The short version
- Typical range: £6 – £35 — see the full cap 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.
- Check the brim for creasing or cracking, and the sweatband for staining.
- Clean the sweatband and the front panel, which is where caps get grubby.
- Note the closure type and the size or fitted measurement.
The photographs that sell a cap
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 cap from the front, showing the logo
- The side profile, showing brim shape
- Inside, showing the sweatband condition
- The closure and size tag, plus any stain or fray
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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
Brand, style and size: “New Era 59Fifty Fitted Cap, 7 1/4, Navy”. Style codes and fitted sizes are searched exactly. Say whether it is fitted, snapback or strapback, since those are separate searches.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Brand, style and any model code
- Fitted size or closure type: snapback, strapback, fitted
- Brim shape: flat or curved, and whether the sticker is still on
- Sweatband condition and any staining or fraying
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about a cap. 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.
Give the fitted size or say it is adjustable. Fitted caps are sized precisely and buyers know their number.
Look inside and photograph. It is the first thing a buyer checks on a used cap and the easiest thing to clean before listing.
Say whether it has been curved. Some buyers specifically want a flat brim and a curved one cannot be undone cleanly.
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 cap 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 £20 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a cap — 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 | £20 |
| Poshmark | −£4 | £16 |
| eBay | −£3 | £17 |
| Mercari | −£2 | £18 |
| Etsy | −£1 | £19 |
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
Steady with a summer lift. Collectable and team caps sell year round; generic caps sell slowly.
Small but must not be crushed. Stuff the crown with paper and use a box, not a bag, or it arrives flattened.
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 cap worth?
Typically £6 to £35, with collectable, team and limited-run caps well above. See the cap value guide.
Can I clean a cap before selling?
Spot-clean the sweatband and front panel by hand. Do not machine wash a structured cap — it distorts the crown and cracks the brim, which costs more than the dirt did.
How should I post a cap?
In a box with the crown stuffed, never a padded bag. A crushed cap arrives looking worthless and is the commonest complaint in this category.
See also: what a used cap is worth · browse live clothing listings · condition grades explained.