The short version
- Typical range: £25 – £110 — see the full trench coat 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.
- Find the belt and all its loops, and check the buckle. A missing belt is the commonest fault and a real deduction.
- Check the composition: cotton gabardine, poly blend or wool, and whether there is a removable lining.
- Look at the collar edge, cuffs and hem for grubbiness, and have it cleaned if it is dry-clean only and looks tired.
The photographs that sell a trench coat
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.
- Full length on a hanger, belted, front
- The belt and buckle laid out separately
- The inner label with composition and care instructions
- The collar, cuffs and hem, plus any stain or fray
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 It feels counterproductive, but a listing that shows the worst of an item gets fewer questions, fewer withdrawn offers and fewer arguments at handover.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, colour and size: “Cotton Gabardine Trench Coat, Stone, Size 12, Belt Included”. Say “belt included” explicitly — buyers have learned to ask and it separates your listing immediately. Name the colour properly; stone, camel and honey are searched by name.
Then state these in the description, because a buyer who has to ask is a buyer who might not bother:
- Fabric composition and whether the lining is removable
- Whether the belt, loops and buckle are all present
- Pit-to-pit and full length from shoulder to hem
- Single or double breasted, and whether it is showerproof
What buyers will actually ask
You will receive the same three messages about a trench coat. 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.
Check and confirm. It is the single most asked question on a trench coat and the answer changes the price.
Read the composition label. Cotton gabardine trenches are worth considerably more than polyester ones and buyers can tell on handling.
Give the shoulder-to-hem measurement and your own height. Trench length changes the whole look and is the usual cause of disappointment.
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 trench coat 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 £67 sale — roughly the middle of the range for a trench coat — 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 | £67 |
| Poshmark | −£13 | £54 |
| eBay | −£9 | £58 |
| Mercari | −£7 | £60 |
| Etsy | −£4 | £63 |
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
Peaks in early autumn and again in spring, since a trench is a between-seasons coat. Midwinter listings sell slowly.
Long and bulky when folded but light. Fold with tissue in the creases and say you have, since gabardine creases sharply.
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 trench coat worth?
Typically £25 to £110, with cotton gabardine and recognised brands well above polyester versions. See the trench coat value guide.
Does a missing belt matter?
A great deal. The belt is part of the garment’s silhouette and replacements rarely match, so a beltless trench sells for noticeably less. Say clearly either way.
Should I dry-clean before selling?
If it is dry-clean only and the collar or cuffs look grubby, yes — a trench is a coat where visible grime costs more than the clean does.
See also: what a used trench coat is worth · browse live clothing listings · condition grades explained.