Online Resale Market Hits $479 Billion But User Payouts Plummet to $2 Per Item

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4.2.2026

Quick Facts

Global secondhand product market reached $479 billion in 2025, with fashion segment at $231 billion
ThredUp users report payouts as low as $0.50 for J.Crew shirts, with only 20-30% of items accepted
Processing delays stretch up to 45 days from item submission to payout withdrawal

The online resale market is experiencing explosive growth but faces a fundamental problem: the economics don’t work for sellers.

The global secondhand product market hit $478.99 billion in 2025, with the fashion segment alone reaching $230.6 billion. The secondhand fashion market is projected to grow at 10.7% annually through 2034, reaching $367 billion by 2029.

But sellers are increasingly frustrated with microscopic payouts and lengthy processing times.

The Math Problem

“For clothing resale sites like Poshmark, ThreadUp or Depop, it’s really hard to overcome the math not working,” said Amanda Mull of Bloomberg. “The business of used clothing is just like a really fiddly, high-touch, labor-intensive business, and trying to do that at a really huge scale costs a lot of money in a way that the prices of used clothing can’t necessarily offset.”

ThredUp exemplifies the payout problem. One user received $34.60 for 18 accepted items – less than $2 per piece. Another reported getting $0.50 for a J.Crew shirt.

The platform’s tiered payout system incentivizes lower pricing. ThredUp takes a higher percentage as item prices increase, pushing sellers toward rock-bottom valuations.

Processing Delays Compound Problems

Users face a 45-day timeline from shipping items to receiving payments. ThredUp takes up to 30 days to process and list items, then requires an additional 14-day waiting period before sellers can withdraw earnings.

Only 20-30% of submitted items typically get accepted for resale, leaving sellers with boxes of returned merchandise.

“I made less than minimum wage per hour if I counted the time sorting and packing,” one user reported.

Fast Fashion Pressure

Ultra-fast fashion giants like Shein are crushing resale pricing expectations. Shein’s 2024 sales rose 19% to $38 billion, with its British business posting £2.05 billion in sales, up 32.3% year-over-year.

“Fast fashion depresses the amount of money that people perceive as appropriate to pay for particular types of clothing,” Mull explained. “Because you’re so used to being able to get whatever you want for impossibly cheap prices, it might feel like those people are trying to rip you off.”

This creates erratic pricing across platforms, leading to “confused buyers, disillusioned sellers and market stagnation,” with many items going unsold indefinitely.

Platform Responses

Companies are investing in AI tools to identify in-demand products and improve seller attraction. Vestiaire Collective introduced blockchain authentication in 2024 to combat counterfeits in the luxury segment.

Some platforms are finding success. FASHIONPHILE reported 67% year-over-year profit growth in 2024, while Vinted achieved 61% revenue growth in 2023.

But the fundamental challenge remains: balancing platform profitability with seller satisfaction in a market where fast fashion sets unrealistic price expectations.