellers on most categories. From business sellers, 12.9% in most categories, 10.9% for trading cards and 11.9% for trainers and clothing, plus 0.35%, the order charge and VAT. On a £50 sale in most categories that is £8.43, about 16.9% overall.

## Where this fits

Buying well at retail, before stock sells out, is the other half of the sum: see [how to start reselling in the UK](/blog/how-to-start-reselling-uk). If your items are mid-value or bought as gifts, [Vinted](/blog/vinted-reselling-uk) often nets more, because it also charges sellers nothing, and [eBay vs Vinted vs Depop](/blog/ebay-vs-vinted-vs-depop-uk) compares where each item sells best. For any specific sale, the [eBay fee calculator](/ebay-fee-calculator) gives you the exact figure in seconds.