Looking to make some extra money from home by selling used items that you don’t need anymore? Or do you have stuff to sell and are tired of your lack of success on Craigslist or eBay?
Whether your kids have outgrown their old clothes or you recently upgraded your phone and want to get rid of your old one, LetGo and Mercari are two apps where you can sell your unwanted stuff.
In this article, we will compare these two apps so you can decide which one is better for selling unwanted items and making money from home.
What Is LetGo?
LetGo is an app where you can post items you want to sell. Buyers in your local area can browse items and find cheap deals on used clothes, electronics, furniture, and other things.
LetGo is an application of its own, but it has also integrated with OfferUp, a separate application.
What Is Mercari?
Mercari, like LetGo, lets you sell all types of unwanted items. However, there is one big difference between the two apps, which is what we will be discussing in this article.
Also Read: Poshmark vs Mercari
LetGo vs Mercari: Getting Started
Getting started with either application is pretty easy.
LetGo
To get started with LetGo, simply download the LetGo app. Depending on your location, you may be prompted to download the OfferUp app instead, because LetGo has integrated with OfferUp; in other locations, OfferUp is not yet available, so keep on using LetGo.
After you sign up, you will see a list of items that are being sold near you. You can “favorite” certain items to save them for later, or you can click on an item to find out more information.
To start selling, simply click the “Sell” button at the bottom of the app, in the middle. It is a red button with a camera icon on it.
After you click the button, you will be prompted to select a category. There are 15 categories to choose from.
Choosing the right category will allow buyers to find you quicker. Available categories include:
- Electronics
- Gaming
- Home and Appliances
- Cars
- Other Vehicles
- Auto Parts
- Tools and Gardening
- Sports and Outdoors
- Fashion and Accessories
- Baby and Child
- Movies, Books, and Music
- Jobs
- Services
- Housing for Rent and Sale
- Other
As you can see, you can sell all kinds of things on LetGo. It’s not just for your leftover clothes that don’t fit you anymore.
If you have an extra room for rent, you can list it on LetGo. If you want to sell your old motorcycle, you can list it on LetGo.
If you have services you want to offer, such as home cleaning or plumbing services, you can list them on LetGo as well.
Once you select a category, you will be prompted to take a picture of the item you are selling with your camera. You can also upload a photo from your gallery (and, depending on the category you selected, a video as well).
Then, proceed to your listing details. You will be prompted to select a subcategory (for example, if you selected electronics, you can select Phones, TVs, Computers, Cameras, etc.).
Create your listing, select a price, choose a condition, and confirm your location. You can select five different condition types:
- New
- Like New (it was opened and used perhaps once or twice but it is still like new)
- Good
- Fair
- Poor
Finally, publish your post.
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Mercari
Selling on Mercari involves a similar process to selling on LetGo. Open up the app (after you have created your account) and click on the “Sell” button with the camera icon at the bottom of the app.
You will be prompted to take a picture or upload a photo from your gallery.
Once you do that, create a description, add hashtags so buyers can find you, select a category, choose a brand. select a condition, select a color, select a shipping option (or offer free shipping), set your price, and create your listing.
Mercari vs LetGo: Local Sales vs Shipping
One of the key differences between LetGo and Mercari is whom you will be selling to. Let me explain.
LetGo
LetGo is designed for local sellers. It is kind of like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace in that regard.
You list an item in your location and people in your area can contact you. You then meet up with them, they give you the money, and you give them the item.
Each listing will have a map so buyers can figure out the approximate area it is being sold in. The exact location, of course, will not be shown, to protect your safety.
LetGo is not designed for selling to people in another area like eBay is. It’s for local sales.
This has the advantage of allowing you to get cash quickly and not having to deal with packaging your items and shipping them. On the other hand, it can leave you open to scams and flakey buyers, as we will see in the next section.
It’s no different than Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. A buyer may contact you and you may arrange a time and place to meet up only to find that the buyer never shows up or to have them keep delaying and rescheduling.
This can be frustrating. However, LetGo is not that different than Craigslist in that regard.
Mercari
On the other hand, as mentioned in the previous section, Mercari does give you shipping options when listing your item. This is because unlike LetGo, which is similar to Craigslist, Mercari is more similar to eBay.
You can sell an item to someone in another area and simply ship it to them. You can choose to arrange your own shipping, but this is only recommended if you have an item that weighs over 150 pounds.
Otherwise, just use the prepaid Mercari shipping option. Mercari uses FedEx and USPS, and all you have to do is download the label and attach it to the package you will be shipping.
You can also use the Mercari Pack and Ship option to ship with UPS. Just go to the nearest UPS store and they will take care of everything for you, including packaging; this is a good option if you don’t have your own shipping packaging.
You can use this online tool to find a UPS store near you.
Mercari vs LetGo: Seller Protection
How are you, as a seller, protected by Mercari or LetGo? Are there any policies in place to ensure you are not scammed by a buyer?
LetGo
As mentioned, LetGo is designed for local meetups and sales. As such, the regular rules of selling on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace apply.
For example, don’t ship an item to a buyer before you get the cash in hand. LetGo is not supposed to work like that.
Another common scam is when a buyer offers you a check that costs more than the item is worth and asks you to return the difference in cash. This is a common scam, as the check is often fake or will bounce.
Always count the money to make sure you are getting the full price before handing over the item. Don’t accept last-minute negotiations if you already agreed on a set price; often, buyers will do that in an effort to save some money and rip you off, knowing that you are probably desperate to sell since you already took the effort to go out and meet them.
Another thing to keep in mind is to meet in a safe area. You may want to choose a public place, such as a park that has a lot of people, so you do not get robbed of the item.
Another way LetGo tries to reduce fraud is by allowing both buyers and sellers to rate each other after a sale. Both will have seven days to give a rating.
This will allow you to “review” buyers before you make a sale. If a buyer has terrible reviews, something is probably up, and you should probably avoid working with this buyer.
Also, you can use the in-app chat area to chat with potential buyers so you don’t have to give away your telephone number, WhatsApp number, Facebook profile, or email address.
Mercari
Mercari has a number of seller safety systems set in place. One is the $200 shipping protection, which is automatically included every time you use the prepaid Mercari shipping option instead of your own shipping or UPS Pack and Ship.
There are a number of requirements for a package to be eligible for this protection. For example, you have to ship out the package no later than three days after the sale.
You must also use the Mercari shipping label. Here is a full list of the requirements:
However, if you do everything according to the rules, you will be protected for up to $200 if the package is lost in transit or if it arrives to the buyer damaged.
After an item arrives, the buyer will have three days to confirm that they received the item as described and give you a rating so you can have the money released to your account.
If they do not do this within three days, the funds will be released to your account automatically.
If the item was not as described, was damaged, or came with parts missing, the buyer can file a refund claim, in which case the money will not be released to you. The buyer has three days to do this, but once they rate you, the sale is final and returns can no longer be made.
Not only can the buyer rate you, but you can rate the buyer as well.
LetGo vs Mercari: Getting Paid
How do you get your money on Mercari or LetGo?
LetGo
The only acceptable way to receive money on LetGo is to get it from the buyer at the point of sale. Ideally, this should be cash, so you won’t have to deal with bounced checks, PayPal disputes, and so on.
In fact, LetGo says not to accept other forms of Payment. This includes:
- PayPal transfers
- Zelle transfers
- Square transfers
- Venmo transfers
- Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies
- Checks
- Online bank transfers
- Money orders
Once you start with these options, you open yourself up to scams and fraud. For example, a buyer may give you a check that will bounce or later dispute a transfer.
Mercari
The buyer will pay for the item online in the Mercari app. You have to ship the item out within three days of the purchase, and it can take up to three days after delivery for the funds to be released to your account.
Once the buyer confirms receipt of the product or three days have passed since the item was delivered, funds will be automatically released to your account. You can make a withdrawal right away.
There are two options for withdrawing your money. You can either have it wired to your bank account (ACH), or you can connect a debit card and get access to the money instantly.
Mercari vs LetGo: Share For Rewards
Is there an invite code you can use to share Mercari or LetGo with friends and earn rewards?
LetGo
LetGo does not seem to have this option. However, OfferUp does have a referral program.
You can find your share link in your OfferUp Account settings. You will earn $5 off the shipping fee for the next purchase you make if your friend installs the app and makes a purchase as well.
Mercari
For Mercari, click on your profile photo in the app. You will see an option that says, “Get $50, Give $30.”
You will get a link (there will also be a button that you can use to send an invite link to your contacts) for rewards.
Here’s how it works: When your friend joins, they will get $10 off their first purchase and you will get $10 when they make a purchase as well.
Your friend will get a $20 bonus when they make their first $100 in sales on Mercari, and you will earn $40 when that happens.
In other words, Mercari’s reward program is not only better, but it is designed to benefit you when you share it with sellers, not just buyers.
LetGo vs Mercari: Is It Good For Selling?
Will you actually find serious buyers on LetGo or Mercari? Or will you find buyers who are not serious and who flake on you?
LetGo
According to this Reddit post and this Reddit post, some sellers have been having difficulty finding good buyers on LetGo.
These Redditors claim that in their experience, buyers on LetGo are often unreasonable, have too many demands, do not follow through with sales, and flake often.
LetGo also has a 1.4-star rating on TrustPilot as of the time of this writing. Many Trustpilot reviewers claim that the LetGo app was great until they merged with OfferUp.
However, your experience may be different. The Reddit posts are anecdotal, but they are still a warning sign.
Mercari
Redditors seem to have had a better experience selling on Mercari than LetGo. This Redditor made over $1,000 a year selling odd stuff on Mercari.
On Trustpilot, Mercari also has a 4.1-star rating, which is much better than LetGo’s rating.
LetGo vs Mercari: Seller Fees
How much does it cost to sell on LetGo or Mercari?
LetGo
The best part about LetGo is that it is absolutely free. You will not have to pay any fees or commissions on the sales you make; since you will be paid by the buyer in cash, there is no way to pay LetGo a fee for that anyway.
However, there are some in-app purchases and other upgrades. For example, you may be able to feature your listing for a fee.
However, there are no fees for selling items.
Mercari
On the other hand, Mercari does charge fees; you will have to pay 10 percent of each sale to Mercari.
In addition, on each sale, there will be a 2.9 percent + $0.30 processing fee on top of the 10 percent you will pay to Mercari.
Finally, you will pay a flat $2 fee for each Direct Deposit you make to your bank account or each withdrawal to your debit card.
Let’s calculate this. Let’s say you are selling an item for $20.
Fees will be as follows:
- $2 Mercari commission (10 percent)
- $0.88 payment processing fee (2.9 percent + $0.30)
- $2 withdrawal fee
If you only sell that $20 item and don’t have other items you sold, you will pay $4.88 in fees. This means you will only get around 75 percent of the sale.
However, you can reduce your fees by only making withdrawals after you have already made a few sales.
As you can see, fees can add up, so make sure to price your item a little higher to make up for that.
Mercari vs LetGo: Flipping
In addition to selling on LetGo or Mercari, you can also do what is known as flipping. You will be buying used items from LetGo or Mercari and then selling them for higher prices on eBay or other platforms.
LetGo
LetGo is pretty good for flipping, even if it is not that great for selling. You can find a lot of great deals in your local area, as there will be plenty of people who need to get rid of a phone, computer, clothes, furniture, antiques, and other items quickly because they need some quick cash.
You can meet up with these sellers, buy the items, and immediately sell them for more on eBay or another website.
Mercari
Mercari is probably best for selling instead of buying. You can even buy on LetGo and sell on Mercari.
You could probably find some deals on Mercari too, but if you are looking for quick, cheap, local deals, LetGo is the place to go. Mercari will take longer, as you will have to wait for shipping.
However, even with Mercari, you can chat with sellers and make offers if you are trying to find good deals. One benefit of Mercari over LetGo for flipping is that you have a much wider range of options available.
You are not limited to sellers in your area, which is great if you live in a more rural area where there aren’t a lot of sellers or you don’t have the means or time to go around town to pick up items.
Customer Service
What if you need help or have a dispute? Can you get help quickly?
LetGo
You can contact LetGo in three ways:
- Email them at info@letgo.com
- Send an official complaint to P.O Box 924, New York, NY 10014
- Call them at 347-433-8912
Mercari
The phone number for Mercari is 888-325-2168.
Similarities And Differences
Wrapping It Up: Which Is Better?
If you are trying to sell old items, I would recommend Mercari. It is safer, you have a wider pool of buyers to sell to, you have seller protection in case something goes wrong, and you won’t have to meet up with buyers and deal with flakiness or scams (as you won’t ship out an item unless the buyer has already paid for it).
LetGo does have some advantages, such as no seller fees, but Mercari’s advantages outweigh LetGo’s.
As for the seller fees, you can simply sell items for 10-15 percent more to cover those fees; since you are not limited to buyers in your area, you don’t have to feel so pressured to offer rock-bottom prices.