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Maybe you've inherited jewelry from a family member, or have been amassing your own collection for years. Or, perhaps you create your own handmade jewelry and want to start a virtual store. If so, several online outlets allow you to turn jewelry into cash. From consignment options to merchant sites, and wholesale buyers to online storefronts, we've researched and evaluated the best places to sell jewelry online. Browse through our list before weighing your options to ensure you get the most for your pieces, whether you're wholesaling, retailing, or consigning your items. The best places to sell jewelry have a great reputation, a simple onboarding process, and transparent fees and pricing. We reviewed the top online jewelry-selling platforms to narrow down our list of the best. We considered several data points, including selling options, commission structures, listing fees, and other factors. Here are our top places to sell jewelry. With a simple consignment process, free appraisals, and GIA-certified partners, Worthy helps you fetch top-dollar for your jewelry. Pros Quick and easy seller submission form Free jewelry appraisals GIA certification available The company cleans, photographs, and lists items for you Cons Items under $5,000 are charged a hefty commission Worthy is a luxury marketplace that helps users sell their jewelry quickly and easily. It offers a consignment structure, which includes free (insured) shipping, cleaning, photographing, and listing your items. You receive quick payment after the item has sold. The company partners with GIA gemologists for precious stone appraisals and certifications, and uses a database of past auction prices to evaluate the retail price for your item. It also provides you with an appraisal report after the evaluation is done. Worthy's customer service is available Monday through Friday by phone, email, or online chat, and can walk you through any part of the process. The company also has a physical location in New York City to assist customers. To get started, simply fill out the online submission form and you'll receive an item evaluation via email. If you choose to list with Worthy, the company will send you a prepaid FedEx label to ship your items for listing. Best Online Jewelry Appraisal Services As one of the world’s largest auction sites, eBay helps users quickly list and sell their jewelry online. It doesn’t charge listing fees for your first 250 items, which sets eBay apart from other storefront options. Pros No listing fees on first 250 items Fair commissions structure About 134 million buyers are registered on eBay Mobile app allows you to manage auctions on-the-go Cons Strict guidelines for selling jewelry Higher risk of scammers As one of the largest auction sites in the world, eBay allows users to quickly list items for sale. It has a specific section for jewelry on its site, making it easy for hundreds of millions of users to sort through and find the piece they want. As a seller, the first 250 jewelry listings are free, and you only pay a commission once the item is sold. While your first $5,000 of sales incurs a 15% fee (an industry standard), the higher the sales price, the lower the fee. Sales over $5,000 are only charged a 9% fee (less than the industry standard). To get started selling with eBay, simply sign up for a free account (using an email or your Google profile), and start listing your items for free. eBay does tack on additional charges for extra features on your listing (like a “Buy it Now” button), so make sure to review its seller’s fees to fully understand the costs before selling. Etsy allows users to quickly set up an online storefront and list their handmade jewelry for sale. With millions of buyers and low fees, it’s the perfect option for startups. Pros Millions of buyers looking for handmade goods Quick registration Low listing and commission fees Cons Additional 15% fee if your item sold from an Etsy ad Etsy is the go-to site for craft-making business owners, as it does not charge you to create an online shop. Users can simply list and sell their jewelry to millions of buyers, and the platform's mobile app makes managing on-the-go sales easy. Etsy's helpful tutorials guide you through the setup, and it even has a built-in ads platform to help your items gain visibility. Do note, however, any items that sell via leads from an ad incur an additional 15% charge, lowering your profit margin quite a bit. Still, Etsy does offer discounts on shipping, which helps save on overhead. To get started, simply sign up for an account, follow the tutorials, list your items, and start selling. WP Diamonds buys high-end jewelry at wholesale, with transparent appraisals and quick payouts on accepted offers. Pros Gives quick online offers for jewelry Payment is granted within 24 hours of offer Insured shipping up to $200,000 Cons Offers may be lower than retail price WP Diamonds is an online marketplace that buys and re-sells high-end jewelry, watches, handbags, and loose diamonds. It specializes in purchasing diamond jewelry and other upscale pieces. You'll get an offer via email after you submit your items for appraisal. WP Diamonds takes extra care with its purchasing process, insuring shipped items up to $200,000, and paying sellers quickly on accepted offers. While this may be an easy way to make money on your high-end jewelry, WP Diamonds is a wholesaler and will most likely offer you less than the retail price, as it re-sales items for profit (similar to a jewelry shop). That said, it’s always good to shop around and get multiple quotes, especially for high-value pieces. To receive an offer, simply fill out the online form, and describe and attach pictures of your items. If you agree to an appraisal, the company will send you a pre-paid FedEx label to ship them for examination. After that, WP Diamonds will give you an offer. Once you accept the offer, payment should arrive in 24 hours. Shopify provides an eCommerce platform for creating an online marketplace to sell your jewelry (or any other item). There are multiple themes to choose from, or you can have a developer customize your shop. Pros Pre-made shop themes Hundreds of add-ons to customize user experience No setup fees or commissions Cons Setup can be overwhelming for beginners Many add-ons have monthly fees Shopify is the premier online platform for eCommerce businesses, and is fully customizable to boot. Shopify offers pre-made store templates to get you started quickly, allowing advanced users to fine-tune every aspect of their store. If you create your own jewelry or drop-ship for others, Shopify is the perfect platform. With quick online checkout, multiple payment processing options, full theme customization, and add-ons for things like one-click upsell, Shopify is the leader in the eCommerce space. To get started, first, sign up for one of Shopify's paid plans. Next, compare all the plans and pricing to find the one that best fits your needs. The basic plan works well for jewelry vendors. The RealReal allows you to easily list jewelry and other luxury items. Then, it sells and ships the items for you, and you receive a percentage of the sale. Pros Simple consignment process Attracts luxury buyers looking for high-end items Full authentication process Cons Very high commissions on low-priced items (up to 70%) The RealReal is an online consignment shop that specializes in selling luxury goods. It inspects every item consigned for authenticity, re-sells the items, and then takes a commission for the work. If you are looking to sell lightly used jewelry, especially designer jewelry, The RealReal may help you fetch higher prices for your pieces. It staffs in-house GIA-certified gemologists to evaluate and authenticate your jewelry. That said, commissions are very high for items under $750, and may cost you a whopping 60%. Also, if items don’t sell in a certain amount of time, The RealReal may lower the listing price at will. To get started, sign up for an online account, send over details and pictures of your items, and then ship them in for evaluation and authentication. The RealReal will then give you a listing price, and if agreed upon, they will post your items for sale. Worthy won our pick for the best place to sell jewelry online due to its simple consignment process, free appraisals, and GIA-certified partners. Worthy helps you land top dollar for your jewelry without a lot of hassle. The seller submission form is simple to fill out, and the appraisal is free. Plus, the company sends you a prepaid mailing label for no-cost shipping. Unlike some of the other companies listed, once your jewelry arrives, the company cleans, photographs, and lists your jewelry for free. FAQ How Does Selling Jewelry Online Work? Selling to an online jeweler is quick and easy. You submit the item details, receive an estimate, and, once agreed upon, send in the jewelry to receive payment. If you are looking to sell your jewelry online through an auction service, you usually need to fill out a form, upload photos, receive an appraisal, and then send the items in for examination. You typically receive payment after the jewelry sells at auction. If you are creating your own e-commerce storefront, the process is different based on the platform used. How Do I Choose the Best Place to Sell Jewelry Online? Always look for a reputable online jeweler or auction house that has been in business for a while. Industry reputation is important when dealing with valuables. Also, check the fees and commission schedule, as this will give you an idea of the costs associated with selling your items. And finally, make sure the process works for you. You may have to mail in your jewelry for inspection or sale, which will require insuring it. How Much Does It Cost to List Jewelry for Sale Online? If you are listing your items on an auction site, the listing fee (per item) typically ranges from $0.20 to $0.35. Sites like eBay grant you up to 250 free listings, which can be cost-saving. The real fees are in the seller commissions, however. This can cost you over 50% on some sites, so always review the commission schedule before listing. Is Selling Jewelry Online Profitable? An online jewelry business can be very profitable. As with any online endeavor, however, profitability comes down to the quality of the product, the margin, and ample marketing. Selling jewelry that you made by hand is obviously limited to your output capacity, but with high-end pieces, you can make good money selling only a few items per month. We researched several online jewelry-selling platforms before coming up with our list of the best. We looked for a solid industry reputation, a simple onboarding process, and transparent pricing. We also considered a variety of different selling options, including online auctions, consignment, direct purchase, eCommerce, and online marketplaces. Good commission structures and low listing fees also landed companies a spot in our list of the best places to sell jewelry online. Best Places to Sell Jewelry Online in 2023
Best Overall: Worthy
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Best for Low Fees: eBay
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Best for Startups: Etsy
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Best for Diamond Jewelry: WP Diamonds
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Best for Customization: Shopify
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Best for Consignment: The RealReal
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Compare the Best Places to Sell Jewelry Online
Company Cost Free Shipping Minimum Value Type of Jewelry Best Overall
Worthy18% up to $5,000, and down to 10% for $30,001 and above Yes $1000 Luxury Best for Low Fees
eBay10% to 15% of the value No None All Best for Startups
Etsy$0.20 listing fee, 6.5% transaction fee, 3.5% and $0.25 payment processing fee Yes, on orders of $35 or more None Handmade Best for Diamonds
WP DiamondsFree Yes $1000 Diamond Best for Customization
Shopify$39 a month No None All Best for Consignment
The RealReal20% up to $99, and 70% for $5,000 and above No None Luxury Methodology
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Selling jewelry online involves various platforms, each catering to different needs and preferences. Let's break down the key concepts mentioned in the article:
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Worthy: A luxury marketplace that facilitates jewelry sales through a consignment model. They provide free appraisals, utilize GIA-certified partners, and handle the listing process for sellers.
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eBay: Known for its large auction platform, eBay allows users to list and sell jewelry. It offers free listings for the first 250 items and charges a commission on sales, with varying rates based on the sale value.
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Etsy: A platform catering to handmade goods, where users can set up their online stores to sell jewelry. Etsy charges listing fees, transaction fees, and payment processing fees but offers a large market of buyers.
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WP Diamonds: Specializing in diamond jewelry, this platform buys high-end jewelry at wholesale prices, providing quick offers, insured shipping, and transparent appraisals.
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Shopify: An eCommerce platform that allows users to create their online stores. It offers customization options, various themes, and add-ons for enhanced user experience, albeit with a monthly subscription fee.
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The RealReal: An online consignment shop focusing on luxury items. It authenticates and sells items on behalf of sellers, taking a commission from the sales.
The article also touches on important considerations when choosing a platform, such as fees, minimum value requirements, and the type of jewelry each platform best serves. It emphasizes the significance of reputation, transparent pricing, and a user-friendly process.
In terms of selling jewelry online, the key factors include:
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Costs: Listing fees, transaction fees, and commissions vary across platforms and can significantly impact overall profitability.
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Audience: Different platforms attract various buyer demographics, which can influence the type of jewelry that sells best.
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Process: Platforms have distinct procedures for listing, authentication, and payment, making it essential to choose one that aligns with your preferences.
The methodology for selecting the best platforms involves researching industry reputation, ease of use, transparent pricing, and considering various selling options, from auctions to consignment and direct sales.
In summary, the article provides a comprehensive overview of diverse platforms for selling jewelry online, highlighting their features, costs, and suitability for different types of sellers, helping readers make informed choices based on their preferences and the nature of their jewelry collection or business.