Geartrade Review 2024: Reliable Site to Sell Outdoor Gear?

• Send your gear to the company to sell on consignment.
• List your stuff for sale on the site.

Below, I’ll go into more detail about how to sell on Geartrade.

Option One: Sell on Consignment

One option for selling is to simply send your stuff to the company, and you’ll get paid once it sells.

This can be a convenient option as the site handles everything for you.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Request a label

The first step is to go to the Geartrade website and request a free shipping label. You use this label to send your gear to the company. Geartrade can even send you a box if you need it.

Step 2: Ship your gear

Now, you can ship however many items you want to the company. Just drop off your package at any FedEx location/drop box, Walgreens, or Dollar General.

Once the company gets your gear, it will assess its value and set a price. You’re able to change the price if you want to.

Accepted items are listed for up to 160 days and after that, if your stuff doesn’t sell, you can either donate your gear or have it sent back to you.

Step 3: Get paid

When your item sells, Geartrade pays you through PayPal and Venmo. ACH (direct deposit) was also an option but as of 2024 they no longer pay via ACH.

Geartrade does take a commission on your sales.

How much you earn depends on the amount your item sells for:

• Selling price: Less than $49.99 – Your Payout: 40%
• Selling price: $50 to $144.99 – Your Payout: 40% to 50%
• Selling price: $145 – $564.99 – Your Payout: 50% to 70%
• Selling price: $565 or more – Your Payout: 70%

Option Two: List Your Items for Sale

You can also list items for sale yourself on Geartrade.

Here’s how it works:

Step one: List your gear

The first step is to create your listing. You’ll need to upload a few photos of the gear you want to sell, write a description, and set a price for your stuff.

Step two: Ship your gear

Once your stuff sells, Geartrade will send you an email that includes the buyer’s address. Then, you will need to mail the item to the buyer and fill in the tracking number on Geartrade.

Step three: Get paid

After your item is delivered, Geartrade will pay you via PayPal, Venmo, or ACH (direct deposit). When your stuff sells, you pay a 13% flat commission fee.

What Can You Sell on Geartrade?

Geartrade accepts a huge variety of outdoor gear and sports equipment, such as:

• Snowboards
• Fishing gear
• Snowboarding gloves
• Ski goggles and accessories
• Sleeping bags
• Tents
• Kayak clothing
• Bikes
• Bike accessories
• Bike clothing
• Climbing packs ang bags
• Camping stoves
• Men’s outdoor clothing
• Women’s outdoor clothing
• Shoes

It’s important to note that the company only accepts gently used items.

What Can’t You Sell on Geartrade?

Here’s what you CAN’T sell on Geartrade:

The following climbing gear:

• Ropes
• Harnesses
• Trad gear (petons, draws, carabiners)
• Ice tools

The following watercrafts gear:

• SUPs
• Rafts
• Duckies
• Surfboards
• Wakeboards
• Kayaks
• Canoes

The following clothing:

• Shirts, shorts, pants and apparel that are team or ball sports or non-outdoor brands
• Socks
• Underwear
• Swimsuits

The following hunting gear:

• Knives
• Guns
• Hunting orange or camo apparel

How Much Does Geartrade Pay?

Like I said earlier, gear trade gives you:

• 40% to 70% of the profits depending on the selling price of your item when you sell on consignment.
• 87% of the profits when you list your gear for sale on the site, as it charges you a 13% flat rate commission.

Let’s say you sell an item for $50 on consignment. You would get 40% of the profits meaning you’d earn $20 from the sale.

If you were to list an item for sale for $50, you would earn $43.50.

Geartrade Reviews

Geartrade is a legitimate company that’s been around for more than two decades.

On Trustpilot, Geartrade has 4.1 stars, which is a “Great” rating.

It’s also accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) where it has an impressive A+ rating.

Of course, these reviews are from both buyers and sellers.

Many people who’ve sold through the site have had a positive experience selling on there.

Here’s what a couple of sellers have to say:

• “It was my first time selling, and seemed to go quite well, although I should’ve looked ahead to see what would’ve happened had I been out of town when it did sell, b/c at that point you only have 5 days to ship it! thank goodness I was home so it wasn’t a problem. They have great customer service!”

• “Easy $ I found this site, and it’s a gem! I’ve been able to sell all of my used outdoor gear for a nice chunk of change! It’s helped me upgrade my skis and bindings for the upcoming season!”

That being said, there were some negative reviews from sellers with some complaining that the consignment selling process was too slow.

One user said:

• “Avoid consignment selling process. My experience selling items directly on Geartrade has been a pretty good one, quick enough if you sell the item on your own and leave Geartrade out of the process. I decided to try their consignment program to sell a bunch of items, and that was a big mistake. Way too slow even when your gear sells quickly. I had several items sell within a couple of days, but nearly a month later and I still have not been paid for a single item. Very little communication from Geartrade, like pulling teeth. If you’re going to use Geartrade to sell items, list it on your own and deal directly with individual buyers.”

So, it may be easier to list items for sale, rather than going with the consignment route. Also, there were complaints about customer service and high fees.

One seller says:

• “Geartrade charges a similar to EBay high sales fee without EBay’s service. Additionally they definitely are in no rush to send you your money. Since selling fees are the same as EBay, EBay gives such great support, and EBay pays fairly quickly, I see no reason to sell on this site.”

Is Geartrade Legit & Worth It?

Geartrade is a legit and safe website for selling stuff online, but is it the best option out there?

Let’s take a look at some pros and cons:

Pros

Let’s start out with the pros

You can sell a wide range of items

If you have lots of different things to sell, then it’s good to know that Geartrade accepts outdoor gear in multiple categories from clothing to snowboards.

Legit site

It’s accredited with the BBB and it’s highly rated on Trustpilot too. So, Geartrade definitely isn’t a scam site.

Easy selling process

The selling process is easy, and you have the option of selling on consignment or listing items for sale yourself. So, you can find a selling method that suits you.

Cons

Okay, so Geartrade does have a few downsides:

Relatively high commission fees

The commission that Geartrade charges is pretty high when you compare it with the rates charged by other sites.

For example, eBay only charges 10% commission so you keep 90% of the profits. When you sell stuff on commission at Geartrade, you only get to keep 40% to 70% of the profits.

Or if you list your stuff for sale on Geartrade, it charges a 13% commission fee. Again, that’s a higher fee than eBay charges.

Slow payments

A couple of reviewers stated that they had still not received payment. One reviewer on the BBB, says:

• “This site might be good for buyers, but the payment processing for sellers is unacceptably slow. I shipped an order to a buyer and it was delivered two days after the purchase, but I have been waiting for more than two weeks to receive payment for my gear. I would not recommend this site to others.”

Overall

Geartrade is a reliable site, but it seems to work slightly better for the buyer than it does sellers. Many people state that they’ve had a better experience selling on eBay or Craigslist. Things like slow payments are a concern for sellers.

That being said, I saw many sellers praise their experience on the site, so Geartrade is one to consider, although it’s might not be the best option.