How does Vinted make money?

The secondhand clothing market has exploded in recent years. Each year, more consumers choose circular fashion as a more sustainable and affordable way to build their wardrobes. In 2023, the global resale apparel market was valued at $20 billion and is projected to double to $40 billion by 2028.

Vinted has emerged as a major player in the space by making secondhand shopping more accessible and user-friendly. That success has many marketplace founders asking: How does Vinted make money while keeping listings free for sellers?

Vinted operates differently from many traditional marketplaces: it doesn’t charge sellers. Instead of listing fees or seller commissions, the company has developed alternative revenue streams to support growth in an extremely competitive niche.

Vinted’s approach offers valuable lessons for marketplace founders considering their own revenue models. Its success shows how a marketplace can scale effectively with a free supply side—a strategy that has helped it build a user base of millions across Europe and North America.

Vinted is a peer-to-peer marketplace for secondhand clothing that connects people who want to sell pre-owned clothing, shoes, and accessories with buyers looking for affordable fashion options. The company started in Lithuania in 2008 and has since expanded across Europe and into North America.

As of 2024, Vinted has more than 100 million registered users and over $10 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV). The platform generated nearly €600 million in revenue in 2023—a 61% increase from the previous year. In 2024, it was valued at €5 billion—clear evidence of its substantial growth from a small startup to a major marketplace.

The platform’s core strategy eliminates barriers for sellers through free listings and zero commission fees. While competitors charge sellers a percentage of each transaction, Vinted shifts costs to buyers through buyer protection fees. Vinted also lets seller boost their listings with optional promotional features.

This approach directly addresses a fundamental marketplace challenge: attracting enough quality used clothing to make the platform appealing to buyers. The free-to-list model creates a virtuous cycle. More sellers join, more inventory becomes available, and more buyers arrive.

Vinted’s growth aligns with an increasing consumer interest in sustainability and circular fashion. Between 40 and 50% of survey respondents in European countries said that sustainability was their main motivation for buying secondhand clothing.

The company also emphasizes environmental benefits in its marketing. For example, Vinted’s “Move the World” campaign in France celebrated buyers and sellers participating in the pre-loved movement to spotlight the advantages of secondhand fashion. ​

This message resonates with eco-conscious consumers who want to reduce waste and shop more ethically. Young demographics particularly value both thrift culture and environmental responsibility, which has helped Vinted build a strong community identity around its marketplace.

Vinted uses its easy listing process, zero commission for sellers, and escrow-style buyer protection to support its secondhand clothing market. Here’s how it operates.

• No listing fees: Sellers keep 100% of their asking price. This sets Vinted apart from many competitors that charge 10 to 15% per sale. For example, Etsy charges a fee for each listing and takes 6.5% of each transaction.
• Quick listing flow: Users create an account, upload photos, write a short description, and set a price. Vinted’s mobile app offers one-tap listing tools and basic photo enhancements to speed things up.
• Built-in shipping labels: Once an item sells, sellers print pre-generated shipping labels, attach them to packages, and drop them off or schedule a pickup. Local handoffs are an option, but most transactions use shipped delivery.

• Easy discovery: Buyers browse by categories or search with filters (size, brand, color, etc.). Vinted’s system surfaces new listings prominently to keep inventory fresh.
• Messaging and reviews: Buyers can message sellers for details before purchasing. After transactions, they leave ratings that build each seller’s reputation—an important trust signal for future shoppers.
• Protected payments: Vinted holds the buyer’s funds until the item arrives. If there’s an issue, the buyer has 48 hours to report it. A support team reviews both sides and decides on refunds or returns.

• Massive inventory: With no listing fees, sellers feel little risk in uploading items, which drives a large and diverse supply—Vinted regularly boasts hundreds of millions of listings.
• Trust as a priority: Escrow-style payments, proactive dispute resolution, and visible ratings help both parties feel safe.
• Community and sustainability: Vinted frames secondhand shopping as eco-friendly. Its in-app forums and sustainability messaging nurture a loyal community of buyers and sellers who value reducing fast fashion waste.

Vinted makes money primarily through buyer protection fees, shipping partnerships, listing promotions, advertising, and paid subscriptions.

The platform’s straightforward revenue strategy keeps it free for sellers while generating substantial income through other channels. This approach has helped the company reach profitability during its expansion across European and North American markets.

Vinted’s buyer protection fees apply to every transaction. These fees follow a simple structure:

• $0.70 for items under $10
• $1.00 for items between $10 and $25
• $2.00 for purchases between $25 and $50
• 5% of the total for items over $50

This approach works similarly to a commission-based business model but with a key difference from most secondhand platforms. Instead of charging sellers a percentage of each sale, Vinted collects its mandatory fees only from buyers. This strategy lets Vinted remove barriers for sellers and still generate revenue from every transaction.

These mandatory fees fund the marketplace infrastructure: payment processing, fraud prevention, and dispute resolution. When a buyer receives a damaged item or one that doesn’t match its description, the protection fee allows Vinted to offer full refunds. The company also has support teams to handle transaction problems. These services give potential buyers the confidence to make purchases from strangers.

Buyers pay all shipping costs on Vinted purchases. The rates are based on package weight and delivery distance. The platform connects directly with major shipping carriers in each country and lets users print labels straight from the app or website.

Vinted negotiates bulk shipping discounts with carriers like USPS, Royal Mail, DPD, and Hermes. The company then offers these discounted rates to users and keeps a small margin on each shipping label. At checkout, Vinted generates a prepaid label that sellers print and attach to their packages.

This shipping system benefits everyone involved. Buyers get reliable tracking information, sellers avoid post office visits, and Vinted earns a cut from each shipping label. Direct relationships with carriers also help the company resolve delivery problems more efficiently than individual users could on their own.

Vinted offers paid promotion options to help sellers increase their visibility. The most popular is the “Bump” feature, which costs between $0.95 and $2.95 depending on the market. Bumped items appear at the top of search results and category feeds for 3 to 7 days to increase the chances of a quick sale.

While listing items costs nothing, many sellers invest in bumps for slow-moving inventory or valuable pieces. This feature works especially well during competitive selling periods, such as seasonal changes when similar items flood the marketplace.

This optional promotion system creates significant recurring revenue for Vinted without breaking its free-to-list promise. The company makes money from sellers’ desires for faster sales while maintaining its edge over platforms that charge mandatory listing fees.

Vinted includes targeted advertising through brand partnerships and sponsored listings. The company works with fashion retailers to show relevant promotional content based on a user’s browsing history.

Unlike many free apps that rely heavily on ads, Vinted takes a careful approach. Ads appear as sponsored listings that blend with organic content. The platform limits ad volume to keep the shopping experience clean.

Vinted also maintains relationships with complementary brands in the fashion industry. When users click through these partnerships and make purchases, Vinted receives a commission. This method allows the company to monetize its large user base without disrupting the marketplace experience with excessive advertising.

Vinted Pro provides enhanced tools for power sellers with large inventories. The service costs $9.95 monthly and includes Closet or Wardrobe Spotlight, which permanently highlights a seller’s entire collection across the platform.

Pro subscribers get access to advanced analytics showing which items receive the most views and interest. This data helps them optimize pricing and descriptions. The subscription also includes bulk listing tools that make adding multiple items at once much easier. For sellers who list dozens of items each month, these efficiency improvements justify the monthly cost.

This premium tier represents an important revenue stream for Vinted. The free version is enough for most casual sellers, but professional resellers and boutique owners will pay for tools that increase their sales efficiency. The subscription model gives Vinted predictable monthly revenue separate from transaction fluctuations.

Vinted actively expands through strategic acquisitions and market entries. It bought United Wardrobe in 2020 to speed up growth in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. This purchase immediately added over 4 million users to Vinted’s base and removed a direct competitor.

Geographic expansion is another growth driver. Vinted launched in Canada in 2021 and continues evaluating new markets across Europe and North America. Each new country creates fresh revenue opportunities as the company applies its proven model to new user populations.

For marketplace founders, Vinted’s expansion strategy shows how business model choices directly impact scalability. Many markets both in Europe and North America already had an established secondhand marketplace player when Vinted entered the market. Its business model with zero seller fees gave it a competitive advantage without jeopardizing scalable revenue streams. In fact, Vinted’s success has begun to force industry giants like eBay to also lift their seller fees.

Vinted builds its user base through a mix of traditional advertising and community-driven growth tactics.

Vinted runs frequent TV commercials that focus on a simple message: Turn your unused clothes into cash. These ads show regular people clearing out their closets and making money from clothing items they no longer wear. The company complements TV campaigns with digital ads on Instagram and Facebook, where fashion-minded users already spend their time.

The platform also partners with mid-sized fashion influencers who demonstrate the selling process step by step. These collaborations work because they show real people using the app successfully.

Personal recommendations drive a large portion of Vinted’s growth. Its referral program rewards both parties: new users get shopping credits, and referring users earn bonuses after their friend’s first purchase. This two-sided incentive turns satisfied users into active recruiters.

Vinted’s “free selling” model thrives on social media-driven word-of-mouth. On TikTok alone, the platform’s hashtag has racked up over 705 million views, with users showing off their thrift hauls, styling inspiration, and experiences selling secondhand fashion.

This wave of user-generated content highlights how easy it is to list and sell on Vinted, which reinforces its appeal among younger, sustainability-minded shoppers. As these organic conversations spread, they drive a steady flow of new users—turning everyday sellers into Vinted’s most effective promoters.

Vinted customizes its marketing strategies to resonate with the cultural nuances of each country it enters. For instance, in 2024, Vinted launched its “Too Many” campaign across multiple European countries, including Denmark, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, and Sweden.

The video campaign showed people submerged in piles of clothing while going about their everyday lives to urge consumers to reconsider their fashion consumption habits and embrace secondhand fashion. By tailoring its messaging to highlight sustainability—an increasingly important value in these regions—Vinted effectively connected with those who share this cultural attitude toward secondhand shopping.

Additionally, each new market requires partnerships with local shipping carriers and payment systems. Vinted works with national postal services and popular courier companies to ensure reliable delivery options in each country. The platform also adjusts buyer protection standards to match regional consumer expectations and laws.

Let’s examine what works and what doesn’t in Vinted’s approach to marketplace monetization. Understanding these strengths and weaknesses will help you make informed decisions about your own marketplace revenue model.

Pros

• Free listings remove barriers: Zero upfront fees let sellers list items risk-free, boosting supply and drawing in buyers.
• Revenue tied to completed sales: Vinted only charges buyers when they finalize a purchase, so they only pay when they’ve gotten value from the platform.
• Trust-based fees build confidence: People see buyer protection as paying for security. This gives buyers the necessary confidence to buy used clothing online. 
• Scalable business model: Revenue grows with transaction volume across multiple markets without heavily burdening sellers.

Cons

• Sticker shock at checkout: Buyers can be surprised by protection fees, shipping, and payment surcharges, especially for lower-priced items.
• Dependence on strong dispute resolution: Failures in customer support or fraud prevention quickly erode the trust that fees are meant to uphold.
• Platform leakage risk: Buyers and sellers who connect on Vinted sometimes move transactions off-platform to avoid fees, making enforcement challenging.

Your marketplace needs to identify which side faces more friction. Vinted saw that inventory quality makes or breaks a secondhand clothing marketplace. Without sufficient quality items listed, buyers won’t stay on the platform. Vinted addressed this by completely removing listing fees and seller commissions, eliminating the main barrier for casual sellers.

Most marketplaces, at least in their early days, are in a similar position to Vinted: supply is harder to get than demand. In this case, lowering (or removing) seller fees can supercharge supply, which in turn helps drive demand.

Your revenue model directly impacts marketplace growth. While traditional commission models charge sellers a percentage of each transaction, Vinted flipped this approach by monetizing buyers. This works especially well when sellers need financial risk removed—many would throw items away rather than pay to list them.

Many marketplaces like Vinted bundle essential services—secure payments, dispute resolution, refunds—into a single service or buyer protection fee.

But when you shift fees to buyers, you must clearly communicate the value they receive. Vinted doesn’t apologize for its buyer protection policy. Instead, it highlights the security these fees provide. The protection fee isn’t an arbitrary charge but a necessary component that funds dispute resolution, payment processing, and anti-fraud measures.

Because it’s mandatory, focus your communication on how the fee protects all parties so users understand the value they’re paying for. Framing it around user safety by highlighting trust-building mechanisms and secure payment systems creates tangible value that justifies protection fees.

Vinted shows a clear, step-by-step path for geographic expansion. It started small in Lithuania before entering additional European markets. Each new country required adaptations to local payment methods, shipping providers, and consumer expectations, but the core business model stayed consistent.

Vinted prioritized markets with similar behaviors and geographic proximity first before attempting more distant expansions. This approach let it build experience close to home before tackling markets with substantially different regulations or consumer behaviors.

Vinted invested in localized marketing in every new market, but its core value proposition has continued to center on buyer protection fees and free listing policies. This strategy demonstrates how you can scale into new markets gradually and build on what you learn in each new market.

Vinted succeeds partly because of its clear brand message, which connects with specific audiences. The “declutter your closet” message speaks directly to two powerful motivations: making money and environmental consciousness. This attracts both practical sellers looking to recoup value from unused items and eco-minded consumers concerned about fashion waste.

A strong mission creates natural marketing opportunities. Vinted’s focus on extending the lifecycle of clothing gives users a reason to choose their platform beyond just economic benefits. The sustainability angle generates positive media coverage and recommendations that paid advertising alone can’t achieve.

Community features like forums and messaging transform Vinted from a transaction platform into a social experience. Users develop relationships with regular buyers and sellers, which creates loyalty beyond individual purchases. These community elements increase retention and drive the consistent engagement needed for long-term marketplace success.

Vinted entered a market already dominated by eBay and local classified sites. Rather than competing directly, it created a distinct platform specifically for secondhand fashion.

The zero-fee approach for sellers directly challenged eBay’s listing fees, while the buyer protection system addressed the kind of trust issues that riddle traditional classified platforms. By catering to a younger, eco-conscious audience with an easy-to-use interface, Vinted carved out its own niche in a crowded market.

This strategy shows how new marketplaces can succeed against established competitors. Instead of trying to beat incumbents at their own game, Vinted identified specific friction points in existing platforms and built solutions to address these pain points. For your marketplace, find the unaddressed needs within your niche and design your platform specifically to solve these problems.

If you’re considering a marketplace venture of your own, Vinted’s journey from a small Lithuanian startup to a multi-billion-dollar marketplace has lots of practical insights to offer. Its approach shows that smart revenue models create value for both the platform and its users. 

You don’t need millions in funding or a team of developers to start your own marketplace. With Sharetribe, you can quickly build a marketplace like Vinted without technical expertise.

Everything you need for a fully functional marketplace—payments, user accounts, listings, and database management—is built in, so you can focus on your concept and community building. This lets you concentrate on solving problems for your users rather than wrestling with technology.

And when the time comes to expand your platform, you can easily add custom-coded functionality on top of your no-code marketplace (or hire a developer from our global Expert network to do it for you).

Sharetribe supports various revenue models similar to Vinted’s. You can implement buyer fees like Vinted’s protection charges or promotional options like the Bump feature. You can also set up transaction fees, subscription plans, or listing promotions without writing code. This flexibility allows you to test different approaches as your marketplace grows and adapt based on what works for your specific community.

Start a free trial to build your marketplace today and have your first version up and running in days, not months.

Many marketplace founders want straightforward answers about Vinted’s revenue model. Here are the most common questions we receive about how this popular secondhand clothing marketplace generates income.

Yes. Vinted doesn’t charge sellers to use the platform. Sellers don't pay listing fees, commission charges, or monthly subscriptions to sell items. They can list as many items as they want without paying a cent and receive their full asking price when items sell.

The only optional costs are promotional features like “Bumps” ($0.95 to $2.95) or “Closet Spotlight” ($9.95/month) that help sellers gain more visibility. Vinted also has a Pro offering with advanced features for a monthly subscription fee.

No, Vinted doesn’t take a percentage from sellers, unlike most other marketplaces. Instead, it shifts the cost to buyers through a mandatory protection fee that ranges from $0.70 for items under $10 to 5% for items over $50.

This approach means sellers keep 100% of their asking price while Vinted still earns revenue from every transaction. The protection fee funds buyer guarantees, dispute resolution, and platform maintenance.

Yes, Vinted makes money from shipping through strategic carrier partnerships. It negotiates bulk discounts with shipping companies like USPS, Royal Mail, and DPD, then offers these rates to users while keeping a small margin on each label.

This creates a practical solution for both parties: Users get convenient shipping options at competitive rates, and Vinted earns additional revenue from every package sent through the platform. The integrated shipping system also improves user experience by keeping tracking information within the app.