Used earrings in the UK typically sell for £8 to £80 (about $11 to $110). Earrings sell fast and cheap to post, but there is one thing buyers care about above all: whether the posts and backs are the metal you say they are, because skin reacts to the wrong one.
What earrings are worth in the UK
| Condition | Typical | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| New with Tags | £80 | Unused, tags or seals intact |
| Like New | £68 | Barely used, no visible wear |
| Good | £52 | Light signs of use, complete and working |
| Fair | £36 | Heavily used, or a described fault or missing part |
| For Parts | £20 | Not working or incomplete, sold as seen |
Guide ranges converted from sterling at the 2 August 2026 rate, not quotes — sellers set their own price. Grades are seller-declared; WishThrift does not inspect or verify them.
What lifts the price
- Precious metal with hallmarks where present
- Matched pairs with both backs included
What pulls it down
- Odd earrings with no pair
- Plated pieces with wear to the base metal
Selling earrings in the UK
Most private sales settle by bank transfer or cash on collection. Faster Payments clear in seconds, which makes a transfer as safe as cash for the seller — wait for it to land before the item leaves your hands.
Royal Mail, Evri and InPost cover the whole country, and InPost lockers mean neither side has to be in for a delivery. Tracked 48 is the usual default for small parcels.
Distance selling rules bind traders, not private sellers, but an item must still be as described and anything sold as working must actually work.
Second-hand demand peaks in January, in the weeks before Christmas, and at the start of the academic year in September.
Working out what yours is worth
- Check both earrings match exactly
- Confirm both backs are present
Getting it ready
- Check the posts and backs for a hallmark or metal marking, and note whether the backs are included.
- Confirm both earrings match exactly — odd earrings sold as a pair is a real and avoidable complaint.
Photograph
- Both earrings together, front on, filling the frame
- Any hallmark, magnified
- The stones or detail close up, plus any scratch, tarnish or missing back
Put in the description
- Metal, with any hallmark photographed
- Fitting type, and whether backs are included
- Dimensions — hoop diameter or total drop length
Metal, style and fitting: “Sterling Silver Hoop Earrings, 20mm, 925 Hallmarked”. Diameter or drop length is the search on hoops and drops, and the fitting type — stud, hook, hoop, clip-on — matters because not everyone has pierced ears.
Cheapest jewellery to post. Use a small rigid box with the pair secured to card, and a tracked service — small parcels are exactly what goes astray.
It costs nothing to list
There is no listing fee, no selling fee and no commission, so the £80 a buyer pays is the £80 you keep. You and the buyer settle up and arrange the handover between yourselves; WishThrift does not hold the money or ship the item.
Where in the UK
The United Kingdom is a big place and what sells well moves with it. These are the parts of the United Kingdom with their own page for earrings.
Common questions
Where can I sell earrings in the UK?
List it free on WishThrift and deal with the buyer direct. There is no selling fee, so the whole amount stays with you. Most private sales settle by bank transfer or cash on collection. Faster Payments clear in seconds, which makes a transfer as safe as cash for the seller — wait for it to land before the item leaves your hands.
Do they match exactly?
Compare them side by side. Slight handmade variation is fine and worth mentioning; a mismatched pair sold as matching is not.
Are used earrings worth selling?
Precious metal and designer pairs sell reasonably. Costume earrings sell for small sums but still move.
Is a single earring worth anything?
Sometimes, to someone who lost one from a pair. Be explicit that it is a single, not a pair.
More: how to sell earrings, what earrings are worth, or Jewellery & Watches across the United Kingdom.