When you sell a phone, the price it sells for and the money you actually get are two different numbers. The gap is fees, and it's bigger on some platforms than people think.
I run the numbers on this constantly because Andover has to subtract fees to tell resellers what a deal is really worth. Here's how it shakes out on the platforms most people use.
The fees, platform by platform
Swappa
Swappa charges sellers a flat 3% of your asking price when it sells. Listing is free. On top of that, you pay payment processing, which for PayPal is 3.49% plus $0.49.
Buyers also pay their own 3% fee, which Swappa adds to the price they see. So if you ask $500, the buyer sees $515.
All in, plan on giving up about 6.5% plus a few cents. You also pay for shipping.
eBay
For cell phones, eBay's final value fee is 13.6% of the total sale, plus $0.40 per order. Payment processing is included in that.
Here's the part most people miss: that 13.6% is charged on the total the buyer pays, including shipping and sales tax. Sell a $500 phone to someone in a state with 7% sales tax and eBay takes 13.6% of $535, not $500.
If you sell a few phones a month, an eBay Store changes the math. With a Basic Store, eBay's own example puts cell phones at 9.35% plus $0.40 per order, for $21.95 a month. At four phones a month that pays for itself easily.
Back Market
You can't sell on Back Market as an individual. It's a marketplace for professional refurbishers, who pay Back Market a commission (around 10%, according to seller guides) plus a monthly fee.
If you're one person with one phone, your Back Market option is their trade-in program, which works like any other buyback company: they quote you a price and send you a shipping kit.
Facebook Marketplace
No fee for local pickup. For shipped orders, Facebook charges a selling fee, currently 10% of the sale. Local cash deals are free, but you're on your own if something goes wrong.
What you keep on a $500 sale
Here's the same $500 phone run through each one. I assumed the buyer is in a state with 7% sales tax and you pay about $10 to ship it.
| Swappa | eBay, no store | eBay with Basic Store | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sale price | $500.00 | $500.00 | $500.00 |
| Platform fee | $15.00 (3%) | $73.16 (13.6% of $535 + $0.40) | $50.42 (9.35% of $535 + $0.40) |
| Payment processing | $18.46 (PayPal) | Included | Included |
| Shipping | about $10 | about $10 | about $10 |
| You keep | about $457 | about $417 | about $440 |
Fee rates from each platform's published seller fees, fall 2026. Buyback figure uses the typical best offer from our data, about 69% of the Swappa payout, with free shipping.
On a $500 phone, Swappa leaves you about $40 more than eBay without a store. The bigger the sale, the bigger that gap.
For comparison, the typical best buyback offer for a phone like this would be around $322. That's the price of not dealing with a listing at all. I compared buybacks and selling yourself across 875 phones in Trade-in vs selling yourself.
So which one should you use?
For one phone, Swappa usually wins. The fees are the lowest of the big shipped marketplaces, and buyers there are specifically looking for used phones, so you're not competing with a million other categories.
eBay is worth it for reach or volume. It has way more buyers, which helps for less popular models, older phones, or anything with a defect. If you sell regularly, the store pricing closes most of the gap.
Facebook Marketplace is great locally, as long as you're comfortable meeting people and taking payment in person.
Back Market isn't an option for individuals, but if you become a refurbisher it's one of the biggest sales channels in the business.
How to price so the fees don't surprise you
Work backward from what you want to keep. Take your target, divide by one minus the fee rate, and add any flat fee.
If you want to net $450 on Swappa with PayPal:
$450 / (1 - 0.0649) + $0.49 = about $482 asking price.
Then check that the market will actually pay that. If similar phones are listed at $460, asking $482 just means your phone sits there. I go through the rest of the pricing process in How to price a used phone so it sells fast.
A note on how Andover counts fees
When Andover shows you a Swappa price, it's the price buyers see, which already includes their 3% buyer fee. That's why our margin calculator takes about 10% off a Swappa price, not 6.5%: the buyer fee plus your seller fee plus PayPal. For eBay we use 13%. Fees change, so we check them regularly.
Common questions
Is Swappa cheaper than eBay for selling a phone?
Yes. Swappa costs about 6.5% all in (3% seller fee plus PayPal processing). eBay charges 13.6% of the total sale including sales tax, unless you have an eBay Store.
Does eBay charge fees on sales tax?
Yes. eBay's final value fee is calculated on the total amount the buyer pays, including shipping and sales tax.
Can I sell my phone on Back Market?
Not as an individual. Back Market's marketplace is for professional refurbishers. Individuals can use Back Market's trade-in program instead.
What are Swappa's seller fees?
A flat 3% of your asking price, charged only when the phone sells, plus payment processing (PayPal is 3.49% plus $0.49). Buyers pay a separate 3% fee that's added to the price they see.
Fees change, so always check each platform's fee page before you list.