Selling on Amazon vs eBay: A 2025 Seller’s Guide

Deciding between selling on Amazon vs eBay really comes down to what you’re selling and how you want to run your business. If you’re pushing new, standardized products and want to scale fast, Amazon is the clear winner. Its massive Prime customer base and Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) logistics are built for high-volume growth.

On the flip side, if your inventory is full of unique, used, or collectible items, eBay gives you far more control. It’s home to a dedicated community of buyers and offers a much more flexible platform for those niche products.

Amazon vs eBay: A High-Level Comparison

Choosing the right marketplace from the get-go can save you a ton of headaches and protect your profits down the line. While both are e-commerce giants, they cater to fundamentally different sellers and buyers. Think of Amazon as a massive, streamlined retail store, while eBay operates more like a global auction house and flea market rolled into one.

The difference in scale is stark. Amazon has a staggering 310 million active users worldwide, completely dwarfing eBay’s respectable 134 million active buyers. This user gap translates directly into market dominance: Amazon holds about 37.6% of the U.S. online retail market, while eBay accounts for just 3.0%. You can explore more data on their market positions to see the full picture.

To give you a quick snapshot, here’s how the two platforms stack up on the most important features.

High-Level Comparison: Amazon vs. eBay

This table should help you quickly align your business model with the right platform. Amazon is built for sellers who can plug into its system, while eBay empowers those who want to build their own.

Key Operational Differences

Your day-to-day life as a seller will feel completely different depending on the platform you choose. It’s not just about listing an item; it’s about the entire ecosystem you operate in.

• Customer Expectations: Amazon shoppers expect new products with lightning-fast, reliable shipping. Prime convenience is king. eBay buyers are a more diverse crowd, from bargain hunters to serious collectors, who are often more patient with shipping if it means getting a great deal or a rare find.
• Competition Style: On Amazon, you’re usually fighting other sellers for control of the “Buy Box” on a single, shared product listing. But on eBay, you create your own unique listing from scratch, giving you complete control over your branding, photos, and description.
• Fulfillment: This is a huge one. Amazon’s Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) program is a major advantage, handling all your storage, packing, and shipping. It’s a massive plus for scaling. On eBay, you’re almost always responsible for your own logistics from start to finish.

This chart gives a quick visual of two of the most critical differences: the sheer number of active buyers and the average profit margins.

The infographic makes it clear: Amazon has far more buyers, and sellers on Amazon also enjoy higher profit margins compared to eBay.

Ultimately, your decision comes down to weighing Amazon’s massive volume and built-in logistics against eBay’s flexibility and lower barrier to entry for unique goods.

Understanding Your Customer and Market Size

Deciding between Amazon and eBay really boils down to one simple question: who are you trying to reach? Nailing down your ideal customer is everything, because these two platforms attract completely different crowds.

First, let’s look at the typical Amazon shopper. They’re all about convenience. Most are Prime members who want new products delivered practically before they even click “buy.” Speed and trust often matter more to them than getting the absolute lowest price. This makes Amazon the undisputed king for mainstream consumer goods like electronics, home decor, supplements, or any new, standardized item where fast shipping is a huge perk. If your product solves a common problem and you can get it to customers quickly, you’re speaking their language.

The eBay Buyer Profile

Now, let’s flip the coin and talk about eBay. The audience here is way more diverse and, frankly, a lot more patient. It’s a buzzing marketplace filled with bargain hunters, dedicated collectors on the prowl for a rare baseball card, and savvy buyers looking for used or refurbished gear.

An eBay shopper is often on a treasure hunt. They’re totally fine waiting an extra few days for shipping if it means snagging an incredible deal or finding something they just can’t get anywhere else. This makes it the perfect spot for sellers with:

• Unique or one-of-a-kind items: We’re talking vintage clothing, handmade crafts, or collectibles.
• Used or refurbished goods: From last year’s iPhone to a second-hand power tool, this is where that inventory moves.
• Niche products: If you sell items that cater to a very specific hobby or interest, you’ll find your people here.

Comparing the Market Scale and Sales Potential

Beyond the customer’s mindset, the sheer scale of each marketplace is a massive factor in your sales potential. While both are giants, Amazon is playing in a different league entirely.

The clearest way to see this is by looking at Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV), which is the total dollar value of everything sold on a platform. It’s the truest measure of a marketplace’s raw economic horsepower.

The numbers here are pretty staggering. In the second quarter of 2024, Amazon’s U.S. GMV hit around $362.7 billion. In that same window, eBay’s global GMV was just $18.4 billion. That gives you a sense of just how much more cash flows through Amazon’s ecosystem. You can discover more insights about these platform statistics to see the complete picture.

This doesn’t mean eBay is a bad place to sell. It just means the ceiling for sales volume is dramatically higher on Amazon. If you’re trying to build a high-volume brand, Amazon’s traffic is almost impossible to beat.

Ultimately, your choice hangs on whether you’re chasing the massive volume of Amazon’s retail-focused buyers or the dedicated, niche-driven community that calls eBay home. One isn’t inherently better; they just serve different kinds of businesses. If your product is new and has mass appeal, Amazon is waiting. If it’s unique, used, or a collectible, eBay’s community is your best bet.

Breaking Down Fees and Protecting Your Profit

Nothing kills a new seller’s momentum faster than watching unexpected fees chew up their profits. When you’re weighing Amazon against eBay, digging into the fee structure isn’t just a box to check. It’s the foundation of your entire business plan. Your profit margin will live or die by these numbers.

A Look at Amazon’s Fee Structure

Amazon’s fee system can feel like a maze at first. If you plan on selling more than 40 items a month, you’ll want the Professional seller plan, which runs a flat $39.99 per month. On top of that, every time you make a sale, Amazon takes a referral fee. Think of it as their commission for bringing you the customer. This percentage usually lands between 8% and 15%, depending on what you’re selling.

But the real make-or-break cost on Amazon is often fulfillment. If you use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), you’re also paying for storage, picking, packing, and shipping. While these FBA fees certainly add to your costs, they’re your ticket to the coveted Prime badge, a massive sales driver that many sellers consider non-negotiable for growth.

A Look at eBay’s Fee Structure

eBay’s fees are generally more straightforward, which is a big reason so many sellers cut their teeth there. You usually get a set number of free listings each month, and once you use those up, you’ll pay a small insertion fee to list an item.

The main fee to watch on eBay is the final value fee. For most categories, this is about 13.25% of the total sale amount, plus a fixed $0.30 per order. The important detail here is that the percentage is calculated on the entire amount the buyer pays, including the item price, shipping, and any other charges.

Seller Insight: This is where a lot of sellers miscalculate. If you charge a customer $10 for shipping, eBay takes its cut from that $10, too. You have to factor this into your pricing to make sure your profit forecasts are actually accurate.

Cost Breakdown Selling a $50 Item

Let’s put this into practice. Say you’re selling a product for $50. It’s a standard-sized item, weighs about one pound. Here’s a rough sketch of what your take-home pay might look like on each platform.

This table gives a side-by-side look, assuming you’re using FBA on Amazon and handling your own shipping on eBay.

As you can see, the numbers are surprisingly close in this scenario. Your actual costs will definitely vary based on your product’s category, size, weight, and your own shipping rates.

And remember, these are just the basic selling fees. Many sellers also invest in advertising to make sure their products get seen. Managing ad costs adds another layer, but it’s essential for scaling up. To get a better handle on this, it’s worth exploring some effective to see how they might fit into your overall budget.

Fulfillment Showdown: Amazon FBA vs. Self-Shipping

How you get products into your customers’ hands is one of the biggest calls you’ll make as a seller. It’s an operational backbone that genuinely defines your business, and nowhere is the difference between Amazon and eBay clearer than right here.

Amazon’s entire universe revolves around its logistics beast, Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA). The pitch is simple: you send your inventory to an Amazon warehouse, and they handle everything else. They store it, pick it, pack it, and ship it. They even manage the customer service and returns for those orders.

The number one reason sellers go all-in on FBA is that it instantly makes your products Prime-eligible. For a massive chunk of Amazon’s shoppers, that two-day shipping badge isn’t a nice-to-have; it’s a non-negotiable. It’s a fact that Prime-eligible listings can see a conversion rate bump of 20-25% compared to non-Prime offers. That’s huge.

The Power and Price of FBA

Using FBA is like plugging your small business into a global logistics empire overnight. Forget the boxes, the tape, and the daily post office runs. This frees up your time to focus on what really grows your business, like sourcing new products and mastering your marketing. It’s a powerful engine for scaling up, fast.

Of course, this level of convenience isn’t free. You’ll be paying FBA fees on every single order, plus monthly storage fees for any inventory sitting in their warehouses. These fees are calculated based on your product’s size and weight, and they can really add up, especially if you’re dealing with slow-moving or bulky items.

Let’s put it in perspective: For a standard-size product weighing one pound, you’re looking at an FBA fee of around $5.06 per unit in 2025. Now, imagine you have 100 of those units sitting on a shelf. You’ll also be paying monthly storage fees, which get significantly more expensive during the Q4 holiday rush.

The eBay Approach: Seller-Fulfilled Shipping

Hop over to eBay, and the game changes. The default expectation is that you, the seller, handle your own fulfillment. On Amazon, this is called Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM), but for most eBay sellers, it’s just business as usual. You are in the driver’s seat for the entire process.

This hands-on control is actually a major plus for certain kinds of businesses.

• Your Brand, Your Way: You get to control the unboxing experience. Use custom packaging, slip in a handwritten thank-you note, or add branded inserts.
• Keep Costs in Check: You’re free to shop around for the best shipping rates from carriers like USPS, UPS, or FedEx, potentially saving a lot of money.
• Total Flexibility: It’s perfect for sellers with one-of-a-kind, fragile, or oversized items that just don’t fit into FBA’s cookie-cutter system.

The trade-off is pretty obvious: it’s your time. A lot of it. Packing and shipping can easily become a full-time job, which can put a hard cap on your growth. You’re also on the hook for every customer service email about tracking numbers and delivery times. It’s a hands-on model that demands a level of commitment FBA just doesn’t.

Choosing the Right Fulfillment Method

So, which path is right for you? It really boils down to your business model and what you prioritize.

If your game is high-volume sales of standard products and you’re trying to scale as aggressively as possible, Amazon FBA is almost a no-brainer. The access to the Prime audience and the hands-off logistics is an advantage that’s tough to ignore. The trick is making sure your listings are firing on all cylinders to drive sales. A product that just sits in an FBA warehouse becomes a costly liability, which is why smart sellers often invest in professional agency services to make sure they’re getting the most out of FBA.

But if you sell unique, used, or collectible items, or if creating a memorable brand experience is your main goal, self-fulfillment gives you the control you need. It’s the lifeblood of the eBay marketplace, empowering sellers to add a personal touch that Amazon’s automated machine simply can’t match.

How Product Listings and Competition Differ

When you’re squaring off in the Amazon versus eBay arena, the way you list products and go up against competitors couldn’t be more different. It’s like playing two entirely separate games. One is about winning a single, shared prize, and the other is about carving out your own territory.

On Amazon, the entire world revolves around the product, not the seller. Think about it. When you search for an “Anker Power Bank,” you don’t see a hundred different listings from a hundred different sellers. You see one, clean product page, and all the sellers offering that exact item are competing behind the scenes for the coveted “Buy Box.”

The Battle for the Amazon Buy Box

Winning that little orange “Add to Cart” button is everything on Amazon. If you’re not in the Buy Box, you’re practically invisible to the vast majority of shoppers. This setup creates an intense, head-to-head competition where you aren’t just trying to rank in search; you’re directly fighting other sellers on the exact same listing.

To come out on top, you have to master a few key things:

• Price: You need to be hyper-competitive, often down to the penny.
• Fulfillment Method: Using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) gives you a massive leg up, as Amazon prioritizes its own logistics network.
• Seller Metrics: Your account health, shipping performance, and customer feedback are constantly being judged.

This model is built for standardized, new products where the lowest price and fastest shipping usually win the day. The downside? Your brand can get totally lost. Customers are buying the product, and their trust is with Amazon, not necessarily with you.

Crafting Your Own Storefront on eBay

Now, flip the coin over to eBay. Here, the ecosystem is built around the seller. Even if ten people are selling the same used iPhone, each person gets to create their own unique listing from scratch. This is a fundamental difference that puts all the control right back in your hands.

You’re not just another name in a list of offers; you are the architect of your own sales pitch. It’s your chance to stand out with better photos, a more detailed and compelling description, and even your own pricing strategy, be it a fixed-price “Buy It Now” or a classic auction to build some buzz.

Seller Takeaway: On eBay, your reputation is your currency. A detailed, honest description paired with great photos can often justify a higher price than a competitor with a lazy listing. Buyers are looking at you as much as they’re looking at the product.

This seller-focused approach is exactly why eBay continues to be a powerhouse for unique, used, and collectible goods. While it’s smaller than Amazon, it has a fiercely loyal user base. In Q1 2025, eBay reported 134 million active buyers, and roughly 60% of them come to the platform specifically for items they can’t find elsewhere. That’s a massive, targeted audience that isn’t just mindlessly clicking “Add to Cart.” You can see more in this breakdown of eBay’s 2025 performance.

The competition is still fierce, but it’s a different kind of fight. You’re not battling for a shared piece of digital real estate. You’re competing to create the most trustworthy and appealing listing on the search results page. If you’re looking to elevate your listings on either platform, you might be interested in professional Amazon SEO Services that can help you stand out.

Ultimately, the choice depends on your business. Do you want to compete on razor-thin margins and operational efficiency within Amazon’s rigid system? Or do you prefer the creative freedom to build your own brand story from the ground up on a platform like eBay?

So, Which Platform Is for You? Making the Final Call

After weighing the fees, fulfillment models, and competitive landscapes, the final decision between Amazon and eBay really comes down to your specific business. It’s not about finding a universally “better” platform, but picking the right tool for the job you’re trying to do.

Let’s move past the general pros and cons. It’s time for a practical, situational guide that pins down the right choice based on what you actually sell and how you operate.

A Situational Guide for Every Seller

Your products and business model are everything here. Find your seller type below, and you’ll get a pretty clear idea of where you should be focusing your energy.

For the Private Label Brand Builder
If you’re launching a new product under your own brand, especially something with mass-market appeal, Amazon is your clearest path to growth. The FBA program alone is a huge advantage. It gives you instant access to a world-class logistics network and the all-important Prime badge, which is critical for building trust and driving sales right out of the gate. The sheer volume of customers actively looking to buy on Amazon is simply unmatched.

The Bottom Line: Your goal here is rapid scale and market penetration. Amazon’s massive audience and the power of FBA are built for exactly that. You’ll trade some brand control for a reach you can’t get anywhere else.

For the Reseller of Unique Goods
Got a stash of vintage clothing, used electronics, or rare collectibles? eBay is practically built for you. Its seller-centric listings let you tell a story. You can use detailed photos and rich descriptions to showcase what makes your item special, something that’s absolutely necessary for one-of-a-kind goods. The auction format can also be a fantastic way to let the market decide the true value of your rarest finds.

For the Arbitrage Seller
This one’s a bit of a toss-up, but your specific strategy will be the deciding factor.

• Retail Arbitrage: If you’re scanning clearance aisles for new, barcoded products, Amazon is often the better bet. You can jump onto existing product listings and let FBA handle the heavy lifting for a quick turnover.
• Online Arbitrage & Used Goods: For sourcing unique or used items from thrift stores or other websites, eBay gives you way more flexibility. Its customer base is actively hunting for those kinds of deals, and the listing process is better suited for items that aren’t in pristine, new condition.

For the Dropshipper
Let’s be honest, dropshipping is a tough gig on both platforms due to their strict policies. That said, eBay is generally more accommodating. You have more direct control over communicating shipping times with your buyer, which is essential when a third-party supplier is in the mix. Amazon’s rigid performance metrics can make dropshipping a high-wire act with little room for error.

For the Handmade Artisan
While Etsy is the undisputed king of handmade, between these two giants, eBay offers more brand control. You can build a unique storefront and create listings that truly reflect your craft and personality. Amazon Handmade is certainly an option, but it comes with a stricter application process and throws you into a much more competitive arena with larger sellers.

What About Selling on Both?

Here’s the thing: many of the most successful sellers don’t actually choose one or the other. They use both. A multi-channel strategy lets you tap into Amazon’s insane volume while also reaching eBay’s dedicated niche audiences. It’s an advanced move, for sure. You’ll need solid inventory management software to avoid overselling, but it can be an incredible way to diversify your revenue and build a more resilient business.

Choice between Amazon and eBay often boils down to a few core questions. I’ve seen sellers wrestle with these same points time and time again. To help you cut through the noise, here are some quick answers to the most common queries.

Common Seller Questions

Ultimately, the best platform comes down to what you’re selling and what kind of business you want to build. There’s no single right answer, just the one that’s right for you.