The short version
- Typical range: £25 – £90 — see the full hiking boots value guide
- What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
- Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
- Category: Shoes & Footwear
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.
- Flex each boot hard and look at the midsole for cracking or crumbling. Boots stored for years can fail here despite looking unworn.
- Clean the tread out properly and check the lug depth across the heel and forefoot.
- Check the eyelets and hooks are all present and the laces are sound, and note whether they are waterproof-lined.
The photographs that sell hiking boots
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 pair side on, standing, whole
- Both soles, showing lug depth and any separation at the welt
- The midsole flexed, so its condition is visible
- The inside label with size and any membrane branding, plus any wear point
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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, model and size: “Salomon Quest 4D GTX Hiking Boots, UK 9” or “Leather Walking Boots, Waterproof, EU 42”. Waterproof membranes are a real search, and so are resoleable constructions, so name the make and model exactly rather than describing the boot.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Size as marked, with UK and EU equivalents, and whether men’s or women’s fit
- Whether the boot has a waterproof membrane, and whether it still performs
- Approximate mileage or seasons of use, given honestly
- Midsole and tread condition, and whether the boot can be resoled
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about hiking boots. 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 an honest estimate based on tread depth and midsole condition. Walkers are buying reliability on a hillside, and an overstated boot is a genuine problem rather than a disappointment.
Say what you actually know from wearing them. Membranes degrade, and a boot that wets out after an hour must not be sold as waterproof.
Flex them and photograph it. Hydrolysis is the failure that catches people out on old stock, and disclosing it is the difference between a spares sale and a complaint.
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 hiking boots 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 £57 sale — roughly the middle of the range for hiking boots — 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 | £57 |
| Poshmark | −£11 | £46 |
| eBay | −£8 | £49 |
| Mercari | −£6 | £51 |
| Etsy | −£4 | £53 |
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
Strongest from March to September, with a smaller lift before Christmas. Well-known brands in common sizes sell within a fortnight in season.
Post them boxed. Heavier than most footwear, so weigh them and quote postage before agreeing a price rather than discovering the cost afterwards.
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 are used hiking boots worth?
Typically £25 to £90, with premium brands and lightly used pairs well above. See the hiking boots value guide for the condition breakdown.
Should I sell boots with a crumbling midsole?
Only as spares or repair, described exactly that way. A midsole that has begun to break down will fail properly on a walk, and that is not a risk to pass to someone quietly.
Do resoleable boots sell for more?
Noticeably, yes. Stitched-welt boots that a cobbler can resole hold value far better than cemented ones, so name the construction if you know it — buyers who care will pay for it.
See also: what a used hiking boots is worth · browse live shoes & footwear listings · condition grades explained.