The short version
- Typical range: £100 – £600 — see the full mountain bike value guide
- What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
- Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
- Category: Bicycles & Cycling
Before you photograph it
Ten minutes here is worth more than anything else you will do. Buyers are deciding between your listing and someone else’s, and preparation is what visibly separates the two.
- Note the frame size, wheel size and whether it is a hardtail or full suspension.
- Check the fork and any rear shock for oil weeping around the seals, and cycle the suspension through its travel.
- Inspect the frame at the welds and pivots, check the brake pads and rotors, and clean the drivetrain properly.
The photographs that sell a mountain bike
Four photographs do almost all the work. Shoot in daylight, near a window, with the item against something plain — and do not use the flash, which flattens texture and hides exactly what buyers are trying to see.
- The whole bike side on, drive side, in daylight
- The fork stanchions close up, showing whether they are clean and unpitted
- The drivetrain and rear derailleur, model readable
- The frame at the pivots or welds, plus tyres and brake rotors
Photograph the flaws too. It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover. Buyers who can see the damage stop imagining something worse.
Writing the title and description
Size, wheel size and suspension type: “Trek Marlin 7, Large, 29er Hardtail”. Wheel size — 26, 27.5 or 29 inch — is a genuine filter and often left out. Say whether it is hardtail or full suspension in the title, since they are different bikes for different buyers.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Frame size and the rider height it suits
- Wheel size, and hardtail or full suspension
- Fork and shock model, travel, and whether they have been serviced
- Groupset, brake type, and tyre and drivetrain condition
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about a mountain bike. Answering them in the listing itself removes the back-and-forth, and answering them well when they do arrive is what turns an enquiry into a sale.
Cycle it and look for oil on the stanchions. Fork servicing is a known cost and buyers accept it when told, but a blown fork discovered on collection ends the sale.
Be straight about it. A well-maintained bike ridden a lot is worth more than a neglected bike ridden little, and buyers can usually tell anyway.
Give a height range as well as the frame size. Mountain bike sizing varies more between brands than road sizing does.
Pricing it so it actually sells
Start from the honest condition grade rather than the price you hope for. WishThrift listings use five grades — New with Tags, Like New, Good, Fair and For Parts — and what each grade means is worth reading before you choose, because grading up is the most expensive mistake sellers make. It does not raise the price; it produces a buyer who arrives expecting something else.
The mountain bike value guide prices all five grades for this item. Pick your grade, take the figure, and if you sit between two grades price toward the lower one. Items priced honestly sell faster than items priced hopefully, and on a free platform there is no fee eating the difference anyway.
What you keep, compared
On a £350 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a mountain bike — here is what the commission-charging platforms would take, and what you would keep on each:
| Where you sell it | Fee | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| WishThrift | £0 | £350 |
| Poshmark | −£70 | £280 |
| eBay | −£48 | £302 |
| Mercari | −£35 | £315 |
| Etsy | −£23 | £327 |
Seller-side rates verified 26 Jul 2026 — Poshmark: 20% commission on sales of $15 and above; eBay: 13.6% final value fee, plus a per-order fee; Mercari: flat 10% selling fee; Etsy: 6.5% transaction fee, plus a listing fee and payment processing. Percentages are applied to the sterling figure above; the fixed per-order and processing charges those platforms add are quoted in their own currency and are not included here, so the real deductions are slightly larger. Full breakdown: marketplace selling fees compared.
Timing and getting it to the buyer
Seasonal but less sharply than road bikes, since many ride year round. Spring is strongest, with a secondary lift in autumn. Full suspension bikes hold value better than hardtails.
Collection is normal and lets the buyer ride it. If posting, expect to remove the wheels, bars and pedals and use a proper bike box.
WishThrift does not process payments or arrange delivery — you and the buyer agree both directly — so confirm payment has cleared before the item leaves your hands, and keep the conversation on the site so there is a record of what was agreed.
Ready to list it? It takes about two minutes, costs nothing, and there is no commission when it sells — create a free account or see how selling works.
Frequently asked questions
What is a used mountain bike worth?
Typically £100 to £600, with full suspension and quality components well above entry-level hardtails. See the mountain bike value guide for the range by condition.
Does suspension service history matter?
Yes, considerably. Forks and shocks need periodic servicing, and a bike with recent work is worth meaningfully more. If you have receipts, photograph them — they justify a higher price directly.
Hardtail or full suspension: which sells faster?
Hardtails sell faster because they are cheaper and simpler, and appeal to a wider pool of buyers. Full suspension bikes take longer but hold a higher proportion of their value.
See also: what a used mountain bike is worth · browse live bicycles & cycling listings · condition grades explained.