The short version
- Typical range: £100 – £1,200 — see the full engagement ring value guide
- What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
- Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
- Category: Jewellery & Watches
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.
- Find any certificate, valuation or receipt. A GIA or equivalent certificate transforms both the price and the speed of sale.
- Photograph the hallmark and weigh the ring, and note the ring size.
- Clean it gently, and examine the claws with a loupe or phone macro to check no stone is loose.
The photographs that sell an engagement ring
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 ring straight on, on a plain neutral background in daylight
- The centre stone from directly above, in focus
- The hallmark inside the band, legible
- The certificate if you have one, and the claws and setting close up
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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
Metal, stone and carat weight: “18ct White Gold Solitaire Engagement Ring, 0.5ct Diamond, Certificated”. The word certificated does a great deal of work if it is true. State the ring size, and if the stone is moissanite, lab-grown or cubic zirconia, say so in the title — not doing so is the fastest way to lose a sale at inspection.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Metal and carat from the hallmark, and total ring weight
- Centre stone type, carat weight, and whether it is natural, lab-grown or a simulant
- Whether a certificate or valuation is included, and from whom
- Ring size, and whether it has been resized
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about an engagement ring. 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.
Say yes or no plainly and photograph it if you have one. Certification is the single biggest price factor on a diamond ring.
Answer honestly from your paperwork. Lab-grown stones are perfectly sellable but worth substantially less, and a buyer who discovers it later has a real complaint.
Say yes. A buyer willing to pay for their own valuation is a serious buyer, and WishThrift does not authenticate or verify items, so welcoming independent checks is entirely in your interest.
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 engagement ring 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 £650 sale — roughly the middle of the range for an engagement ring — 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 | £650 |
| Poshmark | −£130 | £520 |
| eBay | −£88 | £562 |
| Mercari | −£65 | £585 |
| Etsy | −£42 | £608 |
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
A slower, more considered sale than most jewellery, often several weeks. Certificated rings sell markedly faster. There is a modest lift before Christmas and Valentine’s Day.
High value in a tiny parcel. Confirm cleared payment first, use fully tracked and insured postage, and photograph the ring and the sealed packaging. Many buyers at this level prefer to meet, which is entirely reasonable.
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 engagement ring worth?
Typically £100 to £1,200 depending on metal, stone and certification, with fine pieces well above that. Expect considerably less than the original retail price, because retail margins do not survive resale. See the engagement ring value guide.
Do I need a certificate to sell an engagement ring?
Not required, but it changes the price substantially. Without certification buyers discount for uncertainty, because WishThrift does not authenticate or verify items and they are relying entirely on your description and their own inspection.
Why is it worth so much less than I paid?
Retail jewellery prices include a large margin that simply does not exist on resale. This is normal and applies wherever you sell. Certification, a recognised maker and a well-cut centre stone are what narrow the gap.
See also: what a used engagement ring is worth · browse live jewellery & watches listings · condition grades explained.