Ebay or Craigslist?

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J

janas19

Platinum Member
Nov 10, 2011
2,313
1
0
Just thought I would open up a discussion here. Which do you prefer for selling your stuff? Would you rather use Ebay or Craigslist.

Ebay pros:
Much wider audience and more targeted ads
Has been easier to create a deal
Their site has oversight, but...
Ebay cons:
... High fees
You can really get ripped off

Craigslist pros:
Free to list your ad
Local so you can buy in your 'hood
Craigslist cons:
No oversight, so lots of spammers and junk
The local meetup can be a double-edged sword. Someone can rob you or con you.

Thoughts?
 
Saint Nick

Saint Nick

Lifer
Jan 21, 2005
17,722
6
81
eBay. Wider audience, buyer protection, etc. I think not dealing with Craigslist loonies is reason enough to use eBay.
 
ImpulsE69

ImpulsE69

Lifer
Jan 8, 2010
14,946
1,077
126
Ebay. While there are issues there, I"ve NEVER had a successful transaction on Craigslist..I'm not even sure why it's still actually used.
 
rudder

rudder

Lifer
Nov 9, 2000
19,441
86
91
craigslist... cash transactions in a public location.

Too easy for someone to rip off the seller on ebay. Craigslist is full of flakes.. but once you do get cash in hand... it stays there.
 
S

Sureshot324

Diamond Member
Feb 4, 2003
3,370
0
71
I've had better luck with Ebay, both as a buyer and seller. With craigslist you have to deal with all those people who will email you and then never reply back. As a buyer if the item you buy turns out to be junk you really have no recourse. Ebay's feedback system is really useful.

As a side note Kijiji > Craigslist.
 
B

bignateyk

Lifer
Apr 22, 2002
11,288
7
0
Craigslist. Don't have to deal with shipping, paypal, or any fees. I've made hundreds of craigslist transactions both buying and selling and never had any issues beyond the occasional buyer flaking out.
 
Dirigible

Dirigible

Diamond Member
Apr 26, 2006
5,961
32
91
lxskllr said:
Probably both. It really depends on what you're selling.
Click to expand...

Yup.

I use ebay if the item is easily shipped, usually in one of the usps flat rate boxes, with the postman picking it up from my house. I don't care how cheap the item is since I build in a little profit for myself in the listing and don't have to do much work.

I use craigslist if the item is pricy and a pain to ship. I'm not going to sell cheap stuff on CL since it's not worth the hassle. I'm too lazy to ship things that are a pain to ship, so the CL mantra of "cash only, no delivery" works well. Cars, motorcycles, bicycles and large bicycle parts (wheels, frames), etc., etc.

If I have something that's not worth much and is a pain to ship, it's getting listed on CL for free, donated to charity, or trashed.
 
SaDiZTiKStyLeZ

SaDiZTiKStyLeZ

Lifer
Apr 12, 2010
10,510
10
0
A lot of items I'm trying to sell would be no profit after fees + shipping.
I want to get on eBay, but most of my items wouldn't turn much, if any profit after fees + shipping.
I get a legitimate buyer, maybe once every 6 months. So good luck getting top dollar off expensive at top dollar on eBay though...
 
BoomerD

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,340
14,748
146
I've been scammed a couple of times by E-bay sellers and got no help from E-bay with resolving the issue...and NEVER been scammed by buyers or sellers on Craigslist.

Yes, you have to be careful of what you buy and where you do your transactions, but for the most part, a bit of due diligence (and common sense) is all that's needed.
 
Capt Caveman

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
34,543
651
126
Just sold a Logitech Squeezebox Touch thru Craigslist, met a MIT grad student in the Marriott Hotel Lobby, deal done in two minutes and walked away with cash in hand.
 
D

darom

Senior member
Dec 3, 2002
402
0
0
Craigslist - meet a person, exchange the goods/cash, you are done. To avoid majority of scammers, I just say 'Phone calls only and I will not answer emails or SMS'.

Ebay can go to hell with its rip-off paypal, high post fees and non-existent customer service.
 
T

the DRIZZLE

Platinum Member
Sep 6, 2007
2,956
1
81
I would only use CL for big ticket expensive to ship items like cars/boats/motorcycles. For smaller items I use ebay as both a buyer and seller.
 
Red Storm

Red Storm

Lifer
Oct 2, 2005
14,233
234
106
Craigslist. No fees, and immediate cash in hand.

I haven't used eBay in years, and I don't miss it at all.
 
Red Squirrel

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
70,667
13,835
126
www.anyf.ca
ebay. Wider audience, and Craigslist is only really good if your town is listed. People who have something to sell or what to buy something are more likely to check ebay.

Sure it's a risk, but cl is probably even more risky given you have to meet the person. There's lot of wackos out there.

I don't do a lot of ebay shopping but when I do, I never really have any issues. I just accept the fact that it's very possible I'll never see the item, or my money ever again. I usually keep purchases under 100 bucks unless I followed a link from an actual retail site that puts their stuff on ebay.
 
xj0hnx

xj0hnx

Diamond Member
Dec 18, 2007
9,262
3
76
Either, depends on what I am selling. The ability for buyers to rip off sellers with no repercussions on Ebay though is pretty terrible, and I avoid it if I can.
 
D

darom

Senior member
Dec 3, 2002
402
0
0
Red Squirrel said:
ebay.
I don't do a lot of ebay shopping but when I do, I never really have any issues. I just accept the fact that it's very possible I'll never see the item, or my money ever again. I usually keep purchases under 100 bucks unless I followed a link from an actual retail site that puts their stuff on ebay.
Click to expand...

Squirrel, the question was about selling stuff. I do occasional shopping on ebay as well. Being a buyer there completely changes the perspective.
 
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