Selling on Amazon vs. eBay: Which Platform is Right for You?
So, you’re considering selling on Amazon vs. eBay but are you stuck on which one to choose? It’s not surprising – both platforms have their own perks, but they serve different types of sellers. Whether you’re wondering “should I sell on eBay or Amazon?” or just trying to figure out which one gives you the best options, you’re in the right place.
Shall we take a closer look at what each platform offers and how you can figure out which one’s a better fit for your goals?
The Pros and Cons of Selling on Amazon Vs eBay
Amazon is by far the most popular e-commerce platform in the world, meaning that Amazon sellers benefit from a vast pool of potential customers. Even so, there are still important benefits that come with selling on eBay. View the images below.
Who Should Sell on Amazon?
Amazon or eBay? If you are looking for a way to reach a bigger audience and you don’t mind working within a structured system, selling on Amazon is looking to be your best bet. Here is why:
Advantages of Selling on Amazon
Massive Reach: Selling on Amazon vs. eBay gives you access to millions of potential customers, many of them are all ready to buy. Amazon’s giant customer base is a huge plus.
Prime Members: If you are selling products that are eligible for Amazon Prime, you will be able to reach those millions of loyal Prime members who are known to do their buying more often.
Convenience with FBA: If you don’t want to deal with storing inventory, packing, and shipping, the ease of FBA on Amazon vs. other options takes care of it all for you. This makes it easy to scale without worrying about logistics.
Challenges of Selling on Amazon
Higher Fees: Is it easier to sell on eBay or Amazon? In terms of fees, Amazon usually comes out having higher prices, especially if you use FBA. You will need to consider this as a factor in your costs when setting your prices.
Strict Guidelines: Amazon has stricter guidelines that must be followed when listing a product, this is especially true for certain product categories.
Who Should Sell on eBay?
Selling on eBay is perfect for sellers who want a bit more flexibility, especially when it comes to things like unique items, used goods, or collectibles.
Advantages of Selling on eBay
Flexibility: Unlike Amazon, which has a more standardized and fixed format for listings, eBay lets you customize them and even run auctions, which can be a big help if you want to get a higher price especially for rare items and collectibles.
Lower Fees: The fee structure on eBay tends to be more favorable for sellers with smaller inventories. While it does take a cut of your sales, it’s more affordable for sellers, especially those who are just starting out.
Challenges of Selling on eBay
Smaller Audience: While eBay still attracts millions of buyers, it’s not on the same spectrum as Amazon. If you are trying to sell products to a broad market, Amazon might be a more beneficial choice for you.
Auction Model: As auctions are a great choice for some items, they are not the best fit for everything. If you prefer fixed prices, eBay’s auction format might not be fit for you.
Amazon vs. eBay: A Detailed Comparison
1. Market Reach & Customer Base
When you are deciding between selling on eBay vs. selling on Amazon, market reach is a big deal. So is the factor who you are selling to, as the customer base can vary substantially.
Audience Size & Buyer Behavior: Amazon’s reach is huge, which makes it perfect for selling to a wide range of consumers. eBay, on the other hand, is the better option for specialized markets – think all kinds of vintage, rare, or used products. If you’re asking yourself “is it easier to sell on eBay or Amazon?”, it all depends on what you’re selling.
Trust & Brand Perception: Is Amazon or eBay better for selling? Amazon has a compelling reputation, and its platform holds the trust of many customers, especially when it comes to selling new products. eBay, while trusted, is perceived more as the go-to place for second-hand or unique items.
2. Selling Fees & Costs
Amazon vs eBay fees can have a significant impact on your profits, so it is essential to understand how they work.
Amazon Selling Fees (FBM vs. FBA): Selling on Amazon can get a little pricey if you choose Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), as you will end up paying for storage, packing, and shipping. Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) is a cheaper option but requires you to be able to handle everything yourself.
eBay Selling Fees: eBay usually costs less and is more flexible. You pay a listing fee, and it takes a percentage of your final sale, but the overall cost is often less than that of Amazon’s FBA – but also comes with no additional fulfillment services.
Which Platform Offers Better Profit Margins?
If you are trying to figure out selling at Amazon vs. eBay, eBay may offer better margins for sellers with lower-cost items, since its fees tend to be more affordable. However, this does not mean that you will automatically make more profit, as the sales volume can vary.
3. Fulfillment & Shipping Options
When it comes to fulfillment on eBay, you just have one option: pack and ship orders yourself. While eBay expects sellers to manage every part of their business, Amazon promises to help you with a substantial amount of it. eBay lets you take care of fulfillment on your own, giving you more control. If you’re good with logistics, this could save you money compared to FBA.
Amazon, on the other hand, gives you the choice of fulfilling orders yourself (Fulfillment by Merchant; FBM) or having Amazon do it for you (Fulfillment by Amazon; FBA). FBA allows you to store products at Amazon warehouses, where Amazon picks, packs, and ships orders on your behalf. If you do not want to deal with packing and shipping, FBA is a notable change, though it comes with extra fees.
This is a no-brainer, given that Amazon offers greater shipping support than eBay. Even if eBay began offering such a service tomorrow, it would be competing with the world’s most advanced delivery service.
4. Product Categories & Restrictions
Making the choice between selling on eBay vs. selling on Amazon can also depend on the type of products you’re selling.
What Can You Sell on Amazon? Amazon has strict guidelines about what can be sold. If your product doesn’t meet their criteria, you’re out of luck. Simply by not complying with the criteria, your product is out, and you are in a coma.
What Can You Sell on eBay? eBay is much more flexible, especially for second-hand items. If you have used or vintage products, eBay might be the better option.
5. Refunds, Returns, and Seller Protection
Each platform has different rules for returns and refunds.
Amazon’s Return & Refund Policies: Amazon’s return policy is in favor of buyers and can be a little tough on sellers, especially with big-ticket items.
eBay’s Return & Refund Policies: eBay has a similar return policy favoring the buyers but provides more protection for sellers, especially if a buyer is being unreasonable which we know could happen quite often unfortunately.
6. Amazon’s Consumer Trust
Amazon prioritizes consumer trust, making it a core part of its vision and values. One key reason for its popularity is the ease of returns, with the A-Z Guarantee ensuring full refunds if customers are dissatisfied.
While it is possible to return items on eBay, the return process is more complicated, and sellers can even select a ‘No Returns’ option, leaving buyers without recourse. While this might seem beneficial for sellers, it can actually harm business – signaling to customers that the seller doesn’t trust their own product. It is also important to note that selecting ‘No Returns’ does not exempt sellers from refunding the buyers in certain situations like damaged items, or having listed/sent wrong items. Moreover, selecting to use the ‘No returns’ option does not exempt sellers from consumer laws and regulations. As an example, in most EU countries, consumer laws dictate that sellers offer a 14-day return period.
7. Advertising Options Amazon vs. eBay
Amazon’s Advertising Options
Amazon Sponsored Products ensures your products appear on the first page of search results for selected keywords. You can choose keywords yourself or let Amazon handle it. Since this is a pay-per-click (PPC) service, you pay per click, making budget tracking essential. Amazon also provides advanced tools to help manage campaigns. In addition to Sponsored Products, Amazon offers various advertising options for businesses and affiliates, making this a key factor when choosing between selling on Amazon vs. eBay.
eBay’s Advertising Options
Promoted Listings boost item visibility in search results. Sellers bid an additional amount on top of the final value fee, typically around 5-10%.
Advertisements for Leading Brands offer more detailed and personalized branding solutions for companies with larger marketing budgets, differing from standard promoted listings.
Alternatives to Amazon and eBay
It’s true that Amazon and eBay may be the biggest fish out there in the e-commerce world. But they are by far not the only ones. Depending on what you are planning to sell and what area you are planning to expand in, there are many different platforms that can service your needs equally efficiently.
Etsy
Etsy is like Amazon and eBay for artisans, focusing very strongly on handmade products. You can find anything from art, photography, toys, bath & beauty products, food, jewelry, quilts, the list goes on and on. Etsy is a global platform that has been growing constantly.
The big difference to the two platforms is that Etsy offers its customers products with more “character” if you so will. Customers browsing Etsy are looking for something handmade and unique rather than branded.
Walmart
The well-known U.S. discounter also has an e-commerce platform that offers sellers the opportunity of establishing another revenue channel. It is especially attractive to sellers because the setup is simple and free of charge. There is also no maintenance fee and the range of items you can sell on Walmart is similar to the range the two market leaders have.
Rakuten
Apart from offering streaming, data and banking services, Rakuten is also one of the most successful e-commerce platforms worldwide. With most of their customers based in Japan, Rakuten is especially attractive for sellers looking to expand on the Asian market. The Japanese platform is different from Amazon insofar as it does not “interfere” as much with the seller’s business. There is no FBA option and no own line of products à la AmazonBasics competing directly with the customers. Rakuten is only a shopping platform and payment gateway, nothing more.
Bonanza
Bonanza is a nice alternative one can not overlook in our comparison ‘selling on Amazon vs. eBay.’ The range of products you can sell on Bonanza is very wide. Are you looking to sell the very unlikely combination of a handmade necklace, a new pair of running shoes and/or a TV? Look no further than Bonanza. As a seller platform, Bonanza shines with low fees, great customer support, easy to print and pre-sized shipping labels, built-in marketing options and easy access as well as integration.
Final Thoughts on Selling on Amazon vs. eBay
So, what is better, Amazon or eBay? It’s time to make a decision now that you know the distinctions between the two platforms and, hopefully, a better grasp of how they can benefit your business. When choosing Amazon or eBay to sell, pay attention to the factors which were mentioned in the article. Good luck with your choice!
Frequently Asked Questions
As you can see there are lots of aspects to consider when choosing the best platform for selling, but we would opt for Amazon since it seems more lucrative for sellers.
Fees vary depending on the product being sold and the fulfillment method. So, it is difficult to answer whether selling on Amazon vs. eBay is cheaper.
To sell on eBay, focus on auction-style listings for unique or used items. It has lower fees but less traffic. Amazon is better for new products, offers higher traffic and fulfillment services, but has higher fees. The better platform depends on your product type and business strategy.
Image credits in order of appearance: © Claudio Divizia – stock.adobe.com / © Андрей Яланский – stock.adobe.com
