How to Sell Used Furniture

Co-authored by Tanglewood Sue and Eric McClure

Last Updated: February 17, 2023 References

Before you can sell your furniture, you need to determine what it’s worth and what you’re willing to sell it for. To do this, start by subtracting 70% of what you paid from the original retail price. Then, adjust your resale price based on the condition, size, and quality of your piece. As a rule of thumb, it’s harder to sell anything that you sit or lay down on, and it’s easier to sell anything that’s entirely made of wood or metal. Then, sell it privately by talking to friends or posting online. If you don’t feel like dealing with buyers, take the piece to a consignment shop. If you can’t get rid of your furniture, consider donating it so that you can get rid of it and write it off on your taxes.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Setting the Right Price

1
Take 70 percent off the original price you paid. While it depends on the quality, size, and condition, taking 70% off of what you paid is a good baseline for used furniture if you’ve owned it for more than a year. Furniture can typically be pretty hard to sell for more than 30% of its original value unless it’s an antique or specialty item, so be ready to wait out or negotiate if you set your base price higher.^{[1]
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- For example, if you paid $1100 for a dining table, subtract $770. This gives you a baseline of $330.
- If you’ve owned the furniture for less than a year you can try starting off at half of what you originally paid. Highlight the amount of time that you’ve owned it in any ads you post.
Tip: Since furniture tends to last for a while, buyers and sellers don’t usually get too focused on how long it’s been owned if it’s more than a year. It’s not like a car where every year that it has been owned causes it to radically depreciate.
2
Raise or lower the price another 10% based on the piece’s condition. If the item you’re selling is in absolutely pristine condition, go ahead and tack on another 10% to your base price. If it’s been kind of beat up and neglected over the years, you need to lower the price at least another 10%. Missing or broken pieces could require additional cuts to the base price.^{[2]
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- For example, if the $1100 dining table is in pristine condition, you’d add another 110 to the base price of $330 to get $440. If it’s been scratched, is missing a screw, or needs to be refinished, subtract at least $110 to land around $220.
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3
Lower the price another 10-20% if the item is bigger and hard to move. If someone is going to come pick up a giant 400 lb (180 kg) dresser, they’ll probably need to rent a truck, ask a friend to help move it, and be willing to put in some work. The additional labor and energy required to move bigger pieces makes the market less competitive for larger items. Take 10-20% off of your price if you have a particularly massive bed frame, dresser, couch, or dining table.^{[3]
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- This is especially true if you’re selling the furniture privately. If you’re taking it to a resale shop, this doesn’t matter quite as much. However, this doesn’t apply to antique pieces where the buyer is likely hiring special movers regardless of the size of the piece.
- For example, if the $1100 dining table is in pristine condition and seats 4 people, you can add a total of 220 to the base price of 330 to reach a price of $550. If it is kind of beat up, weighs 250 lb (110 kg), and seats 8-10, you need to subtract around 220 from the price to reach $110.
4
Compare your furniture to similar pieces being sold online near you. Used furniture being sold online offers a good snapshot of what people are willing to pay in your area. Look for similar pieces online to see if there are a lot of similar items available in your area by checking https://craigslist.org/. Note the prices listed for similar pieces to get a sense of whether your base price is fair or not.^{[4]
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- If there’s a lot of inventory being sold in your area, you may need to lower your price to get more competitive.
- For example, if you’re selling a shoe rack and you don’t see any other shoe racks listed online, go ahead and add $20-50 to your base price. If there are tons of shoe racks for sale though, you probably need to take some money off of your base price to reach the market’s level.
- You can use http://www.statricks.com/ to generate an average price based on online sales.
5
Be willing to cut another 10% for cloth items that you sit or lay on. Chairs, recliners, mattresses, and sofas are really hard to sell if they’re made of cloth, velvet, cotton, or any other kind of fabric. This is because these fabrics tend to absorb sweat, odors, and fluids. Buyers know this. Take another 10% off for cloth items.^{[5]
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- It’s typically much easier to sell items that are entirely made of wood or metal.
- Used mattresses are really difficult to sell if they aren’t in absolutely pristine condition.
6
Take antique furniture to an appraiser for an estimate. Unless you know who designed and crafted a particular piece, it will be extremely difficult for you to price an antique piece of furniture on your own. Contact an antique appraisal service in your area to see if they can inspect your piece to get a good sense for what it’s worth.^{[6]
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- Many antique appraisal services will offer to buy or sell your piece for you. This can make things easier for you if you just want to get rid of it.
- You typically need to pay a small fee to get a piece appraised.
- It’s usually more effective to sell antique furniture with a consignment shop that specializes in antiques, since they have access to a higher-end client base.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Using Online Platforms

1
Take high-quality images of your furniture from multiple angles.Clean your furniture and use upholstery cleaner and a sponge to lift any stains out. Open the blinds or drapes on your windows to let in some natural light and turn on additional lights if necessary. Take multiple photos from a variety of angles to make it easy to see each side of the furniture. You should always include photos when selling furniture online to appeal to the highest number of buyers possible.^{[7]
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- Natural light will always look better than overhead lighting. If you need additional lighting, try turning on table lamps and standing lamps first.
- If you know how to clean, crop, and edit photos, feel free to go ahead and touch your photos up. It’s not mandatory though.
2
Write a detailed post highlighting your furniture’s characteristics. Compose 1-2 paragraphs explaining what you’re selling, what kind of condition it is in, and what it is made out of. You also need to include the dimensions so that people know how big the furniture is. Decide on a payment method and shipping/delivery requirements. If you’re selling the furniture locally, consider offering to drop the furniture off for an additional fee.^{[8]
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- Shipping is really expensive for heavier items. This isn’t really a viable option for tables, couches, or bed frames unless you’re selling them for more than $1000.
- If you’re selling on Etsy or eBay, you don’t need to worry about payment methods.
- If you’re selling on Craigslist, you’re probably going to have to invite someone into your home unless the furniture is smaller and can be carried to a public place.
3
Use Craigslist to sell typical, used furniture. Go to https://craigslist.org/ to open Craigslist and select your city. Click “create a posting” and then select “for sale by owner” to go to the advert creation page. Write your classified post. Include high-quality photos if you really want to motivate potential buyers.^{[9]
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- If you don’t live in any of the cities listed on the Craigslist main page, click the city that is closest to you.
- Craigslist is undoubtedly the most popular venue for selling used furniture. That also makes it the most competitive though.
- It is exceptionally difficult to sell furniture on Craigslist if you don’t include a photo.
- Letgo (https://us.letgo.com/en) is a popular alternative to Craigslist when it comes to selling furniture.
Warning: Be wary of scammers. Many of them will offer cashier’s checks or wire transfers to try and defraud you.
4
Post on Facebook groups and Facebook Marketplace to reach a lot of people. Facebook groups are an excellent way to reach a lot of people around you. Look for groups by searching your city’s name and “used furniture.” Then, post a few photos and a description of your piece. To post on the Marketplace, click the marketplace tab in the left menu on the Facebook app. Click “sell something” and post your furniture.^{[10]
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- Facebook Marketplace will automatically post your item in the Facebook feed of people in your area that are browsing the Marketplace.
- Most Facebook groups allow you to join and post instantly, but some of them require you to complete a short application.
- You can visit Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/.
5
Use an online resale shop like AptDeco. Go to https://www.aptdeco.com/sell/new to sell a piece of furniture online. Select the category, quantity, brand, and collection that your furniture is from. Enter your description, photos, and price. When a buyer purchases your item, an AptDeco delivery team will come pick the item up from your home and deliver it for you.^{[11]
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- Unfortunately, your item may be listed for quite a long time before someone purchases it. There is a lot of inventory on AptDeco, so it may take a while for someone to see your piece.
- While there are other online resale shops, AptDeco is undoubtedly the most popular.
6
Choose eBay if you’re selling a smaller item with unique appeal. Vintage shoe racks, custom bar stools, or specialized-children’s furniture won’t be too expensive to ship. Post unique, vintage, or retro items that have some special appeal on eBay to reach the buyers that are digging for specialty goods. This is a good option if you have an item that is in high demand as well, since users can get into a bidding war over the piece.^{[12]
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- When shipping something that someone has bought on eBay, opt to pay for the tracking. There are a lot of scammers on eBay that will claim they never got your goods if they’re not tracked.
- You can reach eBay by creating an account and posting at https://www.ebay.com/.
7
Set up an Etsy shop if you’re selling handmade, smaller goods. Etsy is an online shop where users can purchase handmade goods directly from the maker. Create an Etsy shop if you’re modifying or creating furniture yourself and want to sell a number of items. You can log on to Etsy to create a shop by signing up at https://www.etsy.com/.^{[13]
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- You cannot resell on Etsy. You can only sell items that you’ve created or meaningfully modified.
- You will have to account for some shipping costs if you’re selling larger items.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Selling Furniture without the Internet

1
Call local resale shops in your area to see if they sell furniture. A consignment or resale shop will take your furniture and sell it for you, keeping a percentage of the profits for themselves. Search online for resale or consignment shops in your area and contact them to see if they sell furniture. Take your piece to the shop and simply wait for them to sell the piece for you!^{[14]
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- Unfortunately, consignment and resale shops take a cut of the profits. This means that you probably won’t get as much money as you normally would if you were to sell it yourself.
Tip: The benefit of selling your piece at a resale or consignment shop is that you don’t have to deal with buyers at all. If you hate negotiating or coordinating meetings or pickups, go straight to a consignment shop to avoid the hassle.
2
Ask close friends if they know anyone that is looking for furniture. It’s often easier to get rid of furniture by contacting people you know to see if they know anyone looking for new furniture. It’s a lot easier to get rid of something like a couch or chair if the buyer knows you’re a clean, respectable person that isn’t trying to sell broken or filthy furniture. Post on your social media to put it out there and let your friends and family know what you’re selling.^{[15]
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- This is especially true for mattresses. It’s really hard to sell a mattress to someone you don’t know, but if you and the potential buyer share an acquaintance or friend that can vouch for you, it’ll be a lot easier.
3
Hold a garage sale to sell it quickly with other goods. A garage sale is an excellent option if you’re trying to reduce the overall clutter in your life. Set some signs out all over your neighborhood and consider posting an ad online. The day of the sale, bring all of the goods you’re trying to sell out to your yard or sidewalk and put the piece of furniture you’re trying to sell in the middle so that it’s prominently displayed.^{[16]
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- A garage sale can be a healthy choice if your garage is piling up with other stuff you need to get rid of.
4
Take antique furniture to an antique dealer for an accurate price. The only real option for selling antique furniture without losing out on a lot of money is to take it to an antique dealer or consignment shop. Contact an antique shop in your area, ask them for an appraisal, and then ask what they’d be willing to purchase it for. Some antique shops function like consignment shops and will try to sell your piece for you.^{[17]
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- While you may fetch a good price for your piece online, an antique shop is going to give you a more accurate price.
- You can perform a search for an appraiser or dealer at http://www.antiques.com/.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Donating Your Furniture

1
Consider donating to a charitable organization for tax purposes. If you find it really difficult to get rid of your furniture for a price that’s worth your while, consider donating it. Depending on where you live, you could write it off on your taxes, which can save you money. Search online to see what charities in your area will pick your furniture up and contact them.^{[18]
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- Vietnam Veterans of America, Habitat for Humanity, and Goodwill will all pick up furniture from your home.
- Make sure that you get a receipt if you plan on writing it off on your taxes.
- Unfortunately, it’s pretty tough to sell used furniture. There’s a high chance that you’ll struggle to sell your piece. Donating is a good alternative!
2
Contact local schools and nursing homes to see if they need furniture. Schools and nursing homes often operate on shoestring budgets, and they may be able to use your furniture. Call your local institutions to see if they’re interested. They’ll probably offer to pick it up as well if they really need it.^{[19]
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- It’s unlikely that schools or nursing homes will take any cloth materials. Bed bugs and lice are disastrous in nursing homes and schools, and they can both live in cloth furniture.
3
Stick it on the curb with a “free” sign and let someone come pick it up. If you live in an area where people often leave goods out on the curb for others to take, you can always leave the furniture out on the curb. Put a sign on it that says “free,” and wait for someone to come pick it up. Check the weather before putting the furniture out to ensure that it isn’t supposed to rain or snow for the next 24 hours.^{[20]
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- You can post a “curb alert” in the free section of Craigslist to let people know that you’re giving it away.
- In some areas, it is illegal to dump furniture on the curb. Even if you’ve seen other people do it, you should contact your local council member, mayor’s office, or alderman to see if it’s allowed in your area.