The short version
- Typical range: £10 – £60 — see the full silver 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 the hallmark inside the band and photograph it magnified. Look for 925, sterling, or a full assay mark.
- Measure the internal diameter or use a ring sizer, and give the size in the local convention plus millimetres.
- Clean gently with a silver cloth. Do not use dip solutions on anything with oxidised detail, which they strip.
The photographs that sell a silver 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 from the front, filling the frame
- The hallmark inside the band, magnified and legible
- The ring on a finger or a sizer, for scale
- Any stone setting, plus every scratch, dent or worn area
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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, style and size: “Sterling Silver Band Ring, 925 Hallmarked, Size N”. The hallmark and the size are the two searches. If there is a maker’s mark, include it — some silver makers are collected in their own right and the name does more than any description.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Metal and hallmark, transcribed and photographed
- Ring size in the local convention plus internal diameter in millimetres
- Weight in grams
- Any stone, its setting, and whether it is secure
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about a silver 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.
Photograph the hallmark and let the buyer read it. If there is no mark, say so plainly rather than asserting a metal you cannot evidence.
Give both the letter or number size and the internal diameter in millimetres, since sizing conventions differ between countries.
Press gently and check for movement. A loose stone is a small repair but a large disappointment if it falls out on the way home.
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 silver 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 £35 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a silver 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 | £35 |
| Poshmark | −£7 | £28 |
| eBay | −£5 | £30 |
| Mercari | −£4 | £31 |
| Etsy | −£2 | £33 |
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
Lifts before Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. Hallmarked silver from named makers sells within days in those windows.
Post small and tracked, in a rigid box rather than an envelope. Small valuable items are the ones that go missing, so a signed service is worth the small extra cost.
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 silver ring worth?
Typically £10 to £60, with designer and antique pieces well above. See the silver ring value guide for the condition bands.
How do I know if it is sterling silver?
Look for a 925 stamp, the word sterling, or a full assay hallmark, usually inside the band. Photograph whatever you find. WishThrift does not verify items, so the mark is what a buyer assesses.
Should I polish silver before selling?
Lightly, with a silver cloth. Avoid dip solutions on oxidised or antiqued designs, since they strip the deliberate darkening and flatten the detail the piece was designed around.
See also: what a used silver ring is worth · browse live jewellery & watches listings · condition grades explained.