How to Sell on ThredUP: Your Complete Guide

Do you have a lot of clothes that you don’t wear? Well, you can make some room in your closet by selling secondhand clothes on thredUP!

ThredUP is one of the biggest online stores for secondhand clothing. The problem is that the selling process can be complicated.

Lucky for you, in today’s article, we have a detailed guide on how to sell on thredUP.

You’ll be able to clean out your closet and make extra cash from clothes that you don’t wear. 

Why You Should Consider Selling on ThredUP

ThredUP makes selling clothes online a simple process. It can be an easy way to quickly make money. Here’s why you should consider selling on thredUP:

• Clean out your closet and make extra money: thredUP allows you to sell used or old clothes on the platform.
• You can sell any type of clothes: thredUP allows you to sell pants, shirts, skirts, sweaters, bags, sneakers, accessories, and children’s clothes. The platform accepts more than 55,000 brands.
• Selling on thredUP is easy and simple: after reading our guide, you’ll be ready to sell your items on the platform in no time!
• Easy and fast cash out: you can quickly cash out your earnings using PayPal or Stripe. It takes around two business days to receive the payments.

Problems With Selling on ThredUP

Although thredUP is one of the biggest platforms for used or unwanted clothes, it has some cons that you need to know about. Here are some of the main drawbacks of thredUP:

• Item processing and evaluation takes time: In some cases, the evaluation process might take up to 3 months. You’ll have to wait to find out how much you’ll earn. Keep in mind that thredUP won’t accept some of the items you send. In other words, you might have to wait for a long period and end up not making any money.
• You’ll have to pay a fee to get your items back: if you decide that you want your items back, it’ll cost you $10.99. You want to make sure that the items you send are acceptable before sending them.
• The payout isn’t the biggest: don’t expect a huge payout for your clothes, especially the ones that went out of style. On average, you can make 3% to 80% of what the clothes sell. That depends on the brand, condition of the items, quality, demand, and the selling price.
• ThredUP doesn’t accept all your items: thredUP doesn’t accept all clothing items. For example, they don’t accept fake clothes or the ones in bad condition. On average, the website only accepts 50% of the items.

What You’ll Need to Sell on ThredUP

Selling on thredUP is as simple as it gets. You won’t have to do a lot of work, as the platform will do most of the steps for you. That means it’s easy, but the process might take some time.

Here’s what you need to sell on thredUP:

• Create your thredUP account: creating an account on the platform is easy and fast. You can also log in using your Facebook or Amazon account.
• Order the Clean Out Kit: one of the best things about thredUP is that you won’t have to do any heavy lifting. To start your selling journey on the website, you need to order the Clean Out Kit, which costs $10. The kit includes a big pre-paid shipping pouch, instructions, and helpful tips to maximize your profit.
• Select your processing time: thredUP offers free standard processing, which can take around three months. Fortunately, if you don’t want to wait, you can choose the three-week processing plan for $16.
• Set your listing prices: after the platform reviews your items, you need to set your listing prices. You’ll have around 12 hours to set the prices of the clothes after thredUP accepts them.

What to Sell on ThredUP

ThredUP allows you to sell any kind of clothing items, from dresses and bags to shoes and accessories. To maximize your earnings, you need to pick the items you send carefully.

Overall, you should choose items that are in-season and gently worn. High-quality brands tend to sell for higher profits. It’s a good idea to check out the trends of the season.

That being said, here are some of the most popular items to sell on thredUP:

• Bags: bags always sell well, especially luxury ones. Luxury bags are selling well right now, even during the inflation period. Many types of bags don’t get old or out of style. We also can see some styles of bags that were once considered out-of-fashion becoming trendy once again, like tote bags.
• Dresses: there’s a constant demand for formal wear on thredUP. There’s an even bigger demand for Prada, Ralph Lauren, Louis Vuitton, Buffalo Exchange, Free People, and Madewell dresses. Luxury dresses have good resale value. 
• Summer Products: with the weather getting hotter, the demand for summer products and beachwear is on the rise. That includes hats, t-shirts, shorts, and sunglasses. You can expect these products to sell well on thredUP in the upcoming months.

How to Sell on ThredUP: Step-By-Step Instructions

Selling on thredUP is as easy as it gets. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do so:

1. Sign Up on ThredUP

The first thing to do is sign up on the platform. You can do so using your email address. You can also log in using your Facebook, Google, Apple, or Amazon account.

2. Order the ThredUP Clean-Out Kit

After registering your account, tap the “Clean Out” tab and scroll down. You’ll find two options: sell and donate. If you don’t want to make money or go through a long evaluation process, you can choose to donate any clothing item.

Otherwise, you can choose the “Sell” option. Then, you can decide whether you want to order the Clean Out Bag or get a shipping label emailed to you.

3. Choose the Processing Time and the Fate of Unaccepted Items

thredUP provides a return assurance option, which means the platform will send back any clothes if you change your mind about selling them. The return option costs around $11.

Therefore, you shouldn’t send out clothes you’re not sure about selling. After that, you can pick from the standard processing option or the fast one. 

Standard processing can take up to 14 weeks, while the fast one takes around three weeks only. However, fast processing costs $16. 

Overall, the fast processing is suitable for someone that sells a lot of clothes. For example, some people like to check thrift shops for valuable clothes. If you’re thrifting, there are some important things to look for at thrift stores. For example, the items should be free of any damage, and they must be original.

4. Review ThredUP’s Quality Standards

Before you start selling on thredUP, you need to review its quality standards to make sure that the clothes you send comply. Otherwise, you might end up with many unaccepted clothes. 

You’ll also find examples of how much you can make from selling your clothes on the platform, as well as the payout percentages depending on the price of the items.

5. Pack Your Clothes

After receiving the kit, you can start packing your clothes. Make sure to pick clean, gentle-worn clothes. Ideally, the clothes should be freshly laundered and free of any stains.

It’s worth mentioning that the bag is large! You can pack a lot of items in it. If you selected to get a shipping label emailed to you, you won’t have to wait for the kit to arrive. With a shipping label, you can start packing your clothes right away.

6. Send the Package to ThredUP

After packing your items, seal the package and send it off. You’ll receive a tracking email when the package is in transit. That might be your last chance to get your items back for free!

When thredUP receives your package, you’ll receive an email notification that includes a time estimate on the evaluation process.

Once the process is done, you’ll receive another email from thredUP that includes the accepted pieces. After that, you can edit the price of the accepted items on the website. You typically have 12 hours to adjust the initial price.

7. Cash Out Your Earnings

After your clothes are sold, you can access your earnings by going to the Clean Outs page. You’ll find all your items and earnings. 

You can use your earnings to purchase items from the website, or you can cash them out. ThredUP allows you to cash out your earnings via Stripe, PayPal, or direct deposit.

PayPal allows you to cash out $1000 at a time, while Stripe allows you to cash out $3000. If you face any trouble cashing out your earnings, you can always contact the thredUP customer service.

You can contact the customer service team via live chat or email. As of 2023, thredUP doesn’t offer checks or cash.

Things to Consider When Selling on ThredUP

Whether you’re cleaning out your closet or starting a clothing business, there are some things you need to consider.

1. ThredUP Doesn’t Accept Damaged Clothes

If you have a damaged item, don’t expect thredUP to accept it. The website cares about the quality and cleanliness of the items.

The problem is that you’ll have to pay a fee to have the website return rejected items, or you can choose to donate them.

2. It’s Not the Best Place to Sell High-End Brands

Do you have a super luxury, high-end item that you want to sell? Well, thredUP might not be the best place to do so. Poshmark is a good alternative if you want to sell high-end designer brands. Make sure to check out these tips for selling on Poshmark.

3. Profit Margins Aren’t High

On average, you can make 3% to 80% of what the clothes sell, depending on the age of the item, estimated retail price, and its quality.

Initially, the platform suggests the listing price for you. Then, it allows you to edit the price in the first 12 hours. You’ll also have to wait until after the bidding period to edit your item’s price again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Similar Tutorials to Check Out

Here are some similar tutorials you should check out:

• How to Sell on Depop: Depop is a London-based global marketplace. It has over 32 million items available for sale, and more than 30 million users from 150 countries.
• How to sell clothes to Plato’s Closet: Plato’s Closet buys and sells lightly used brand clothes, shoes, and accessories. They buy all types and all styles of clothes. In addition, Plato’s Closet locations are operated by local business owners.
• How to sell used clothes online: Are you looking to start your online clothing business? You need to check out our complete guide that’ll tell you everything you need to know.

Wrapping Up

After checking out our guide on how to sell on thredUP, you should be ready to start selling your clothes right away!

Make sure to launder your clothes and check them for damage before sending them out.

We highly encourage you to check out the list of items that thredUP doesn’t accept. That’s because you’ll have to pay a fee to get rejected items shipped to you.

Once your clothes are sold, you can easily cash out your earnings through PayPal or Stripe.