What are Whatnot seller fees in 2026?

Eight percent commission on the item sale price, plus payment processing of 2.9% plus $0.30 on the entire order total. Electronics are charged 5% and Coins & Money 4%.

Is the Whatnot commission charged on shipping?

No — the 8% applies to the item price only. Payment processing, however, is charged on item price plus shipping, so shipping still increases your total fees.

How much does Whatnot take from a $50 sale?

With no shipping charged, $5.75 — $4.00 commission plus $1.75 processing. With $10 of buyer-paid shipping, $6.04, because processing is charged on the $60 order total. The effective rate is roughly 10–11%.

Do UK and EU sellers pay the same rate?

No. UK and EU sellers pay 6.67% commission plus VAT, rather than the US 8%, with processing at 2.42% plus £0.35 or €0.25.

Is Whatnot cheaper than eBay or Poshmark?

On fees, generally yes — around 10–11% effective against roughly 14% on eBay and up to 20% on Poshmark. The trade-off is format: selling depends on hosting live shows and building an audience.

Are there listing fees on Whatnot?

No. Listing and hosting shows are free, and fees apply only when an item sells.

Does Whatnot cap commission on high-value sales?

In select high-value collectible categories the commission is currently waived on the portion of a sale above the threshold. Confirmation depends on the category and any promotional terms running at the time.

Whatnot Fee Calculator

Two fees with two different bases — the detail that breaks manual maths.

Short answer

Whatnot charges an 8% commission on the item sale price only, plus payment processing of 2.9% plus $0.30 charged on the entire order total, including shipping and tax. On a $50 item with $10 shipping, that is $4.00 commission plus $2.04 processing — $6.04 in total, or 10.1% of the order. Electronics are charged a reduced 5% commission and Coins & Money 4%. UK and EU sellers pay 6.67% plus VAT instead of 8%.

Your numbers

Item sale price

Shipping the buyer pays

What your label costs

What you paid for the item

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Net payout

$53.96

Total fees: $6.04
Effective fee rate: 10.1%
Net profit: $24.96
Buyer pays: $60.00

Fee breakdown

Marketplace commission8% × $50.00−$4.00
Payment processing2.90% × $60.00 + $0.30−$2.04

Total fees$6.04

Two fees, two bases

Whatnot markets its fees as simply "8% plus processing". That is accurate, but the two charges are not calculated on the same number. The 8% commission applies to the item sale price alone. The 2.9% + $0.30 processing applies to the whole order total — item, shipping and tax together.

If you charge shipping, your processing fee is higher than a quick mental "8% + 2.9%" suggests. On a $10 shipping charge that is roughly $0.29 of processing you would not have budgeted for.

Category rates change the headline

Electronics are charged 5% rather than 8%, and Coins & Money 4%. In select high-value collectible categories the commission is currently waived on the portion of a sale above the threshold, with standard processing still applying to the full amount.

Sellers who assume the standard 8% on every item overestimate their costs in the cheaper categories — and may be pricing lower than they need to.

The live format is the real variable

Whatnot's core mechanism is live auction, which means the final price is not known until bidding closes. Margin awareness during a show is a different skill from pricing a fixed listing in advance.

Sellers running regular shows usually track an effective fee rate across the whole show rather than per item, because a mix of strong and weak items averages out closer to the standard rate than any single sale suggests.

Rate table

Standard commissionshipping and tax excluded from this base	8% of the item sale price
Electronics	5% of the item sale price
Coins & Money	4% of the item sale price
Payment processingcharged on the whole order total, shipping and tax included	2.9% + $0.30
UK / EU commissionwith processing at 2.42% + £0.35 or €0.25	6.67% + VAT
Listing fee	None
High-value categoriesin select collectible categories only	commission waived above the threshold

Source: the marketplace's own fee page
Rates last verified: 2026-09-20

Formula

fees = (item price × 8%) + ((item price + shipping + tax) × 2.9% + $0.30)

What each term means

8%: standard commission, charged on the item sale price only
5% / 4%: reduced commission for Electronics and Coins & Money
2.9% + $0.30: payment processing, charged on the whole order total including shipping and tax

Assumptions

US seller, USD, standard collectibles category at 8% commission.
Processing is modelled on the full order total, which matches how Whatnot charges it.
Tax is excluded from the inputs to keep the calculator simple — if the order carries tax, processing will be marginally higher than shown.

Worked examples

A $50 item with $10 shipping

Buyer pays: $60.00
Total fees: $6.04
Effective rate: 10.1%
Net profit: $24.96

Fee breakdown

Marketplace commission8% × $50.00−$4.00
Payment processing2.90% × $60.00 + $0.30−$2.04

Total fees$6.04

Commission is charged on $50, processing on $60. Two bases, one sale — this is where manual estimates drift.

A $50 item with free shipping

Buyer pays: $50.00
Total fees: $5.75
Effective rate: 11.5%
Net profit: $18.25

Fee breakdown

Marketplace commission8% × $50.00−$4.00
Payment processing2.90% × $50.00 + $0.30−$1.75

Total fees$5.75

Processing falls because the order total is smaller, but you now carry the label. Compare both before deciding which to offer.

Every figure above is computed from the rate schedule on this page for Whatnot (US), using the same engine as the calculator — not typed in by hand.

Common mistakes

Applying the commission to the order total

The 8% touches the item price only. Applying it to item plus shipping overstates your commission.

Assuming processing applies only to the item

The opposite error, and the more expensive one. Processing is charged on the full order total, so higher shipping means higher processing.

Ignoring category rates

Electronics at 5% and Coins & Money at 4% are materially cheaper than the standard 8%. Assuming the standard rate leads to overpricing in those categories.

Forgetting the fixed $0.30 on low-dollar lots

In a live show selling many small items, the fixed processing component scales with order count rather than dollar volume. Fifteen small orders cost more in fixed fees than five large ones at the same gross total.

Judging margin per item instead of per show

Auction prices swing. Per-item margin during a live show is noise; the show-level effective rate is the number worth acting on.

Questions

What are Whatnot seller fees in 2026?: Eight percent commission on the item sale price, plus payment processing of 2.9% plus $0.30 on the entire order total. Electronics are charged 5% and Coins & Money 4%.
Is the Whatnot commission charged on shipping?: No — the 8% applies to the item price only. Payment processing, however, is charged on item price plus shipping, so shipping still increases your total fees.
How much does Whatnot take from a $50 sale?: With no shipping charged, $5.75 — $4.00 commission plus $1.75 processing. With $10 of buyer-paid shipping, $6.04, because processing is charged on the $60 order total. The effective rate is roughly 10–11%.
Do UK and EU sellers pay the same rate?: No. UK and EU sellers pay 6.67% commission plus VAT, rather than the US 8%, with processing at 2.42% plus £0.35 or €0.25.
Is Whatnot cheaper than eBay or Poshmark?: On fees, generally yes — around 10–11% effective against roughly 14% on eBay and up to 20% on Poshmark. The trade-off is format: selling depends on hosting live shows and building an audience.
Are there listing fees on Whatnot?: No. Listing and hosting shows are free, and fees apply only when an item sells.
Does Whatnot cap commission on high-value sales?: In select high-value collectible categories the commission is currently waived on the portion of a sale above the threshold. Confirmation depends on the category and any promotional terms running at the time.

Related calculators

These calculators apply published marketplace fee schedules. They are general information tools, not tax, legal, accounting or financial advice — check your own payout statement and speak to a qualified professional where it matters.

Whatnot (US) — 8% + 2.9% + $0.30. Rates last verified: 2026-09-20. the marketplace's own fee page.