How to price items on eBay UK using sold prices

The most reliable way to price an item on eBay UK is to check what the same item has actually sold for recently. You can see this with the Sold items filter on eBay's search results. Match your exact item, take the middle price, then allow for postage, fees and how quickly the item sells.

Why sold prices are better than asking prices

An asking price is only what a seller hopes to get. Items priced too high can stay unsold for a long time, so the listings for sale now can give a false picture.

A sold price is what a buyer actually paid. eBay's own help pages suggest checking what items like yours have sold for before you set a price.

How to see sold items on eBay UK

On a computer

Go to ebay.co.uk and search for your item.
Look at the filters on the left of the results. Sold items is usually in the Show only section, so you may need to scroll down.
Tick Sold items. The page now shows only listings that ended in a sale.

You can also use Advanced search. Select Advanced next to the search bar, type your keywords, tick Sold items under "Search including", then select Search.

Make sure you tick Sold items, not only Completed items. Completed items also includes listings that ended without selling.

In the eBay app

Search for your item.
Tap Filter.
Scroll down to Sold items and turn it on. You may need to tap Show more first.
Tap the button at the bottom of the screen to show the results.

How far back sold listings go

Sold results go back about 90 days. eBay's help page says these results only include listings that ended in the previous 90 days.

For older sales, use eBay's Product research tool, which covers up to three years (see below).

Match your exact item

A sold price is only useful if it is for the same item as yours. Check each result against your item before you count it.

Model and edition. Search for the full model name or number. For example, a Canon EOS 600D "body only" is a different item from a 600D sold with a lens.
Set and part numbers. Include the number in your search if the item has one. For example, search for "LEGO 75192", not just the name of the set.
Condition. New, used and faulty items sell for different prices. Use the Condition filter to match yours.
Completeness. Check whether the sold items had the box, instructions, charger, cables or all their pieces. If yours is missing something, expect a lower price.
Bundles and job lots. Leave out sales that included extra items, or several items sold together. They do not tell you the price of one item.

Open a few sold listings and look at the photos and description. This helps you spot bundles, extras and missing parts.

Look at the range of prices

When you have a list of matching sales, put the prices in order from lowest to highest. Use the middle price as your starting point, not the highest.

For example, say you find nine matching sales of a used Canon EOS 600D body. The prices are £70, £82, £85, £88, £90, £92, £95, £99 and £150. These numbers are made up to show the method.

The middle price is the fifth of the nine, which is £90. The average is about £95, because the one £150 sale raises it. So the middle price is the safer guide.

The £150 sale is far above the rest, so open it and check why. It may have included a lens or extra batteries. Leave it out unless your item has the same extras.

Check very low sales too. Some may be faulty items, or auctions that ended with few bids.

If a sold result shows that a Best Offer was accepted, the price shown may not be what the buyer paid. Product research shows the actual price.

Check how many sell and how many are for sale

The right price also depends on demand. Count your matching sold results. They cover about 13 weeks, so divide the number by 13 to get sales per week.

Then untick Sold items and count how many matching items are for sale now.

For example, say 26 matching items sold in the last 90 days. That is about 2 a week. These numbers are also made up.

If 40 are for sale now, buyers have plenty of choice, so price at or a little below the middle price to sell sooner. If only 3 are for sale, you can price nearer the top of the normal range.

Allow for postage

Sold results show the item price, with the postage shown separately or as "Free postage". Compare the total each buyer paid: the item price plus postage.

For example, an item that sold for £25 with free postage cost the buyer the same as one that sold for £20 plus £5 postage.

If you offer free postage, you pay the postage, so build its cost into your item price.
If you charge for postage, compare your item price plus postage with the totals buyers paid for matching items.

If you are a private seller, eBay's Simple Delivery is the only postage option for eligible items. These must be priced at £750 or less and weigh no more than 30kg.

With Simple Delivery, eBay works out the postage price from the item's size, weight and sale price, and the carriers you allow. You can let the buyer pay it, or offer free postage and pay for the label yourself.

If you are a business seller, weigh and measure the item once it is packed. Then check prices with Royal Mail, Evri or another carrier before you set your price.

Allow for eBay fees

Fees depend on whether you sell as a private seller or a business seller. Check eBay's pages on fees for private sellers and fees for business sellers before you set a price, because fees can change.

Private sellers. In November 2026, eBay's fees page says it is free for UK-based private sellers to sell, except for cars, motorcycles and other vehicles. You pay no final value fee when an item sells.

You get 300 free listings a month, then each extra listing costs 35p. Fees also apply for optional extras, such as listing upgrades and promoted listings, and for sending items abroad.

Buyer Protection fee. When someone buys from a UK private seller, the price they see includes a Buyer Protection fee, which the buyer pays. In eBay's own example, an item priced at £20 by the seller shows to buyers as £21.50 plus postage. So when you compare your price with sold prices, use the price buyers will see, not the price you enter.

Business sellers. You pay a final value fee, which is a percentage that varies by category, plus a fixed fee per order. eBay works out the final value fee on the total amount of the sale, which includes the item price, postage and any applicable taxes. So moving part of your price into the postage charge does not reduce the fee.

Best Offer: decide your limits first

Best Offer lets buyers send you an offer on a fixed-price listing, and you decide whether to accept it. eBay may also add a Best Offer option to some listings, but you do not have to accept any offer.

When you allow offers, you can set two limits:

An automatic accept price. Offers at or above this price are accepted for you.
A minimum offer. Offers below this price are declined for you.

One approach is to set your Buy It Now price a little above the middle sold price. Then set the minimum offer at the lowest price you would really accept.

Use eBay's Product research tool (formerly Terapeak)

Product research is eBay's own tool for researching sold prices. It used to be called Terapeak, and eBay says it is free.

On a computer, it is in Seller Hub, under the Research tab. In the eBay app, it is on the Selling tab. eBay says you need to have made at least one sale to opt in to Seller Hub.

Product research covers the last three years of eBay sales. For matching items, it can show:

the actual price paid, even when a Best Offer was accepted
the average sold price and the range of prices
the average postage cost, and how many items sold with free postage
a sell-through rate, which eBay describes as the percentage of similar items sold during a set period

To leave out results that contain a word, put a minus sign in front of it, such as -bundle.

Quick checklist

Search for the exact model, edition or set number.
Tick Sold items. The results cover about the last 90 days.
Match the condition, and leave out bundles, job lots and items with missing parts.
Use the middle price, not the highest.
Compare sales per week with how many are for sale now.
Compare total prices, including postage.
Allow for fees if you are a business seller, or for the Buyer Protection fee if you are a private seller.
Decide your Best Offer limits before you list.
Use Product research for older sales and for accepted Best Offer prices.

Listing Magpie writes eBay UK listings from your photos, prices each one from recent eBay UK sales of the same item, and shows you those sales so you can leave out any that do not match. It is not open to everyone yet, but you can join the waiting list.

How to price items on eBay UK using sold prices: a step-by-step guide