Selling Guide

Before You Send

• What items can I send?
  

  We accept all brands, though a small number with very low resale value are ineligible for earnings. See Which items don’t earn money?

  A few things to know about brand labeling:

  • Women’s clothing without a brand tag is accepted but priced lower
  • All kids’ clothing must have an identifiable brand tag

  What don’t you accept?

  All items must be clean and in good condition. We also don’t accept:

  • Men’s clothing and accessories
  • Items without size tags (exceptions for luxury brands and Lululemon)
  • Undergarments, slips, PJs, slippers, and robes
  • Tailored, homemade, or altered items
  • Wedding dresses and ballgowns
  • Items made from certain exotic materials (crocodile, sable, etc.)
  • Work uniforms and adult costumes (kids’ are fine)
  • Graphics referencing local teams or places
  • Promotional “free with purchase” items
  • Non-clothing items: jewelry (except watches), tablet and phone cases, hair accessories, etc.
• Which items don’t earn money?
  

  Items from some ineligible brands.

  These brands don’t receive earnings because our costs can exceed their resale value, but we still list them to give them a second life. If an ineligible item sells for $20 or more, you’ll still receive earnings.

  

  Less than 5% of our 60,000+ brand catalog is ineligible. See All

  Items that don’t sell in their consignment window.

  An average of 38% of accepted items don’t sell within their consignment window. You can reclaim an item in the final 7 days for a $5.99 fee per item to offset our processing and storage costs, plus return shipping.

  If you don’t want your items back, we’ll do our best to give them a second life. See Can I get an item back?

• Should I order a bag or a label?
  

  It depends on how quickly you want to send your items and what you have on hand.

  Ready to ship now and have a large box on hand?

  We recommend you order a label. Use any box you have at home, then either print the label yourself and bring it to any UPS drop-off location, or bring the QR code to a UPS Store and they’ll print it for you.

  Willing to wait and don’t have a box?

  We recommend you order a bag. It holds up to 30 lbs and arrives within about a week. Just fill it up and drop it off at any UPS drop-off location.

  Both options ship free, and for both options you can choose to skip the trip and schedule an Uber pick-up instead of bringing it to UPS.

Fees & Earnings

• What fees are deducted from my earnings?
  

  There are no upfront fees.

  A service fee of $14.99 $0.00 (Standard) or $34.99 (Premium) is deducted from your earnings only after items sell. If you earn less than the fee amount, you won’t be charged the difference — this happens with just 7% of bags. The more items you include, the lower the fee per item.

  You can also opt into:

  $14.99 $0.00 for our 30 lb capacity bag (Standard only — bags are free for Premium). Shipping labels to use on any box are always free.

  $5.99 to reclaim an unsold item, plus return shipping. See Can I get an item back?

• How are my items priced?
  

  Our dynamic pricing system is designed to maximize the chance of selling your items within their consignment window.

  We Price Your Items

  Our algorithms set prices based on past sales, brand, and item quality.

  You Can Edit the Price

  Items in Standard bags can be increased by up to 10%, and items in Premium bags can be increased by up to 80%. Both can be decreased to as low as $4.99, anytime before your item is added to a cart.

  We Mark Items Down

  We mark items down gradually to improve their chance of selling. For Premium bags, discounts are capped at 20%.

• How can I use my earnings?
  

  If an item sells (once the 14-day return window has passed), you earn automatic ThredUp credit. You can convert any amount into cash or shopping credit for other brands. See All Partner Brands

After You Send

• How long does the whole process take?
  

  It depends on which service you choose, but here’s a realistic timeline for each:

  • Bag Delivery About 1 week (or instant if you print a label)
  • Processing 3–4 weeks for Standard, 2 weeks for Premium
  • Listing Most items go live within a day, the rest within 15 days
  • Consignment Window 30–45 days for Standard, 60–90 days for Premium, depending on the brand
  • Buyer Return Window 14 days after each item sells

  From ordering a bag to receiving your final earnings, it takes a total of 10-14 weeks for most Standard sellers, or 16-20 weeks for most Premium sellers, though earnings will trickle in before that as individual items sell.

  The main tradeoff: Premium items are listed more quickly but take longer overall because items get more time to find a buyer. Standard moves faster but with a shorter window to sell.

• What happens to items that aren’t listed or sold?
  

  We don’t accept an average of 40% of items sent to us in Standard bags, and 20% of items in Premium bags. About 38% of accepted items don’t sell in their consignment window. We’re committed to extending the lives of these items by:

  Marking Items Down

  We mark items down gradually to improve their chance of selling. For Premium bags, markdowns are capped at 20%.

  Sending Your Items Back

  Any items not accepted from a Premium bag are returned to you by default, but you can choose to have them reused or recycled instead.

  If an item has been listed, you can reclaim it in the final 7 days of its listing window for $5.99 plus return shipping. See Can I get an item back?

  Reusing and Recycling

  For Standard bags, unlisted items are reused or responsibly recycled through our ethical partners.

• What are listing and return windows?
  

  The consignment window is the length of time your item has to sell.

  Lower-end brands have a 30-day window for Standard, and a 60-day window for Premium.

  

  Higher-end brands have a 45-day window for Standard bags, and a 90-day window for Premium bags, because pricier items usually take longer to sell.

  You can check the consignment window is for any brand using our Earnings Estimator.

  

  The return window is the length of time the buyer has to return your item.

  Buyers can return items within 14 days. If an item is returned, the consignment window continues from the day it originally sold. If it sells again, you’ll receive earnings as soon as it ships.

• Can I get an item back?
  

  You can reclaim your item for a fee.

  You can opt to reclaim an item in the final 7 days of its listing window for a $5.99 fee per item to offset our processing and storage costs, plus return shipping. You can combine your items with a standard order and earn free shipping.

  If you don’t reclaim your item, we’ll do our best to give it a second life.

  We progressively discount your items to improve their chance of selling and recoup some of our costs. If they still don’t sell, we partner with ethical organizations to reuse or responsibly recycle them. Learn more