Facebook Marketplace’s massive size and reach make it a choice platform for buying and selling brand new and second-hand items locally. Sellers can advertise their products for sale on Facebook Marketplace for free.
The Facebook Marketplace makes it easy for buyers to browse through various categories to find the items they are looking for. Once you come across an item you want, you can get in touch with the seller to nail down the price or arrange a meetup so you can access and pick up the item.
In addition to Facebook Marketplace, there are other platforms too that enable buying and selling. Among the more popular Facebook Marketplace alternatives are OfferUp, eBay, Mercari, Craigslist and several others. The best Facebook Marketplace alternative is Bonanza. The platform is safe and secure to carry out transactions. And if you’re a seller, you’ll enjoy its rock-bottom commissions and exceptional support.
What’s the need to look for Facebook Marketplace alternatives?
Despite how popular and easy to use Facebook Marketplace is, it has some downsides that make sellers and buyers think twice about using it.
A lot of scammers have found their way to the platform because Facebook doesn’t take any steps to vet buyers and sellers, so it’s entirely up to users to ensure they don’t get scammed.
There’s no buyer protection on Facebook, which means that if you end up getting a low-quality item or no item at all after making payment, there’s nothing you can do about it.
Thankfully, alternatives to Facebook Marketplace abound and I have compiled a list of some of the best ones that you can check out.
Best Facebook Marketplace Alternatives
1. OfferUp
OfferUp is a marketplace where you can sell or buy all kinds of items including furniture, clothing, baby supplies, video games, health and beauty products, electronics, and more.
The platform allows you to either sell your products online or meet the buyer in person and sell to them directly, similar to Facebook Marketplace. OfferUp has a convenient mobile app that you can use to list items for sale or reach out to sellers to make a purchase.
What makes OfferUp unique is that it curates and recommends a list of safe meeting places so you don’t have to worry about things going wrong.
The meeting spaces are usually near busy public areas and police stations to reduce the risk of danger.
OfferUp uses a badge system that encourages buyers and sellers to strengthen their profiles by verifying their identity or confirming their phone numbers.
Not only does this help to establish you as a trusted buyer or seller, it also helps in making the platform safer for users and minimizing the potential for getting scammed.
Explore the best alternatives to OfferUp in this post.
2. eBay
With over 142 million buyers and a presence in 190 markets across the globe, eBay is one of the most successful and rewarding places for selling merchandise over the internet.
In terms of product variety, eBay has more to offer than Facebook Marketplace. eBay has a category for all sorts of items from everyday products like clothes and cookware to quirky items like vintage medical equipment, unicorn meat, and bacon bandages.
The platform provides high-level protection against fraud and bad services, which is why it enjoys an enviable 79% customer satisfaction score. It’s also straightforward to use.
eBay does a great job of promoting the products listed on the platform to potential buyers outside of its vast userbase, giving sellers more opportunities to generate revenue.
If you don’t want to tackle the logistics of delivering your merchandise to customers, you can pass on this responsibility to eBay and have it handle shipping for you.
3. Mercari
Mercari is an online marketplace where you can go to sell items or discover new products to bring some joy into your life. The platform is used by millions of people around the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
It makes it easy for you to let go of things you no longer use or never used. Like Facebook, Mercari gives buyers the option of picking up items in-person or having them delivered to their doorsteps, while sellers can handle shipping themselves or outsource it to the platform.
There are millions of items listed on the website, with more than 350,000 items being added every day, so there’s a lot that you can find on Mercari. Common product categories on the platform include video games, clothing, plush toys, and home decor.
You can sign up and start listing your products on Mercari for free and you will only have to pay a 10% commission on the sales you make.
4. Craigslist
Craigslist is one of the most popular online marketplaces in existence and it’s because of its user-friendly design and huge global reach. It allows you to sell and advertise almost anything.
The platform gives you a lot more options for things you can buy or sell locally than what is available on Facebook Marketplace. It’s a great alternative for people who prefer to close deals in person rather than handling shipping and packaging for the items they want to sell.
Finalizing sales and collecting payments in cash also means you won’t have to pay commissions or transaction fees when selling on Craigslist, which is not the case with Facebook Marketplace.
Craigslist even has a section where you can get items for free from people who are not interested in selling but want to get rid of stuff they no longer need.
Save for therapeutic service ads, job postings, and apartment rental listings in some cities you won’t have to pay a dime to list items on Craigslist.
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5. Decluttr
If you have a laptop, cell phone, headphones, video game, or other electronics that you no longer use or want, Decluttr is the best place to offload those items and earn some cash back for new gadgets.
The great thing about this platform is that it allows you to sell items in faulty condition as long as you are upfront about the state of the items. Unlike Facebook Marketplace where you have to sell your products directly to buyers, Decluttr buys your items from you and lists them on their site.
All you have to do is download the Decluttr app for free and use your phone camera to scan the barcode of the item you want to sell to get a fair price for it instantly.
To finalize the sale, you simply have to drop off the packaged item at your nearest shipping location. Decluttr will take care of the shipping costs and pay you via PayPal or direct deposit as soon as the item arrives at their warehouse.
6. Etsy
Etsy is the perfect Facebook Marketplace alternative for makers and lovers of arts, crafts, vintage, or non-mass-produced items.
You can buy or sell original products like toys, antiques, clothing, artwork, and DIY materials for creating your own projects.
The platform is user-friendly and easy to navigate even for people who have a hard time with technology. If you are looking for a platform to sell your goods that has an audience reach that surpasses Facebook Marketplace, it doesn’t get much bigger than Etsy.
Etsy charges sellers 20 cents for every item they list, plus an additional 6.5% of the price of any items they sell.
To top it off, Etsy is mostly used for direct sales which means you won’t have to wait as long for someone to buy your items as you might wait when listing on Facebook Marketplace.
7. LetGo
LetGo is a yard sale you can walk into from the comfort of your room, office, or wherever you might be.
Unlike Facebook Marketplace which can be used to sell both brand new and used items, LetGo is focused on providing an effortless means of selling and buying preloved, second-hand items within your locality.
There are hundreds of millions of listings on LetGo, so you are bound to find lots of amazing items whenever you go looking. LetGo verifies user profiles and provides ratings and reviews so you can get a better sense of who you are about to do business with.
LetGo doesn’t charge you any fees to set up a profile and begin listing products on the platform so you can download the app and begin bargaining with potential buyers right away.
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8. Nextdoor
Nextdoor is a service you can use to sell or buy brand new and second-hand products to or from people in your neighborhood. The app has a powerful search feature that makes it easy to find the products you are looking for.
There are no listing fees for sellers on Nextdoor and you can sell everything from clothing to electronics, kitchen appliances, spare parts, home decor, baby products, and more.
Nextdoor also offers a bunch of other services that are not available on Facebook Marketplace. For instance, you can use the platform to find work in your local areas like plumbing, dog walking, babysitting, or cleaning.
You can even use Nextdoor to connect with people in your neighborhood, promote local events, find local businesses, borrow tools, or discuss issues that affect the community.
9. AliExpress
AliExpress is easily one of the most popular websites and online marketplace in the world. It has a massive global reach that spans 200 countries and regions, so if you want to reach customers all over the world, it’s time to begin selling on AliExpress.
There are over 100 million items listed on AliExpress across dozens of product categories. No matter what it is you are looking for, you can probably find it on AliExpress as it’s a perfectly legal item.
Unlike Facebook Marketplace which mostly deals with direct-to-consumer sales, AliExpress can also be used to source products for reselling on a different platform or in your physical store.
AliExpress only charges between 5% and 8% commission fees for every sale you make. You won’t have to pay any other fees to list your products and begin selling on the platform.
However, you will need a company name, business address, and tax registration number to create a seller profile on AliExpress.
Explore: Is AliExpress Legit & Reliable?
10. VarageSale
Instead of hosting a garage sale and having strangers parade through your yard and haggle relentlessly over the prices of the items you are selling, you can simply take it all online with VarageSale.
All you have to do is visit the website or download the app and enter your location to join communities in your neighborhood.
You will be required to connect with your Facebook account for verification purposes, after which you can begin buying and selling to your heart’s content.
VarageSale has a chat option for messaging the sellers, as well as profile ratings so you can judge how reliable a seller is before initiating contact. So many different types of items are sold on VarageSale including kitchenware, electronics, clothing, furniture, games, and more.
The best thing about VarageSale is it’s completely free to use. You won’t have to pay any kind of fees to buy or sell on the platform, unlike Facebook Marketplace.
11. 5Miles
5Miles is another great alternative to Facebook Marketplace that’s worth checking out if you are looking to buy or sell goods within your vicinity. As the name implies, this service connects buyers and sellers within 5 miles of each other together.
However, 5Miles also gives you the option to list your products nationwide if you are happy fulfilling orders for faraway locations. 5Miles allows you to sell a variety of items such as electronics, toys, fashion, accessories, artworks, collectibles, and more.
Selling on 5Miles is an easy-breezy affair. You just have to upload a picture of the item along with a description and respond to potential buyers using the chat feature.
Buyers can choose to ship their orders or plan a meetup with the seller to evaluate the item before paying.
12. Bonanza
If you are looking for an online marketplace that offers excellent customer service, Bonanza is the best Facebook Marketplace alternative for you. The platform is super easy to use and can be customized to suit your specific needs.
Bonanza doesn’t charge you any listing or monthly store fees. It only makes money when you make a sale. The platform charges a commission fee of 3.5% on sales, which is lower than Facebook Marketplace and other sites so you get to enjoy higher profit margins.
There are millions of items to be found on Bonanza across multiple categories like fashion, jewelry, books, pet supplies, home & garden, health & beauty, sporting goods, and many more.
Additionally, Bonanza provides import features that you can use to easily list your products on other marketplaces without having to upload them one by one.
13. Poshmark
Poshmark is another remarkable Facebook Marketplace alternative that you can use if you’re looking to start an online commerce business or expand your shop to multiple platforms. It’s available to users in Australia, Canada, and the United States.
Rather than serving as a generalized marketplace like Facebook Marketplace, Poshmark is focused on being the go-to platform for buying and selling clothing and lifestyle accessories.
The platform has a huge community of active buyers so you can easily get a lot of eyes on your products.
It’s incredibly easy to start selling on Poshmark. You just have to create an account to start listing your items and sharing product links on social media and interested shoppers will begin flocking to your store.
Poshmark sends sellers free labels that they can use when sending the product to the seller. They also give you the option to have the package picked up for free from your house or dropped off by you at a USPS mailbox for delivery.
14. Newegg
Newegg is one of the best websites like Facebook Marketplace for buying and selling all sorts of tech items. Its offering ranges from smartphones to video games, smartwatches, tablets, computers, and game consoles.
The platform has a presence in over 50 countries with distribution centers across North America and Canada so sellers have the opportunities to reach buyers from all over.
Newegg offers various programs to guide sellers through their ecommerce journey and help them increase their sales.
It also provides different membership options so you can choose between having a free account or going with one of the paid monthly plans priced at $29.95 and $99.95. The higher your plan, the greater the level of flexibility, tools, listings, and support you will get.
15. Rakuten
Rakuten is a cross-border online marketplace that allows individuals and businesses to sell and buy items of their choosing. The platform is available in almost 30 countries including the United States.
This Facebook Marketplace alternative has a sleek user-friendly design that makes it easy for even first-time sellers to find their footing. Rakuten gives you more freedom to customize your store to suit your preferences, an option that’s not available on Facebook Marketplace.
Additionally, it gives sellers extensive support and a wide range of tools to help them achieve their sales goals and better serve their customers.
To start shopping or set up your free seller account, you can access Rakuten via the website, the Rakuten mobile app, or through the browser extension.
Beyond bringing you the best deals, another unique and interesting feature that Rakuten offers is the ability to earn cash back when you make purchases on the platform.
16. Swappa
Like Facebook Marketplace, Swappa enables you to sell and buy items locally. However, Swappa is a niche marketplace that deals in electronics and tech items like watches, cameras, laptops, smartphones, video games, and more.
Although you can sell both new and used products on Swappa, all items must be in proper working condition and free from cracks or chips before they can be listed on the platform.
Selling on Swappa is pretty easy and doesn’t require listing fees. You simply have to upload a picture of the item you want to sell and you will receive a price quote instantly.
As a seller, you will be responsible for paying any service or payment processing fees, as well as shipping costs. But you will still be paying lower fees than you would have to pay on most other marketplaces.
Also Read: How Much Money Do I Need To Start Selling On Amazon?
17. Ruby Lane
Ruby Lane is the place to go when you want to buy or sell collectibles, antiques, vintage, art, jewelry, dolls, and other unique items.
Whether you are looking to set up your very first ecommerce store or you want to add the platform to your seller portfolio, Ruby Lane makes it easy for you to launch your enterprise and begin connecting with excited buyers.
Ruby Lane attracts over 1 million visitors each month, which is huge for a marketplace offering niche products.
The platform’s reach extends across the globe, but a large chunk of its users are concentrated in Australia, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
Setting up an account and listing items on Ruby Lane is free, but you will have to pay a small service fee for every purchase you make, as well as a monthly maintenance fee of $25.
18. Bookoo
Bookoo is an up-and-coming ecommerce website that is growing rapidly. Like Facebook Marketplace, Bookoo is concerned with connecting buyers and sellers in the same geographical area so they can exchange items for money.
The platform is packed with lots of interesting features that enable it to give other rival marketplaces a run for their money.
Bookoo has an in-app chat function that buyers and sellers can use to communicate with each other and arrange physical meetups to complete transactions.
With Bookoo, you don’t have to worry about online payments, shipping, or being defrauded because you will get a chance to inspect the product before you purchase it.
All seller profiles on Bookoo display response rates as well as the type of items the profile sells. You also have the option to barter goods if you don’t want to pay with cash or to list your stuff for free if all you want is to get rid of it.
Conclusion
Each of these alternatives has its own unique tools, product offerings, and set of features so the one you choose will depend on your particular needs and what you want to sell.
The best Facebook Marketplace alternative for me is Bonanza because it offers great support, low commissions, store customization options, and powerful security features to safeguard buyers and sellers.