How To Dropship on eBay (2024 Guide)

Searching for a profitable, low-cost business that takes just a few hours a week? Look no further than eBay dropshipping.

Besides Amazon, eBay is the most visited online marketplace, with more than a billion monthly visitors. With so many active buyers, eBay offers a potentially lucrative customer source for dropshipping businesses.

This guide shares everything you need to know about eBay dropshipping, from sourcing the right products to maintaining high profit margins.

What is eBay dropshipping?

eBay dropshipping is a business model where sellers list products on eBay without holding inventory. When a sale is made, the seller forwards the order to its supplier, who ships the items directly to the customer.

Since dropshipping has a low barrier to entry, it’s a popular way to start a business with no money. There’s no need to pre-purchase or store the items you’re selling. Once order details are passed to the dropshipping supplier, it’s their job to pick, pack, and ship the order.

John Frigo, ecommerce manager at Best Price Nutrition, uses dropshipping to offer customers more of what they want: “Dropshipping allows us to carry a lot of brands and products we otherwise wouldn't be able to carry, as either we don’t have the space in our warehouse or we don’t have the funds to buy all of the stock.”

What to dropship on eBay

As with other ways to sell on eBay, the items you choose to dropship play a large role in your success as a seller. When researching products, consider some of the latest popular product categories on eBay, including:

• Smartphone accessories
• Clothing
• Home decor
• Pet products
• Collectibles

Before choosing your dropshipping products, reference them against eBay’s list of restricted or prohibited products.

Items like alcohol, cosmetics, fertilizer/pesticides, jewelry, and vehicle parts are under strict regulations. It may be wise to avoid those if it's your first time dropshipping through eBay.

Things to know before dropshipping on eBay

eBay’s marketplace allows dropshippers to source products from trade and wholesale suppliers—not other retailers. Violating these rules could result in account suspension.

According to eBay's dropshipping policy, “If you use dropshipping, you’re still responsible for the safe delivery of the item within the time frame you stated in your listing and for the buyer’s overall satisfaction with their purchase.”

Like other marketplaces, eBay requires dropshippers to provide a clear customer experience. This includes being the single identified seller on all packing slips and ensuring customers receive purchases according to the terms of their listings.

You’ll also need to pay eBay seller fees when dropshipping through the marketplace, including:

• Insertion fees: Get up to 250 free listings per month. After that, it’s 35¢ per listing.
• Final value fees: If an item is sold, eBay takes up to 13.25% of the sale price, plus 40¢ per order. Final value fees vary depending by product category.

How to dropship on eBay

Ready to start making money through eBay dropshipping? Here’s a step-by-step guide to opening a successful dropshipping store.

1. Create an eBay seller account

You’ll need a seller account to start selling through an eBay store.

Head to the registration page and enter basic information about your dropshipping business. Next, subscribe to the eBay store option that best suits your needs, and link your checking account to get paid for sales you make.

After you choose an eBay store name, consider if you want to sync eBay to your Shopify store to see inventory levels, sales, and customer info in one place.

Running your eBay dropshipping business through Shopify gives you the option to expand your business across sales channels in the future, Just like this tech reseller did to achieve six-figure monthly sales.

2. Find profitable products

Next, undertake product research to discover which items will sell best on eBay. Head to eBay’s bestsellers page and investigate whether you can source similar products at a lower-than-RRP through dropshipping sites like Alibaba or AliExpress.

Kristin Stump, marketing manager at MyEnamelPins, has this advice about choosing your products: “Products that are small and lightweight are generally the easiest to ship, and products with a low return rate are less likely to cause issues with your customers.”

If you're stuck for product ideas, Shopify's annual list of trending products is a good place to start.

3. Vet your dropshipping suppliers

Once you’ve found a product to dropship on eBay, look for a supplier that can provide you with the item at a lower-than-retail price. Dropshipping websites exist to connect eBay store owners with wholesalers, such as:

• DSers
• Spocket
• Doba

The supplier you choose is arguably one of the most important factors when dropshipping on eBay. The marketplace requires brands to deliver items within 30 days of a customer's order being placed, which makes a reliable supplier a must.

Vet yours by checking each dropshipping suppliers’ seller rating, previous customer reviews, delivery times and fees.

4. Price your product

eBay dropshipping can be a lucrative business model—but only if you’re leaving enough room between the product’s purchase and resale price. For example, it’ll be hard to make substantial revenue if each item has just a $1 profit margin.

To determine the price of your dropshipping products, consider:

• Product costs
• Competitor pricing
• Other business expenses, such as eBay listing fees and shipping costs

Start collecting pricing data and monitoring comparable products on the platform. Tweak your product pricing until you find a profitable middle ground between competitor prices and a customer's willingness to spend.

5. Create your eBay listing

Create a listing for each of the items you’re dropshipping on eBay.

Pay close attention to the following areas, including keywords that your target customer is searching for. It’ll influence how likely the algorithm is to show your product listing to potential buyers:

• Product title
• Product descriptions
• High-quality images
• Customer reviews
• Returns policies (check whether your dropshipping supplier will handle these)

6. Forward order information to suppliers

The responsibility of picking, packing, and shipping items sold on eBay is with your supplier.

Use dropshipping software like DSers or AutoDS to automate this communication. Both apps automatically feed order details through to your supplier, show its stage in the order fulfillment process, and relay shipping tracking numbers to customers.

Tips for success with eBay dropshipping

eBay dropshipping isn’t an overly complicated process. However, there are some things that will set your new business up for success:

• Use an inventory management system: Shopify dropshipping apps merge inventory data from sales channels—including your online store and eBay storefront—so you can view sales information in one place.
• Prioritize customer support: eBay customers likely won’t know that you’re working with dropshipping suppliers. If a supplier fails to meet guaranteed delivery times or ships products different from what a customer ordered, take full responsibility. Respond to support requests in a timely manner to increase customer satisfaction.
• Build relationships with suppliers: According to John Frigo, “It's important to have a relationship and communication with your seller so if a product is discontinued, out of stock, or the price changes, you can be informed quickly.”
• Invest in promoted listings. Depending on profit margins, you can attract more customers through eBay promoted listings. These in-marketplace advertisements boost the chances of target customers seeing your dropshipped products.
• Add a multi-buy offer. Increase average order value using multi-buy offers, such as one product for $5 or three for $12. This can increase the profitability of your dropshipping business since there’s no need to pay shipping or import fees several times.

Start your eBay dropshipping business

With so many customers using eBay to discover new products, the dropshipping business model is a great way for you to capitalize on the attention the marketplace captures.

Use the tips in this guide to source bestselling products, price each item, and find the right supplier. Cover all bases and it’s possible to build a lucrative business through eBay dropshipping.