How to sell books on eBay
Whenever I mention in passing that I'm selling books on eBay, someone asks questions about the process.
So, I thought it would be good to have a post that I can send people to when they ask that question in the future.
I am totally not an eBay expert (lots of people on the internet know more about eBay than I do!), but I'm happy to share what I do.
1. Install the eBay app.
This is not essential, but it makes adding photos to your listing so, so much easier.
If you don't already have an account, you'll need to make one.
This page has very detailed step by step directions for setting up an account.
It's not very hard, though; if you have basic internet savvy, you will be fine.
2. Do a search on eBay for the book you're wanting to sell.
In the sidebar options on desktop, click "completed listings" so you can see if your book is
- selling for a decent price
- selling at all
If a book is only going for, say, $0.99, I just don't think it's worth the time to make a listing.
So, I like to make sure it's worth my while.
(On mobile, click on "Filter" on the right hand top side and scroll down to toggle on "completed listings".)
3. Click "sell one like this".
This takes you to a page with a pre-filled listing, which makes your life way easier. A lot of the information like author, genre, etc. will already be filled out.
4. Edit the listing to make sure it's accurate.
Make sure the condition (new, like new, good, etc.) is right for your book.
In the description, add any relevant info about the condition of the book (the back cover is torn, page 42 has markings, etc.)
It's always best to err on the side of lots of disclosure about the condition of your book. That way the buyer knows exactly what they're getting and you won't get a complaint when the buyer receives their purchase.
5. Add photos of your own.
You can use an eBay stock photo of the book, but I always add my own photos as well.
When I'm a buyer, I like to see an actual photo of what I'm buying, not just a stock photo. And so I figure that my buyers are the same.
Make sure to take photos of any imperfections so that your buyer knows what they're getting.
6. Select Media Mail for your shipping.
Media mail is far and away the cheapest way to ship books. I always use this as the option when I list books.
You'll need to weigh your book and enter that info in the shipping area. For a small book, I use my kitchen scale.
For larger books, I step on my bathroom scale with the book and then without the book and then find the difference between the two weights.
7. Decide if you want to accept returns or not.
My account is set to not accept returns; it's just too much of a headache for books that aren't worth that much to begin with.
Even though my account is set this way, my buyers do still have the option to do a return if the book is not as described. The "no returns" setting just prevents them from doing a return for a reason like, "I just changed my mind."
8. Decide on auction/buy it now, and a price.
I always do my listings as "buy it now" because it's simpler than an auction.
eBay gives a suggested price for your book, but you can use your judgment here, based on what you learned when you looked at the completed listings earlier.
I tend to price mine a little on the low end of things because a fast sale is my highest priority. Get that book out of here! 🙂
9. Use a computer and your phone for max speed.
I like to do the whole listing except for the photos on my computer. It's much faster to type on a computer!
I finish the entire listing except the photos and then I click "save for later".
Then I open up my eBay phone app, find my draft, and add photos from my phone camera.
You could certainly make the whole listing on the app if you wanted, but I like having an actual keyboard.
10. Wait for someone to buy your book!
People might submit counter-offers, which you can accept or counter back.
Or they may just pay full price.
eBay will email you whenever you have a counteroffer or when an item has sold.
11. Once you're paid, package and ship your book.
I save padded envelopes from my own online orders and I use those to package the books I sell. Just make sure you take off or cover over any barcodes from the previous shipment. Then put your book into the package and tape it up.
eBay will send you an email once you've been paid, and that email will have a button you can click to print a shipping label.
You'll need to fill out a little bit of info, and then you can pay for and print the label right at home. So much quicker than going to the post office!
(Media mail is not available directly through the USPS website, but it IS available through eBay, for items sold on eBay. So awesome.)
Print the label (I always choose the "save ink" option) and tape it on your package.
(related tip: buy multi-packs of packing tape to help keep shipping costs down.)
12. Drop your package in the mail.
If the package is small enough, I put it right in my mailbox. Otherwise, I go drop it into the drop box at the post office (no need to stand in line).
How long does this take? Is it worth it?
Making an eBay listing sounds like a ton of steps, but once you've done it a few times, it should take less than 5 minutes.
(You'll be slow at first. But you can get faster!)
And packaging up a book for shipping usually takes me less than 5 minutes.
So, for about 10 minutes of work, I get some money in my pocket, and I know my used book is going directly to someone who wants it.
It would be way faster to donate my book to Goodwill, but there's a pretty good chance the book will get thrown away, particularly if the book is somewhat niche, like a homeschooling book.
So, I look at my eBay selling as a kind of matchmaking; I'm uniting a reader with a book they actually want.
What about selling on Amazon instead?
I've done that a few times, and it is faster to making a listing on Amazon.
However, I've not had very good luck getting my items sold (too much competition, probably), and also Amazon's seller fees seem higher to me than eBay's.
So I almost always list my books on eBay.
Any other questions?
Let me know in the comments.
And if any of you have good book-selling tips for eBay (or general eBay selling tips), please share!
By request, here's a printable of the steps in this post.
How to Sell Books on Ebay
Get some cash and empty your bookshelves!
Instructions
1. Install the eBay app and make an account if you don't already have one.
The app isn't essential but it does make photo uploading way easier.
2. Do a search on eBay for the book you want to sell, using the ISBN or title.
In your search results, filter by "completed listings". On mobile, click on “Filter” on the right hand top side and scroll down to toggle on “completed listings”.
3. Once you find your item, click “sell one like this”.
This will take you to a page where most of the information is pre-filled.
4. Edit the listing to make sure it’s accurate.
Make sure the condition, edition year, and other info is right.
5. Add photos of your own.
eBay will give you stock photos, but I always add my own.
6. Select Media Mail for your shipping.
This will save your buyer a lot of money and make your listing more appealing.
7. Decide if you want to accept returns or not.
I have a policy of not accepting returns.
8. Decide on auction/buy it now, and a price.
I do "buy it now" for simplicity, and I base my price on the completed listings I looked up earlier.
9. Use a computer AND your phone for max speed.
I type up the listing on the computer, save as a draft, then open the draft on my phone to upload the photos.
10. Wait for someone to buy your book!
People may submit counteroffers, which you can accept, reject, or counteroffer.
11. Once you’re paid, package and ship your book.
I used saved packing supplies from my own online orders, & I print a shipping label from my home computer.
12. Drop your package in the mail.
If it fits in your mailbox, use that. Otherwise take it to the post office and use the drop box; no need to stand in line since you already have a label attached.
Notes
Textbooks are frequently updated, and that makes older editions less valuable. Try to sell textbooks as soon as you're done using them!
There is a new eBay alternative called Mercari. I like it because it is simpler to do everything on your phone, the interface is cleaner and simpler, sold items are shown with items for sale, the fee is a flat 10%, and they send lots of coupons. Check it out!
This was very helpful, Kristen. Do you get paid via PayPal? Thanks for the detailed and timely post.
Yup! I use Paypal.
THANK YOU! I'm getting ready to do this and I have so much less worry about it now thanks to you.
I'm so glad! If you run into questions as you give this a try, leave a comment or email me and I'm glad to help.
Your firs time, it will feel like it takes forever. But you get fast as you make more listings!
I ship out a lot of books bc I read a lot and participate in book swaps through Facebook groups. My tips for fast and cheap book shipping: 1) Use PirateShip to purchase and print postage at home. 2) Always use media mail. 3) Reuse padded shipping envelopes. 4) I bought these packing sleeves which are much easier than taping over the labels and use a lot less tape.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DJKPE1C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Thank you!!
Quick Tip: To remove those huge labels when repurposing envelopes, heat them with a blow dryer and they'll lift right off. If they leave sticky residue, I just put my new label there and cover it with tape.
Costco sells multipacks of good 3M tape, but it's rather expensive. It goes on sale periodically, so I stock up then.
Thanks Diane - that is awesome!
If you're using flexible poly shipping bags, you can also turn them inside out. That hides the old labels and makes a nice clean surface for your new label. I've done that many times.
Great article! Thank you so much!
Thanks you so much! I was one of those asking for this info!! I have so many books and I’m ready to give it a try....
Thank you so much for this! I feel like I’m now ready to make the leap into eBay selling.
Great post Kristen; thanks heaps; have been thinking about this for a while - will give it a go
Do you pay for postage or the buyer?
I always have the buyer pay.
Thank you so much. I found this very helpful
Do you have to keep track of these sales for tax purposes?
I’ve been inspired by this and have signed up for Ebay but my offers all look like scam artists wanting me to text them because they have a ?
Do you see a lot of this? Is there something I could have done better?
Hmm, I've never had that happen! I've just received offers through the ebay interface from legit users.
What do the offers say? Are they messages, or actual formal offers?
How do you compete with the big sellers? I'm on eBay uk where royal mail charges more to post items than the big sellers are charging. Those books I'm not even bothering to list but even some of the more niche or older books just aren't selling?
Hmm, I'm in America, so I'm not familiar with how the shipping works in the UK. Here, we have multiple shipping options, and we can choose to have the buyer pay for the shipping if we'd like. The regular postal rates are discounted for eBay sellers, but it is possible that the big sellers get a bigger shipping discount than I do. I'm not sure!
Very helpful! I'm selling books for our non-profit and trying to create our first listings on eBay, but can't find a way to have "Free Shipping" appear in the preview. (I included the shipping price in the listing prices).
When I check "Free Shipping" and then "Save Draft" and "Resume Editing," the "Free Shipping" has disappeared.
All guidance appreciated!
Boy, I'm not sure what's causing that glitch. I'd try contacting eBay support for some help.
Hi and thanks for the awesome info. I was wondering how do you suggest I print the shipping labels if I don't have a printer at home?
It is always an option to just take your package to the post office and mail it the usual way.
Thank you so much, this has been a real help as I have a pile of books I'd like to sell rather than donate. I'm just wondering about the cost of postage....when and how is this done? is it done when you are creating the listing and so is added on to the total price? Many thanks again.
Yep, it's done when you're creating the listing! You can select Media Mail if you are in the U.S.; that's a very cheap shipping rate for books. And you can have the buyer pay for the shipping.
Excellent article! After 17 years of homeschooling and a lifetime of enjoying books, I have extensive “matchmaking” to do! One question I have is how much does eBay take for each sale? Thanks again!
Thank you for the valuable information. Very helpful.
Thank this helps a lot! But I still need help...on how to sell a lot (as in a few books/DVDs at a time) on books/DVDs whose ISBN numbers aren’t available on eBay because they’re all French? Do I just list/free text one isbn and list the rest in the description?
What about listing weight? I looked at one of the books I want to sell and it was 8.4 oz and listed as 0.53 lb but when you put in the weight it doesn’t allow for « point something » . I would really appreciate it if you could help out.
Also is there a way to categorize it as French children’s books?
Thank you!
Yeah, I think maybe one ISBN and listing the rest in the description would be good. Or you could search to see if you can find another "lot" listing like yours, and then copy that one?
I just round up with the weight; it doesn't need to be super precise.
I'm not sure about categorizing books as French; maybe look for other French children's book listings and see how they are categorized.
Thanks so much for the information! Can you tell me how much eBay charges? Do you know how it compares to the other site that was mentioned?
Are you wondering how much they charge for shipping? Or for commission?
What books are good to sell?
That really depends. If you have a book and you wonder if it's worth it to sell, do a search on eBay for completed listings for that book. Then you can see how much real life listings are selling for.
I've had the best luck with military books (first-hand accounts of wars, memoirs, battle write-ups about specific battles during WWII). One book looked like the kind of book you would buy at the mall from some guy in a kiosk but it sold for $80 so always do your homework! Sometimes you sit on books for a while, but patience can pay off. I picked up a free bookcase off the side of the road and store my "inventory" alphabetically /on it once it's been posted on eBay.
Hi Kristen. This is an excellent article.
I've sold some books on Ebay before, and kind of limped through the process, not knowing if it was the best or easiest way to do a book auction, so it's nice to know exactly how someone with experience handles it so I can streamline my process.
A big question I have is about entering the weight when you are setting up the Ebay auction.
Whenever I've set up auctions for any item I'm selling on Ebay, I have always weighed the book or item when it's already in it's packaging, ready to be shipped. I realized that would obviously increase the postage necessary for the item, but I assumed that was the correct way to do it.
Would I be correct in now assuming that I only need to weigh the item or book itself when determining the weight? Will the package be rejected by the Post Office if the package weight is higher once it's in the packaging to ship the item?
I've always been confused about this issue.
Thanks.
I always go by the packaged weight of the item! I put the book in a package, weigh it, and go from there.
A bubble-lined envelope doesn't add much weight at all to the package, though, so it's not a huge difference.
What is the pricing on ebay? the best way to sell ?
Hmm, I'm not sure what you are specifically asking.
Maybe what type of listing to make? I almost always make my listings a "buy it now" vs. an auction; it's just simpler for me.
My guess is she’s asking the same thing I’m wondering and that is what are the eBay fees for selling a book? Do you use PayPal for payment?
Hi Kristen,
I enjoyed your helpful article. I was actually wanting to see that it was about selling my new novel on eBay. What do you think? There'd be no competitive or comparative data. And would someone have to search for that specific title? In other words, would I be a needle in a haystack?
Thanks!
I'm guessing it would be a needle in a haystack situation. eBay works best when people know what they're searching for, so my uneducated guess is that people wouldn't just randomly find it.
Hello,
My name is Donna and I am starting up a book sale on ebay for the first time ever. In my research, I have found that ebay ALWAYS sides with the buyer when it comes to returns. Is this true? Also, do you get many returns on ebay?
Thank you. 🙂
I always put "no returns" in my listing description and I check the "no returns" box when I make my listing.
So, unless something is terribly wrong with what I ship, people will not have a reason to ask for a return.
@Donna,
Yes they do side with the buyer for refunds requested. My son sold $800 bundle of game console and games. It weighed a lot and he had his receipt from the post office for it, with over $50 cost for shipping. Buyer tried to claim it was a box half full of scrap material when they got it and wanted money back. Ebay was siding with them, so he got his proof together told buyer he was going to ebay with proof and they dropped the request and marked it as a perfect item when received. It's only a problem when selling big cost items, book sells usually aren't a problem.
I agree with this; in my experience, people who engage in scammy behavior don't typically bother with low-value items like books.
what is media mail exactly and can I use that from Canada?
As far as I know, Media Mail is a US Postal Service offering. I'm not sure how shipping with eBay works in Canada!
Thanks for this detailed guide. I plan to give this a try. A dear family friend gifted me “a few” books that turned into about 100. Since he was kind enough to deliver them to my doorstep, I didn’t have the heart to say I was not interested in most of them.
Oh wow! You are going to have so much inventory. Good luck!
The more books you list, the easier and faster it gets. So don't be discouraged at first.
Hi, how do you calculate pricing if you are listing a book not listed before? how do you know the book will sell? Thanks.
I always check the completed listings to see how much my book is selling for, and to see if people are actually buying that book. There's an option in the left sidebar menu to look at completed listings.
Hey, just want to say thanks for the really good info from someone who is new to this.
Mike
This is great info, thank you for sharing. Do you have any insight on cross posting books on eBay and another platform like Amazon, for example, in order to reach a larger audience? I am thinking of starting book sales for a niche market and my gut says Amazon drive it's become a go-to, but obviously many people buy on eBay too. Thanks!
I have tried listing some stuff on Amazon, but my goodness, they take such a high commission, I started to feel like it was not worth it.
I prefer to stick with eBay whenever possible, and if I want to cross-post, I use a local service like a Facebook group.
Thank you for this article. Question about shipping fees. Do you include that in the cost of the book or is that calculated by eBay depending on where it is shipping to? I live in Canada and don't know if my used books would ship overseas at all or if it would mainly be Canada and USA or do I get to choose?
You have lots of options for handling shipping when you make your listing; you can set a price for the buyer to pay, or you can choose to pay the shipping yourself. Also, you can choose international shipping settings as well!
Great instructions and advice, Ms. Frugal 🙂
Even better with advice on how to sell a set of different books as one sale and one ad.
Thanks for considering!
Hmmm, I'm not sure what you're asking for when you mention "ad". Help me out!
How do you know what price to set for shipping?
During the listing process, you can input your package's weight and size, and then eBay calculates it for you!
Great suggestions, thank you. On Ebay, is there a way to create 10 listings for example before they go live so you have more to offer to get going on your book sales?
Yep! You can save them as drafts and make them go live whenever you want.
Thank you!
Oh, I'm so glad you did this! I have a few books I've wondered about selling on eBay, but just couldn't figure out where to start, and if it would be worth it, so was just waiting for a time when life wasn't so chaotic and I could sit and try to figure out shipping, etc. Thanks for taking us by the hand and leading us through the process, and the printable version is a stroke of genius! I feel like you've just written one of those "for Dummies" articles, and this dummy needed it! LOL
Greetings all! Im new to selling on ebay and I cant wait to exercise these steps and tips. Thanks so much for the awesome layout. I am also an amazon seller but i havent made a profit. Ive tried a few of the popular book selling apps and they actually work pretty well (declutter,mercari, sellbackyourbooks). Good luck to everyone and happy times.