Get Started Selling Online: Payments and Fees

Posted on Nov 16, 2010 in Selling Online | 0 comments

Selling online for newbies: how much will I be charged?

Whether you want to start an online store selling your own handmade products or items in bulk from China, we’re going to cover the different buying and selling portals. In this section, we’re covering the costs to sell on the four main portals you’re most likely going to be selling on.

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::::::::: PORTAL FEES :::::::::

(all fees displayed below reflect the portals fee structure as of November 13, 2010)

Bonanza fees: no listing fees so list how ever much you want to. If an item sells, Bonanza takes a Final Offer Fee. Up to $10 sale, they take $0.50. Up to $50 sale, they take $1. Up to $100 sale, they take $3. If you sell a $100 item, you receive $97.00.

Etsy fees: $.20 listing fee per item. If an item sells, Etsy takes 3.5%.  Here’s an Etsy Sellers Handbook. If you sell a $100 item, you receive $96.30.

eBay fees: eBay fees get complicated. Depending on if you have a certain subscription determines how much you are charged. Let’s say you have no eBay subscriptions, insertion fees (listing fees) are as such: $.01-.99 (free), $1.00-9.99 ($.25), $10.00-24.99 ($.50), $25.00-49.99 ($.75), $50.00-199.99 ($1), etc. The Final Value Fee (FVF) varies on what type of product it is. Generally (without a subscription) the FVF is 9% for auction style listings. If you have a set price (Fixed Price) on a product, FVFs range from 8%-15%. All this to say… if you sell a $100 item, you receive (roughly) $90.

Amazon fees: Under 40 products a month, no subscription. Over 40 products a month, $39.99 monthly subscription. No listing fees. When an item sells, they take a 15% “referral fee” and $1.35 “closing fee”. Some products sell higher on Amazon (and would have to for the fee amount!). If you sell a $100 item, you receive $83.75.

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::::::::: PAYMENT FEES :::::::::

PayPal, owned by eBay, it currently the most universal payment method and a lot of people have a PayPal account. They take 2.9% + $0.30 of the total collected fee – meaning shipping amount too. So, if you sell an item for $100 + $15 shipping ($115 total), the PayPal fee is $3.64. When payment is received for the items purchased, the 2.9% +$0.30 is already removed. It will take approximately 4 business days to withdraw your money to your PayPal account. PayPal is the only option for Etsy users and eBay users. Bonanza accepts this as well as the following:

Google Checkout, only allowed by Bonanza out of these 4, is still 2.9% + $0.30 but it is an alternative to PayPal.

Money Order, also only allowed by Bonanza out of these 4, skips all of the fees but increases the time spent on the transaction as well as reduces on fraud protection.

Amazon connects directly to your bank account. No third party and no additional fees.