The short version
- Typical range: £10 – £180 — see the full pottery value guide
- What decides your price: condition, and how well you evidence it in photographs
- Cost to sell here: nothing, at any price
- Category: Art & Collectibles
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.
- Turn every piece over and photograph the base marks, impressed, printed or painted.
- Tap the rim gently with a fingernail. A clear ring means sound; a dull thud usually means a crack, even an invisible one.
- Check the rim and foot under a strong light for hairlines, chips and restoration, which often fluoresces differently under UV.
The photographs that sell pottery
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 piece whole, on a plain background, in even light
- The base mark, filling the frame and legible
- The rim and foot all the way round
- Any chip, hairline crack, crazing, restoration or glaze fault, 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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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
Maker, pattern and item: “Denby Arabesque Casserole Dish” or “Studio Pottery Vase, Impressed Seal Mark”. Named factories and patterns are direct searches, and people replacing a broken piece of a dinner service are among the most motivated buyers you will find.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Maker and pattern name if known, with the base mark photographed
- Height and diameter, and capacity for functional pieces
- Whether dishwasher and microwave safe, for tableware
- Every chip, crack, crazing and restoration, stated plainly
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about pottery. 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.
Do the ping test, inspect the rim under a light, and disclose every hairline. Undisclosed cracks are the main cause of disputes in this category and they are easy to find if you look.
Photograph it rather than transcribing it. Collectors identify factories and dates from marks far more accurately than a description can convey.
Explain what you see. Fine crazing is normal and expected on older glazes; staining within the crazing is a condition issue and should be shown.
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 pottery 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 £95 sale — roughly the middle of the range for pottery — 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 | £95 |
| Poshmark | −£19 | £76 |
| eBay | −£13 | £82 |
| Mercari | −£10 | £85 |
| Etsy | −£6 | £89 |
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 year round, with a lift before Christmas. Replacement tableware in discontinued patterns sells quickly at any time because the buyer has no alternative source.
Post double boxed with each piece individually wrapped and no piece touching another. Ceramics are the most commonly broken thing in the post, and single-boxing is why.
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 used pottery worth?
Typically £10 to £180, with sought-after studio potters and rare factory pieces far above. The pottery value guide covers the condition grades.
How do I check for hairline cracks?
Hold the piece loosely and tap the rim with a fingernail. A sound piece rings; a cracked one thuds. Then check the rim and foot under a bright light, which reveals most hairlines.
Does crazing reduce the value?
On old glazes it is expected and usually neutral. Stained or dirty crazing does reduce value, and crazing on a modern piece can indicate a fault. Photograph it and describe what you see.
See also: what a used pottery is worth · browse live art & collectibles listings · condition grades explained.