You found a jacket at the thrift store for $12. You want to sell it for $40. Before you list, it is worth spending two minutes running the actual fee math, because Depop and Poshmark handle seller fees very differently, and the gap in take-home is larger than most sellers expect. This post walks you through each platform’s structure using a concrete $40 example, explains shipping responsibility, and gives you the calculation method to run your own numbers for any price.
Important caveat before we start: Platform fee structures change. Depop revised its fees in 2023, and Poshmark has adjusted thresholds before. The rates below reflect what was publicly documented as of mid-2026, but you must verify current rates on Depop’s official fees page and Poshmark’s fee documentation before making decisions. Treat this post as a method guide, not a live fee schedule.
How Depop’s Fee Structure Works
Depop charges sellers a 10% selling fee on the item sale price. This applies to the item price only, not to shipping costs when the buyer pays shipping separately.
On top of the 10% platform fee, Depop uses third-party payment processors (PayPal or Depop Payments, depending on your region and account setup). Payment processing typically runs around 2.9% plus a fixed fee per transaction on the US market, though this varies by payment method and region.
So for a $40 sale on Depop where the buyer pays shipping:
- Sale price: $40.00
- Depop 10% fee: $4.00
- Payment processing (approx. 2.9% + $0.30): $1.46
- Estimated take-home: approximately $34.54
When you offer free shipping on Depop, the shipping cost comes out of your pocket on top of those fees, reducing take-home further. A standard USPS First Class package for a jacket might run $5 to $8 depending on weight and distance. Factor that in and your real margin on a $40 sale with free shipping could sit closer to $26 to $29.
How Poshmark’s Fee Structure Works
Poshmark uses a tiered flat-fee model rather than a straight percentage, which behaves very differently at lower price points.
As of mid-2026, Poshmark’s published structure is:
- Sales under $15: Poshmark takes a flat $2.95 fee. You keep the rest.
- Sales of $15 or more: Poshmark takes 20% of the sale price.
For a $40 sale on Poshmark:
- Sale price: $40.00
- Poshmark 20% commission: $8.00
- Estimated take-home: approximately $32.00
There is no additional payment processing fee on top of the commission for the seller. Poshmark bundles payment processing into their commission.
Shipping on Poshmark works differently too. Poshmark provides a prepaid USPS Priority Mail shipping label to the buyer, and the buyer pays $7.97 for shipping (the published standard rate as of mid-2026). The seller does not pay for the label out of pocket unless they offer a discounted or free shipping promotion. For a standard sale at $40 with no shipping discount, the seller’s $32.00 take-home is the actual take-home before sourcing costs.
Side-by-Side: The $40 Sale
This table shows the comparison using the fee structure described above. Check official fee pages to update the numbers for your own calculations.
| | Depop | Poshmark |
|—|—|—|
| Sale price | $40.00 | $40.00 |
| Platform fee | $4.00 (10%) | $8.00 (20%) |
| Payment processing | ~$1.46 | Bundled in commission |
| Shipping paid by seller | Depends on listing setup | $0 (buyer pays standard label) |
| Estimated take-home | ~$34.54 | ~$32.00 |
At $40 with buyer-pays-shipping on Depop, you keep slightly more than on Poshmark. But if you offer free shipping on Depop to compete for buyers (a common tactic), Poshmark’s $32.00 becomes the cleaner number because there is no shipping surprise.
The crossover point matters. At lower sale prices (under $15), Poshmark’s flat $2.95 fee is extremely generous compared to Depop’s percentage-based model. At higher prices, the 20% Poshmark commission becomes heavier than Depop’s 10% plus payment processing, so sellers moving high-ticket pieces often prefer Depop for margin.
The Variables That Change Your Take-Home
These four factors shift the math more than most sellers realize.
Shipping responsibility. If you offer free shipping on Depop, subtract your actual label cost from the Depop take-home. On Poshmark, standard sales use a buyer-paid label, so your take-home is predictable. If you run a Poshmark shipping discount promotion, you absorb part of that $7.97.
Item price tier. Poshmark’s flat $2.95 fee on sub-$15 sales makes it dramatically better for low-priced items. Depop’s 10% on a $10 item is $1.00 in platform fees, but add payment processing and you are around $1.59 out. Poshmark takes $2.95 at that same price, so Depop wins on low-ticket items.
Negotiated or offer prices. Both platforms allow buyers to make offers. If a buyer offers $34 on your $40 Depop item, recalculate. The percentage-based model means lower negotiated prices produce lower fees, but your margin still compresses. On Poshmark, if a negotiated price drops below $15, you jump from the 20% tier to the flat $2.95 tier.
Payment method variations. Depop payment processing fees vary depending on whether the buyer uses PayPal or Depop Payments. Verify the current processing rates in your Depop seller dashboard for your specific setup.
For the broader picture on what each platform costs across multiple price points, see Your Real Payout: Fee Math for 6 Resale Apps and Depop Fees Explained: What You Actually Keep Per Sale.
Which Platform Pays More?
There is no single answer. The honest comparison is: Depop pays more on mid-to-high-ticket sales when the buyer covers shipping. Poshmark pays more on sub-$15 items and offers predictable take-home because the buyer pays the label.
If you are pricing for a profitable reselling operation, the right approach is to run the fee math for your specific price point before deciding where to list. Many sellers crosslist across both platforms to capture each audience. See How to Crosslist Poshmark to Depop, Mercari, Vinted for the practical workflow.
Your pricing strategy also determines how much fees eat into margin. A useful companion read is How to Price Items to Sell: The Reseller’s Playbook, which covers pricing from the sourcing cost up rather than working backward from a target sale price.
When you are selling on both platforms, write listings that match each audience. Depop skews younger and trend-driven, so your titles and hashtags need to reflect that. The Depop AI Listing Generator writes platform-native titles, descriptions, and hashtags from a photo in seconds. For Poshmark, the Poshmark AI Listing Generator handles the closet-specific format.
Finally, once your sales volume increases, fees affect your taxes. Understand your threshold obligations before you hit them. Reseller Taxes and the 1099-K: What to Know for 2026 is a useful primer.
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Add to Chrome, FreeFrequently asked questions
Depop’s 10% selling fee applies to the item sale price, not the shipping amount when shipping is paid separately by the buyer. However, if you build shipping into your item price (sometimes called "free shipping"), the full listed price becomes the base for the fee calculation. Verify current rules in your Depop seller account.
Under Poshmark’s published fee structure for items priced at $15 or more, the commission is 20%. On a $40 sale that is $8.00, leaving you with $32.00 before your sourcing cost. Check Poshmark’s current fee documentation to confirm this rate has not changed since this post was written.
At mid-to-high prices (roughly $15 to $100), Depop’s 10% fee plus payment processing is usually cheaper than Poshmark’s 20% commission. Below $15, Poshmark’s flat $2.95 fee is often cheaper. The gap narrows or reverses when you add shipping costs to the Depop side.
Depop applies the same 10% rate regardless of item price. Poshmark’s structure is tiered: a flat $2.95 for sales under $15, and 20% for sales of $15 or more. There is no lower percentage tier for high-ticket items on Poshmark. Always verify current thresholds on their official fee pages before listing.
No. The commission is charged on every sale above $14.99 and is non-negotiable. The strategies sellers use to protect margin are: pricing higher to absorb the commission, sourcing at a lower cost of goods, and avoiding additional concessions like free shipping or large bundle discounts unless the math still works.
Yes, if you have the time to manage inventory across two platforms. Each has a distinct buyer base. Depop skews toward younger, trend-focused buyers; Poshmark skews toward a broader resale audience. Crosslisting increases your item’s exposure, but you need a system to delist quickly after a sale to avoid double-selling. See [How to Crosslist Poshmark to Depop, Mercari, Vinted](https://quicklistai.org/how-to-crosslist-poshmark/) for a practical setup.