You sell your old camera on eBay.de for €200 to a buyer in Hamburg. As a private seller (Privatverkäufer), you owe eBay nothing. Sell the same camera to a buyer in Vienna and you owe €10.00. That one rule catches out a lot of people — here's everything else worth knowing about consumer-to-consumer (C2C) selling on eBay Germany.
Fees verified against eBay's official Germany fee pages on 19 October 2026. Checked daily for changes (fee change tracker). Source: eBay eBay.de fee page.
What "free selling" covers
For private sellers living in the EEA, eBay.de charges:
- No final value fee on sales to buyers in Germany
- No per-order fee and no payment processing fee
- No listing fee for your first 320 listings each month
- An extra 2,500 free auctions per month if they start at €1 and run for at least five days (1- and 3-day auctions don't count)
What still costs money
- Buyers abroad: 5% of the total sale (item plus postage) when the delivery address is outside Germany — including Austria and the rest of the eurozone.
- Extra listings: €0.50 per listing once your monthly free allowance is used up.
- Optional upgrades: Galerie Plus €0.75, subtitle €0.50, a second category €0.50, a private (anonymous bidder) listing €0.50, and a reserve price at 3% of the reserve (max €150).
- Ads: promoting a listing is optional; you only pay if you switch it on.
Relisting with the automatic relist feature, or the monthly renewal of a "Gültig bis auf Widerruf" listing, doesn't use up your free allowance and isn't charged again.
Who counts as a private seller
eBay asks you to choose private or business when you register, but the choice has to match reality. Under German law you sell as a business (gewerblich) when you sell regularly with the aim of making a profit — for example buying goods specifically to resell them, selling new items in quantity, or running sales as a side business. There's no fixed number of listings that flips you into a business; the overall picture counts.
Selling things you owned and used yourself — clothes, electronics you've upgraded, a collection you're clearing out — is the classic private case, even if some items sell for a lot.
DAC7: when eBay reports you to the tax office
Since 2023, platforms in the EU must report sellers who make 30 or more sales or more than €2,000 in a calendar year. eBay will ask you for your tax ID once you get close. A report isn't a verdict that you're a business, and selling your own used things is generally tax-free — but it does mean the Finanzamt sees your sales, so it's worth keeping a simple record of what you sold and what you paid for it.
If you do sell as a business
Business sellers on eBay.de pay a category-based final value fee — from 5% (used electronics and many used home goods) to 16% (watches & jewellery) — plus €0.35 per order up to €10 and €0.45 above. They also need an Impressum and must offer the statutory 14-day right of withdrawal. Our full guide to private vs business seller fees has every category rate.
Frequently asked questions
Is selling to Austria free for German private sellers?
No. The free deal covers sales within Germany. Any delivery address outside Germany — Austria included — triggers the 5% international fee.
Do I pay fees if my item doesn't sell?
Only for optional upgrades you added, or a listing fee if you were already over your 320 free listings that month.
Can I see the fee on a specific sale before I list?
Yes — use the eBay Germany calculator, keep it on "Private seller" and toggle "International sale" to see the difference.