Comparison · general
Facebook Marketplace vs Mercari
Which marketplace has lower fees for resellers — and when does each one win?
Local-first selling on Facebook versus shipped national selling on Mercari. Often complementary rather than competing.
Quick verdict on fees
Across 6 common sale prices ($25-$1,000), Facebook Marketplace nets more on 6 and Mercari nets more on 0. Overall: Facebook Marketplace is the cheaper choice in this band.
Net payout at common sale prices
| Sale price | Facebook Marketplace fees | Facebook Marketplace net | Mercari fees | Mercari net | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $25.00 | −$1.25 · 5.0% | $23.75 | −$2.50 · 10.0% | $22.50 | +$1.25 |
| $50.00 | −$2.50 · 5.0% | $47.50 | −$5.00 · 10.0% | $45.00 | +$2.50 |
| $100.00 | −$5.00 · 5.0% | $95.00 | −$10.00 · 10.0% | $90.00 | +$5.00 |
| $250.00 | −$12.50 · 5.0% | $237.50 | −$25.00 · 10.0% | $225.00 | +$12.50 |
| $500.00 | −$25.00 · 5.0% | $475.00 | −$50.00 · 10.0% | $450.00 | +$25.00 |
| $1,000.00 | −$50.00 · 5.0% | $950.00 | −$100.00 · 10.0% | $900.00 | +$50.00 |
Net payout = sale price + shipping charged − platform fees. Both platforms calculated with default options and no shipping charged to buyer.
Fee structure
Facebook Marketplace
Open calculator →Local pickup and shipped sales via Meta's marketplace
- Local pickup is completely free — no selling fee, no processing fee. Fees only apply when you sell with shipping.
- For shipped orders Meta's help centre states a 5% selling fee per shipment, or a flat $0.40 on shipments of $8.00 or less. That is the rate modelled here.
- IMPORTANT — Meta's own documents disagree. The Commerce/merchant policies at facebook.com/legal/merchant_policies state that 'Meta will charge Individual Sellers a fee of 10% per transaction, with a minimum fee of $0.80', calculated on the entire transaction including shipping and applicable taxes. We could not reconcile the two from Meta's public pages, so we model the lower, more widely reported help-centre rate and flag the discrepancy rather than pick a side. Check your own payout breakdown before pricing thin margins.
- The fee is calculated on the sale total including the shipping the buyer pays, not the item price alone.
Mercari
Open calculator →Casual marketplace for general goods
- Sellers pay a flat 10% selling fee on the item price plus any buyer-paid shipping. That is the entire seller cost — there is no payment processing fee.
- The 2.9% + $0.50 payment processing fee that older guides still list was charged to the BUYER, not the seller, and Mercari removed it entirely on 6 January 2025.
- Buyers now pay a 3.6% Buyer Protection fee on the item price plus shipping. It does not come out of your payout, but it raises the buyer's total — price with that in mind.
- Cashing out by direct deposit is free (the old $2 fee was dropped in January 2025); a failed direct deposit costs $2. Instant Pay costs a flat $3 per cash-out, capped at $600/month.
Audience & fit
Facebook Marketplace's local pickup is free — unbeatable for furniture, large items, or anything where shipping eats your margin. Mercari's strength is shippable items where you want national reach without the eBay learning curve. Many resellers list on both: Facebook for local, Mercari for shippable. They serve different distribution flows.
The bottom line
These two barely compete — they solve different problems. Facebook Marketplace charges nothing for local pickup, so on a $200 dresser you keep all $200 and never touch a shipping label. Mercari takes roughly 10% but hands you a national, shippable audience. The right choice is dictated almost entirely by what you're selling and whether it's worth boxing up.
For bulky, heavy, or low-value-per-pound items — furniture, appliances, exercise equipment, bulk lots — Facebook Marketplace wins outright. Shipping would eat the margin, local buyers pay cash, and there's no fee. The trade-offs are real, though: you're limited to your metro area, no-shows and lowballers are common, and there's no built-in buyer protection or payout guarantee.
For small, shippable, nationally-desirable items — clothing, electronics, collectibles, sneakers — Mercari's reach usually nets more even after its cut, because a national buyer pool finds the right buyer at the right price. Most serious resellers don't choose; they route by item. Local and bulky to Facebook, small and shippable to Mercari.
Frequently asked
Is local pickup on Facebook Marketplace really free?
Yes. Facebook Marketplace charges zero fees on local pickup transactions where the buyer and seller arrange the exchange directly without using Facebook's payment or shipping integration. The 5% fee only applies when you use Facebook's shipping option for delivered orders.
Is the Facebook Marketplace selling fee 5% or 10%?
Meta's own documents disagree, and we'd rather say so than guess. The Meta Business Help Centre states 5% per shipment (or a flat $0.40 on shipments of $8.00 or less), and that is what most sellers report seeing. But Meta's commerce policies at facebook.com/legal/merchant_policies state that 'Meta will charge Individual Sellers a fee of 10% per transaction, with a minimum fee of $0.80', calculated on the whole transaction including shipping and taxes. We model the 5% figure because it matches the help centre and seller reports, but if you're pricing on thin margins, check an actual payout breakdown in your own account before you rely on either number.
How much does Mercari take from each sale?
A flat 10% selling fee on the item price plus any buyer-paid shipping — and that is the entire seller cost. On a $30 item with $5 shipping you pay $3.50 and keep $31.50. Mercari charges sellers no payment processing fee: the 2.9% + $0.50 that most fee guides still quote was charged to the BUYER, and Mercari removed it outright on 6 January 2025.
Does Mercari charge fees on shipping?
Yes. Since the January 2025 change the 10% selling fee applies to the item price plus any shipping the buyer pays, so charging for shipping does increase your fee. Offering free shipping and building the cost into the item price gives the same result — the fee lands on the combined total either way.
More comparisons
See all comparisons →Want to run the numbers on your specific sale?