14 Profitable eBay Trends for 2024 – Boost Your Online Selling

Did you know that eBay is the second most popular online marketplace in 2024? The selling platform attracts more than 1.2 billion visits every single month. It offers a global marketplace where you can connect with millions of potential customers, increase your business visibility, and boost your income as a result.

However, navigating through the vast amount of information about what’s trending on eBay can be time-consuming with numerous reports and insights making it challenging to find relevant information. Here at Business2Community, we’ve sifted through the noise and curated a comprehensive list of trends and tips that will give you the info you need to make a success of your eBay store.

What are 2024’s eBay Trends?

By opening an eBay store,sellers get access to eBay’s 132 million buyers worldwide.The online marketplace is a key economic driver for many sellers; in 2022, approximately 71% of those polled said they relied heavily on eBay for their business. 

In 2023, despite uncertainty about recent economic concerns, most eBay sellers said they expected their business to grow in the next 12 months. Approximately 68% of sellers expect their business to grow over the next five years, too.

Plus, eBay’s gross merchandise volume for the second quarter of 2023 amounted to a healthy $18.2 billion.

So, if you’re a small business owner selling items from sporting goods and lifestyle supplements, to beauty products and paper crafts, eBay could be a game-changer for your venture. But understanding what sells on eBay and how to sell on eBay is key.

1. Consumer Electronics Continue to Be Popular

In 2024, consumer electronics continue to be among the top categories on eBay. Various products appear in several eBay top-selling product reports, showing demand for electronics continues to be popular on the platform.

According to eBay’s own electronics pages, best-selling products in 2024 include:

• Amazon Fire TV Sticks
• JBL Charge 5 Portable Speaker Systems
• Toshiba, Duracell, and Energizer batteries
• TV remote controls

Popular e-commerce solution Webinterpret claims the following electronic items remain top-selling items on the platform as well:

• Headphones (particularly best-selling brands like Beats by Dr Dre and Skull Candy)
• Media streamers
• Surveillance cameras and home security systems

eBay market research experts ZikAnalytics suggest that the number one item to sell on the platform across all categories in 2023 is power banks.

According to the site, power banks have a sell-through rate of more than 7,100% across the top 100 listings. This statistic means that for the top 100 listings in the subcategory, there are 71 buyers for each listing. In theory, each listing should then yield around 71 sales of the top selling items.

But whether you’re selling the most popular cell phones or desktop accessories, you’ll be in good company on this platform.

2. Perfumes Take the Lead in the Beauty Category

If you’re in the beauty industry, selling items like perfumes may be the way to go on eBay. This is an incredibly popular sub-category on the platform.

In 2024, there are over 180,000 listings for the keyword “perfume” on eBay and more than 600,000 listings for the keyword “fragrances” on eBay. But while competition is fierce, perfumes tend to make for successful listings. They have a successful listing rate of 93% with an average sale price of $28.12.

Among the most popular fragrances and top-selling brands for women on eBay in 2023 are best-selling brands like:

• Estee Lauder
• Britney Spears
• Clinique
• Calvin Klein
• Elizabeth Arden

3. Dietary Supplements and Vitamins Remain a Popular Category

The health and wellness industry is alive and well on eBay with some of the best-selling products on the site.

There are more than 200,000 listings for supplements on eBay in 2023. And while competition is high, they have a sell-through rate of just over 8,500% across the top 100 listings and a successful listings rate of 89%.

There are also more than 130,000 results for vitamins on eBay in 2023. But this beauty category shouldn’t be ignored either.

They have a sell-through rate of just over 8,400% across the top 100 listings and a successful listings rate of 86%, making it one of the best-selling items on eBay.

4. Essential Oils Are Growing in Popularity

Essential oils were among the most popular and best-selling items to list on eBay in 2023. They had a sell-through rate of more than 11,000% across the top 100 listings in 2023. Sale earnings in this category amounted to just over $75,000.

They are one of the popular categories on eBay with buyers and sellers alike because they are generally inexpensive and easy to package and sell.

5. Smartwatches Remain Profitable

The global smartwatch market is expected to grow by approximately 20% between 2022 and 2030. So, it’s no surprise that smartwatches appear in several best-selling eBay lists. In 2023, the following smartwatches were particularly popular on the platform:

• Garmin Fenix 6 GPS Smartwatch with more than 1,900 sales on the platform.
• Apple Watch Series 8 with more than 2,000 sales on the platform and seven sales over a 24-hour period.

6. Watches Rule eBay

The watches category in general is one of the most popular categories on eBay; the platform has the biggest selection of vintage and luxury watches worldwide. The eBay customer base can find everything from budget, pre-owned watches to high-end luxury watches.

In 2023, the top luxury watches sold on eBay were as follows:

• Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore
• Cartier Ballon Bleu
• Cartier Panthere
• Cartier Tank Must De Cartier
• Omega Seamaster 300
• Rolex Oyster Perpetual
• Rolex Submariner
• TAG Heuer Aquaracer
• TAG Heuer Formula 1
• Tudor Pelagos

This list of top-selling products was determined based on specific search terms used by watch buyers around the world.

But you don’t have to be a luxury watch reseller to make a killing on eBay. More than 150 people are watching the Invicta watch in the screenshot below.

It was one of the top search results for the term “watch” on eBay. The seller had also attracted 569 reviews at the time of writing.

This shows that watches are one of the hottest products and in high demand on the platform.

7. Dolls Are a Surprisingly Popular Item in 2023

Showing just how versatile eBay is, life-sized baby dolls are among the top-selling items on eBay in 2023.

In fact, according to ZikAnalytics, the sell-through rate for dolls stands at 1,961% and overall sale earnings amount to just over $100,000.

The successful listings rate stands at 91%, which means 91% of listings have sold at least one item in the last 30 days.

8. Collectibles, Including Vintage Comic Books Remain Popular in 2023

eBay remains one of the best online marketplaces to sell collectibles, antiques, and memorabilia in general.

This is partly because of the eBay Authenticity Guarantee, which ensures that certain items are physically inspected by experts to ensure they are “the real deal”.

Such measures are important to buyers looking for valuable collectibles like video games merchandise and movie-related items like Star Wars figures.

This niche can be exceptionally profitable. Tyler Feldman, a sports memorabilia online store owner on eBay makes six figures every year by selling products in this space.

His store sells items like collectible cards such as the ones below, which can sell for hundreds of dollars.

Healthy profit margins within the collectibles market can range between 50% to 66%, according to the entrepreneur. Demand spans across several different sub-categories.

For instance, in 2023, the most watched items in the comic books and memorabilia sub-category on eBay include:

• A batch of 25 Marvel, DC, and Indie comic books priced at $27 which attracted more than 5,800 watchers.
• An “invisible” comic book display shelf priced at $5.99 which attracted more than 2,800 watchers.
• Another batch of 100 Marvel, DC, and Indie comic books priced at $54 attracted more than 1,900 watchers.

9. Buyers Are Looking for Pet Supplies on eBay

Pet supplies are among the best-selling items on eBay. This includes items like:

• Dog food
• Cat food
• Harnesses
• Food bowls
• Brushes

Let’s take a look at the dog supplies niche, for example.

There’s a 7.62% sell-through rate in the dog category on eBay across 1,000,000+ successful listings (rather than just the top 100).

The average product price in this category was $10.57, and there were more than 92,000 sold items.

This gives you a more accurate idea of how your listing may perform if you start selling items not at the top of the search results.

10. Selling Clothing on eBay Remains Popular

If you’re a clothes (re)seller, eBay remains a popular and profitable option for your products.

Women’s clothing, in particular, saw a 6,473% sell-through rate across the top 100 items listed on eBay.

Approximately 82% of listings were successful, too. The average sales price was $8.75.

If you want to niche down further, socks are a great sub-category to get into if you’re a clothes reseller.

In 2023, the sell-through rate for the top 100 listings was approximately 7,600%, and 84% of listings were successful, too.

And while return rates can be high in the clothes industry in general, there are wins to be had here for your ecommerce business.

11. Craft Supplies Are an Emerging eBay Trend

Craft supplies really took off during the pandemic, but they continue to be a popular ecommerce trend.

The global arts and crafts supplies market is worth around $43 billion in 2023, but this is due to increase to $64 billion by 2028.

And while most people immediately think of Etsy when it comes to craft supplies, eBay’s potential should not be underestimated.

As far back as 2016, people found success selling craft items on eBay, with one successful seller raking in £1,000 a month shortly after starting her craft-selling business.

Beads, including stone beads, are a particularly popular craft supply sub-category. The most wanted items in this category in 2023 include:

• Nail art rhinestone gems with more than 6,300 watchers
• Natural gemstone beads with more than 6,200 watchers
• Rhinestone pearl wheels with more than 5,100 watchers

Most of these items are priced between $2.50 to $5 and see a healthy demand.

12. Vacuum Cleaner Parts Are a Small and Profitable Niche in 2023

The cost of living crisis means that more and more people are starting to look for ways to repair expensive household items. Vacuum cleaner parts, for example, are in high demand.

In 2023, the top 100 listings for vacuum cleaner parts on eBay attracted more than 1,200 sales. The successful listing rate was 71%, while the average product price was $16.43.

Spare parts for household goods are a great niche to explore if you’re looking to sell in a market that’s less saturated than normal.

13. Understanding eBay Business and Marketing Trends

Sellers on eBay use ads to grow their ecommerce business.

According to an analysis carried out by Business2Community’s experts, in 2023, business owners within the industry as a whole aim for a click-through rate of 1.9% and a conversion rate of 3%. The cost per click is between $1 and $2 on average.

There is some good news for eBay sellers looking to optimize their online store. In 2023, eBay announced a new growth strategy to benefit entrepreneurs on the platform. Updates included:

• “Magical listings” via AI-generated content; a feature that will automatically create more detailed product descriptions to increase sold items in eBay categories like memorabilia and video game merchandise.
• Automated sales offers from sellers to help move stale products across various product categories.
• Updates to eBay Live; an interactive live streaming option for sellers who want to show off their best-selling items.

These trends and updates point to optimism for the platform and more ways for eBay business owners to make a success of their ecommerce business.

14. Understanding eBay Audience Trends

Understanding the audience you’re working with on eBay is key to identifying your buyer persona and targeting your selling efforts appropriately as a result.

eBay attracts buyers from all walks of life.

But, as of 2021, most buyers on the platform are looking for value for money as well as sustainability.

For instance, 90% of buyers in major markets like the UK, US, Canada, Germany, and Australia purchased pre-owned or refurbished items on eBay in 2021. In France, that number stood at 98%.

Of those who bought second-hand, approximately 56% said they did so to save money. However, 39% of Millennials and 36% of Gen Z buyers did so for environmental reasons, as did approximately 26% of Boomers.

So, if you want to start selling pre-loved or refurbished items, you might find a lucrative market on eBay from an environmental and value-for-money-driven perspective.

According to the same report, a group of “enthusiast buyers” drive 70% of gross merchandise value and also spend approximately nine times more on the platform than other buyers.

These so-called enthusiast buyers spend roughly $3,000 per year on eBay across product categories.

eBay has divided these buyers into four categories to help sellers identify their target audience. The categories are as follows:

• Sourcing pros; typically professionals buying for commercial purposes and in large volumes within specific categories, such as car parts.
• Category-centric buyers; typically collectors or hobbyists buying within specific categories.
• Value seekers; typically people looking for discounts, second-hand items, and free shipping offers, mainly across the fashion and electronics categories.
• Horizontal buyers; typically people who shop across all categories and don’t necessarily concern themselves with price.

Of the above, category-centric and value-seeking buyers drove the most growth on the platform.

How to Find eBay Trends

While the above trends are a great starting point for any prospective eBay seller, you might be wondering how to find your own eBay product ideas moving forward.

Once you’ve scoped out the product categories and identified your audience, you can make use of the tools available online to help you spot the latest trends so you can get ideas for future best-selling items on eBay.

Here are a few ideas to help you get started.

1. Use Tools like WatchCount and ZikAnalytics

There are lots of free and paid tools to help you work out what’s trending on eBay.

WatchCount, for instance, is a free tool that allows you to see the most popular items on eBay. You can filter your search by category and see what’s trending in real time.

ZikAnalytics, on the other hand, is a paid tool that includes much more advanced reports on search results. You’ll get information on sell-through rates, total revenue, and other important factors to help you decide whether you want to sell a particular product.

2. Use a Website Scraper

A website scraper is a tool that allows you to extract data from websites. You can use a website scraper to extract data from eBay and discover trends. They’re a great way to do your own market research if you don’t want to use tools like ZikAnalytics, for instance.

There are many website scrapers available online, and some of them are free or offer free trials. Some come in the form of simple extensions and are designed to extract data from ecommerce sites like eBay and Amazon.

3. Use eBay’s Own Tools

eBay has its own tools that you can use to find trends. Terapeak Product Research and Terapeak Sourcing Insights are two of the most popular tools.

These tools allow you to see all kinds of data about your target buyers and your competitors, too. You can get info like:

• Sell-through rates
• Average sales prices
• Average shipping costs
• Sales trends over time
• Locations of eBay sellers and buyers

You will typically need to start selling items on eBay already to gain access to these tools. As long as you have access to the Seller Hub on eBay, you can see these insights for free.

The screenshot below shows what the Terapeak dashboard looks like.

The Future of eBay Trends

Whether you’re selling dietary supplements, dolls, cell phones, or wireless chargers, there’s an audience for you on eBay. The online marketplace remains one of the most versatile and popular online stores in the world.

As shopping habits evolve, so does demand on eBay. Consumers come from all walks of life on this particular platform. But in the face of a cost of living crisis and climate change concerns, more and more of them are looking for value for money and sustainability.

If emerging trends are anything to go by, pre-loved items across all relevant categories are likely to do well on the platform in the future.

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