Depop vs. Poshmark: an overview

What is Depop?

Depop Limited is a London-based social e-commerce company with offices in Milan and New York. The company operates globally and is popular in countries such as the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Italy. Depop is an online fashion marketplace where users can buy and sell clothing, accessories, and other items, mostly secondhand and vintage pieces. Originally founded in 2011, the platform experienced explosive growth during the pandemic. Depop is popular among young users, a significant portion of whom are under 18.

Compared to most other secondhand marketplaces, Depop places a greater emphasis on social features, allowing users to like items, follow sellers, and create profiles. On this platform, the visual appeal of a shop is almost as important as the items themselves. Sellers often spend considerable time meticulously crafting their homepages, striving to create a boutique-like atmosphere. This focus on visual appeal is the key difference between Depop and other secondhand marketplaces. The platform encourages creativity and self-expression, making it popular with sellers offering unique, handcrafted, or upgraded items. While some great deals can be found on the app, it's worth noting that scammers are also active on the platform.

What is Poshmark?

Founded in 2011, Poshmark is a social marketplace for selling new and used clothing and accessories. Its concept is to create a virtual wardrobe sale, and it's known for its ease of use and large user base. Poshmark boasts a vibrant, highly active community of buyers and sellers, along with a real-time social experience where users can buy and sell new and used fashion apparel, home goods, and electronics. The platform serves over 80 million registered users in the US, Canada, Australia, and India, offering over 200 million items across more than 90 categories and thousands of brands, providing a very wide selection. The company is headquartered in Redwood City, California, with offices in Vancouver, Chennai, and New York City. In January 2023, Poshmark was acquired by South Korean company Naver for $1.2 billion.

Poshmark's customers are slightly older than Depop's (most Poshmark customers are over 26), and they are generally willing to pay higher prices for premium items. The platform prioritizes community building over an artistic atmosphere. Sellers can share product information, follow other users, and participate in online "Posh parties." This social interaction is central to the Poshmark experience and essential for sellers to increase their visibility. The platform is committed to streamlining the sales process, particularly through its standardized logistics services.

Depop vs. Poshmark: a detailed comparison

Audience

Depop:

Depop is open to sellers and buyers in 150 countries worldwide, offering significant advantages to international sellers with over 30 million registered users. Its international customer base includes 3.7 million active buyers and 2 million active sellers, with most sellers also being buyers. Depop's user base is predominantly young, with approximately 90% under the age of 26, and the vast majority (90%) are "digital natives" of Generation Z—those who have been exposed to the internet since childhood. They pursue specific aesthetic styles: retro, streetwear, and Y2K fashion. Through its partnership with Shopv, you can source a large quantity of these styles of goods at low prices. Depop has a minimum age limit of 13, so teenagers can also use the platform.

Poshmark:

Poshmark boasts a large and sophisticated customer base for fashion accessories, with over 80 million registered users. Currently operating in only four countries (the United States, Canada, Australia, and India), Poshmark primarily targets the US market, where approximately 30 million users reside. Poshmark's customers tend to be older than Depop's, with 80% over the age of 26. These millennial shoppers prefer secondhand goods and use Poshmark to find new and used mid-to-high-end brands and styles.

Listing process

Depop:

On Depop, sellers are required to upload at least one and a maximum of four original product images (stock photos are not allowed; only your own photos can be uploaded) for each product listing, along with a product title, product description, and a related video. Depop combines the title and description, allowing a total of 1000 characters and up to 5 tags. Product information should include product photos, a product description, price (buyers are allowed to bid to negotiate the price), and shipping details. You can also choose to enter the brand of the product you are selling; if you know the brand, please be sure to include it.

Poshmark:

Since 2020, Poshmark has allowed users to upload up to 16 square photos per product page. This gives you more flexibility in choosing photo types and more opportunities to showcase your products. Poshmark allows a maximum of 50 characters for titles and 500 characters for descriptions. You will need to provide an accurate product description, clothing size, original price (estimate if you don't know the original price), and your listing price. You will also need to select a main category and a subcategory for your products. Quantity is optional; please be sure to fill in the quantity of items you intend to sell and indicate if the items are brand new and tagged.

Fee

Depop:

Depop charges only 10% of the total sales and shipping costs. Depop buyers are subject to a platform fee of up to 5% of the sales amount plus $1. Additionally, PayPal transaction fees are 2.9% + £0.30 in the UK and 2.9% + $0.30 in the US. Depop will process payments within two business days of shipment or ten business days of the sales date, whichever comes first. Funds may take up to five days to appear in your bank account.

Poshmark:

Poshmark takes 20% of the sales, or a flat fee of $2.95 if the item you sell is under $15. Poshmark typically deposits your earnings into your account balance within three days of delivery (i.e., after the tracking information shows the buyer has received the item). After that, you can choose to keep the funds in your Poshmark account or have them transferred to your bank account. In 2026, Poshmark switched to USPS Ground Advantage, with a flat shipping label of $6.49 for most packages.

Logistics

Depop:

Depop gives sellers more control, allowing them to choose to bear the shipping costs themselves after accurately weighing the goods or use Depop-generated shipping labels to pass the shipping costs on to the customer. This can save you money if you sell lightweight items, but it also increases the complexity of the process. Choosing Shopv will provide you with a cheaper and more efficient shipping option. Furthermore, if you want to ship internationally, Depop is the only option.

Poshmark:

Poshmark's shipping process is extremely simple, freeing sellers from the hassle of shipping and saving them significant time. They offer prepaid USPS priority mail labels at a flat rate. You simply print the label and affix it to the package. No weighing is required. This convenience is a major selling point of Poshmark. When selling items on Poshmark, the seller is responsible for packaging, printing labels, and mailing the item. The buyer pays the shipping cost.

FAQs

1. Can I sell on Depop and Poshmark at the same time?

Yes, many sellers do this. The two platforms have different customer groups, so using both platforms simultaneously can increase the chances of selling your products. However, remember to modify your product descriptions according to the characteristics of each platform.

2. How can I reduce shipping costs on both platforms?

Use ChinaDivision's built-in shipping calculator to compare shipping costs and print the discounted USPS/UPS shipping label. Lightweight items are most likely to qualify for discounts. Combining orders from the same seller can reduce total shipping costs.

Reference:

1. Depop

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depop

2. Poshmark

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poshmark

3. How We Do It

https://poshmark.com/about

4. Depop Payments FAQs - US

https://depophelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-gb/articles/9057375088657-Depop-Payments-FAQs-US