Sell Your Used Shorts — 0% Fees

Used shorts typically sell for £6 to £25, and on WishThrift it costs you nothing to list — no fee, no commission, so you keep the whole amount you agree. Shorts are low-value individually and sell best in bundles by size, so the honest strategy is usually to group them rather than list each pair.

The short version

Typical range: £6 – £25 — see the full shorts value guide
What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
Category: Clothing

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.

Sort by size and style, since a bundle of the same waist sells far better than a mixed set.
Measure waist flat and the inside leg, which on shorts is what determines the length people care about.
Check the seat, pockets and any drawcord, and confirm every button and zip works.

The photographs that sell shorts

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 shorts or the bundle laid flat, all visible
The waistband with a tape across it
The inside leg or overall length measured
Labels showing sizes, plus any stain, fray or missing drawcord

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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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

Type, size and quantity: “3 Pairs Chino Shorts, W32, Bundle” or “Nike Running Shorts, Size M, 5in Inseam”. Inseam length is a real search on athletic shorts. For everyday shorts, quantity and a single waist size is what makes a bundle attractive.

Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:

Waist measured flat, and inside leg or total length
Style — chino, denim, athletic, swim or cargo
How many pairs if bundled, itemised by size
Fabric, and whether there is a liner on athletic or swim shorts

What buyers will actually ask

You will receive the same three messages about shorts. 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.

“What is the inseam?”

Measure it. On athletic and casual shorts the length is the whole style decision and it is rarely stated.

“Will you split the bundle?”

Decide beforehand. Splitting a low-value bundle usually costs more in postage and effort than it returns.

“Is there a liner?”

For swim and running shorts, say whether the mesh liner is present and intact. Buyers ask and many prefer them removed.

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 shorts 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 £15 sale — roughly the middle of the range for shorts — 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	£15
Poshmark	−£3	£12
eBay	−£2	£13
Mercari	−£2	£13
Etsy	−£1	£14

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

Almost entirely April to August. Shorts listed in October will barely be seen, so hold a bundle until spring rather than discounting it.

Very cheap to post, and bundles post nearly as cheaply as singles — which is exactly why bundling works so well in this category.

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

Are used shorts worth selling individually?

Usually not, unless they are branded athletic or designer. For everyday shorts the postage is a large share of the price, so bundling three or four in one size is the sensible approach.

What are used shorts worth?

Typically £6 to £25 a pair, and bundles are priced below that per item. See the shorts value guide.

Should I sell swim shorts second hand?

Yes, they sell fine when clean and honestly described. Say whether the liner is present and check the drawcord and elastic, which perish faster than the fabric.