The short version
- Typical range: £12 – £50 — see the full slip dress 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.
- Read the composition label: silk, satin-finish polyester and viscose are very different products.
- Check whether it is lined and hold it to the light to test opacity.
- Inspect the straps, any adjusters, and the bias seams for pulls or puckering.
The photographs that sell a slip dress
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.
- On a hanger, full length, front, showing the drape
- The composition label
- The straps and any adjuster
- The fabric close up, plus any snag, pull or mark
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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
Fabric, cut and size: “100% Silk Bias Cut Slip Dress, Champagne, Size 10”. Fibre is the whole price difference here. Say bias cut if it is, and state the length — slips run from mini to full length.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Fabric composition and whether it is lined
- Bust, waist and shoulder-to-hem length
- Whether the straps are adjustable
- Bias cut or straight, and any pulls in the fabric
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about a slip dress. 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.
Read the label and photograph it. Silk sells for several times a satin-finish polyester and buyers can tell on handling.
Hold it to a window. Unlined slips are often sheerer than they appear and it is an easy thing to disclose.
Check and say. Fixed straps make the fit far less forgiving and buyers ask.
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 slip dress 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 £31 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a slip dress — 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 | £31 |
| Poshmark | −£6 | £25 |
| eBay | −£4 | £27 |
| Mercari | −£3 | £28 |
| Etsy | −£2 | £29 |
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 in summer and before the party season. Silk pieces sell year round to a steady audience.
Extremely light. Fold with tissue — silk and bias cuts crease and snag easily in transit.
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 slip dress worth?
Typically £12 to £50, with real silk and designer pieces well above. See the slip dress value guide.
How do I tell silk from polyester?
Silk feels cool and warms to the hand, and it has an uneven, soft sheen rather than a uniform shine. The composition label is the reliable answer — photograph it rather than guessing.
Do pulls in the fabric matter?
On silk and satin, yes, because they catch the light and are effectively permanent. Photograph any you find against the light so their extent is clear.
See also: what a used slip dress is worth · browse live clothing listings · condition grades explained.