Depop or Poshmark: Which Is Best for Reselling Used & Vintage Fashion?
Want to become a mini fashion mogul? It could be as simple as cleaning out your closet — and turning on your phone.
Whether your closet is overflowing with barely-worn pieces or you’ve got a keen eye for thrift-store finds, you could earn some extra cash reselling old clothes online.
The latest clothing resale apps are built like social media networks for fashion: You follow fellow sellers, and buyers follow you. You can share new items to get them in front of users through their feeds.
Depop and Poshmark are two popular social shopping apps for designer clothes. In this review, we’ll compare the two to help you choose the best home for your dazzling duds.
Depop vs. Poshmark: Our Honest Review
Depop are both peer-to-peer social shopping apps with a focus on reselling clothing and accessories.
Depop vs. Poshmark at a Glance
| Poshmark | Depop | |
|---|---|---|
| Seller fees | Free listing; 20% seller fee | Free listing; 10% seller fee + transaction fees |
| Shipping costs | $7.11 per order paid by buyer | You choose rate; paid by buyer or seller |
| Payment | Direct deposit or paper check | PayPal or Stripe |
| Best for | High-end fashion and luxury items | Vintage items and independent designs |
What Is Poshmark?
Poshmark is a fun way to buy and sell brand-name clothing and fashion accessories, as well as some home decor and media.
Selling on the platform is nearly as simple as snapping a photo. Here’s how to get started:
1. Download the free Poshmark app for iOS or Android, and create an account.
2. Take photos of the item you want to sell, and upload it to your “closet” — your seller profile or store.
3. Accumulate followers, and share your listings to let them know when you have something new to sell.
4. A buyer makes an offer, and you can accept, decline or counteroffer to land on a price you’ll accept for the item.
5. Ship within two days via USPS using flat-rate, pre-paid shipping labels.
6. Earnings are added to your Poshmark account balance, which you can redeem as cash or use to do your own shopping on the platform.
7. Withdraw funds any time via direct deposit to your bank account or paper check. Direct deposit takes about two to three business days.
Shoppers like the platform because it’s a way to get fashionable and designer items at a steal compared with retail prices for new items.
Compared with other platforms like Depop, Ebay or Etsy, Poshmark buyers are more interested in modern, high-end fashion than vintage styles or rare finds. Around 20% of Poshmark users are part of Gen Z, according to the company’s recent Social Commerce Report.
The Poshmark app facilitates community as much as shopping. Buyers can follow you and other influencers in the community to get notified in a newsfeed when you add new listings or share existing ones.
Users like the casual, peer-to-peer atmosphere of the Poshmark community, which makes you feel more like you’re swapping clothes with friends than starting a side hustle.
You’ll connect with other users by following them and sharing and commenting on their listings. You can also use virtual parties hosted by other users to make your offerings more visible, including appealing to the hosts to choose your item as a “host pick,” which will be featured in users’ feeds.
You can’t message directly with other users on the platform, but you can comment on their listings. All negotiation is handled through the “make an offer” button.
You can also attract buyers by making a discounted offer available to people who’ve “liked” your listings.
Here’s a quick breakdown of Poshmark basics:
- Poshmark fees: No listing fee; Poshmark keeps 20% of sale price (or $2.95 for any sale under $15).
- Poshmark payment: Get paid via direct deposit or paper check.
- Poshmark shipping: The buyer pays $7.11 for expedited shipping on all orders.
- Number of users: 60 million
- Best for: High-end fashion and luxury items
Poshmark: Pros and Cons
Poshmark can be a simple way to make money by cleaning out your closet. Here’s what users have said they like and don’t like about the platform.
Pros
- Easy for beginners; you don’t have to have pro photography skills to style your listings.
- Ability to see sold listings, so you can build your network by targeting buyers who want the kinds of items you’re selling.
- Good platform for gently used brand-name and luxury modern items.
- Ability to suggest your items to hosts to be featured.
Cons
- Seller fee is 20%, which is relatively steep compared with competitors.
- You can’t message users directly.
- Limited availability of plus-size items, especially sizes 18 and up.
- Only available in the U.S. and Canada.
What Is Depop?
Depop is a London-based peer-to-peer marketplace for pre-owned and vintage clothing, accessories and shoes.
You can create listings right from your phone using the free app. Here’s how to get started:
1. Download the free Depop app for iOS or Android, and create an account.
2. Take photos and a video (optional) of the item you want to sell, add a description and hashtags, and post it.
3. Accumulate followers, and share your listings to let them know when you have something new to sell.
4. Buyers will purchase your item and include their shipping address.
5. Choose your shipping plan: You can cover shipping or add it to the buyer’s cost, and you can arrange your own or use Ship With Depop to get a USPS shipping label (in the U.S.)
6. Earnings land in your Depop account, and you can redeem anytime via PayPal, or use Depop Payments (Stripe), which land in your bank account automatically every two days.
Shoppers love Depop for its variety of unique, creative, vintage and independent clothing. You can list high-end designers or luxury items on the app, too, but they don’t tend to sell as well here as through other apps.
Compared with Poshmark, Depop users are more interested in vintage, artistic and rare finds, as well as items from independent designers rather than luxury brands.
The community on this platform is made up of young millennials and Gen Z. TechCrunch reported on Depop in 2019 that 90% of its users are under age 26.
Depop functions as a community, so shoppers can follow you to keep track of your new listings. Plus, curators choose listings and sellers to feature for users to discover — a great way to get out in front of buyers.
Depop emphasizes curating your brand and style as a seller, making it best suited for side hustlers or small business owners, even though anyone can technically sell through the app.
You can build your following in the app by creating listings that stand out and get featured by Depop’s editorial team in the app’s Explore section. However, there’s no way to submit your listings to be featured; you just have to get noticed!
Here’s a quick breakdown of Depop basics:
- Depop fees: No listing fee, 10% seller fee to Depop, PayPal transaction fee of 2.9% + $0.30.
- Depop payment: Get paid via PayPal or through Stripe using Depop Payments.
- Depop shipping: Arrange your own, and set your own shipping rate, or Ship With Depop for a prepaid USPS shipping label between $3.50 and $14. You choose whether you or the buyer pays for shipping.
- Number of users: 21 million+
- Best for: Vintage items and independent designs
Depop: Pros and Cons
Depop is a fun community and marketplace where you can make money by curating unique finds and recycling your old fashion. Here’s what users have to say about the platform:
Pros
- Ability to message users directly, so you can answer buyer questions about your items.
- Only pay a 10% seller fee, which is relatively low compared with competitors.
- Choose whether you or the buyer pays for shipping, and set your own rates.
- Available all over the world.
Cons
- Limited to only four photos in the photo gallery for a listing.
- Payment only available via PayPal or Stripe, so you’ll pay transaction fees.
- Buyers tend to lowball their offers more often on this app than others, so you’ll field lots of offers you’ll reject.
- You may have trouble standing out or being featured in the app if you don’t take high-quality, interesting photos of your items.
- No opportunity to suggest your items to the editorial team to be featured.
Alternatives to Poshmark or Depop
Not having luck selling on Depop or Poshmark? Here are some more peer-to-peer marketplaces to consider:
- Mercari: Available in Japan and the U.S., this app lets you sell everything from old clothes and accessories to toys and electronics.
- ThredUp: This online consignment store does the work for you — send in the items you want to sell, and buys them from you or pays you when they sell.
- eBay: The original online store, eBay lets you sell everything — from clothes to cars. For fashion, it’s a popular destination for vintage and hard-to-find items.
- Etsy: If you’re a more involved curator, you could earn money selling vintage clothes through Etsy.
- Tradesy: This seller-friendly platform offers help setting up your listing and charges slightly less in commissions than Poshmark.
- Curtsy: Buy and sell “cute clothes” on this app that caters to more affordable styles and amateur sellers.
- Curvsi: This peer-to-peer clothing app exclusively features sizes 10 and up.
Is It Better to Sell Clothes on Depop or Poshmark?
Both Poshmark and Depop are popular marketplaces and communities for peer-to-peer, social selling.
As with most marketplaces, your best bet is to use both. List high-end, luxury fashion on Poshmark to fetch the best price, and list unique, vintage finds on Depop to connect with the right buyers.
In either case, how much you can earn through reselling will depend on what you have to sell and how much time you want to put into listing items and building your community.
Reselling through these apps could be a simple way to make a little cash from spring cleaning — or you could go whole hog and turn it into your next side hustle.
Dana Sitar is a contributor to The Penny Hoarder.
