Seller Fees and Commissions Schedule

Last updated: March 11, 2026

There are two kinds of fees on pallet.bid that affect your earnings as a seller: the seller commission (pallet.bid's cut of the sale) and the CC processing fee (covering credit card payment processing). These fees are automatically deducted from your payout after a sale.

pallet.bid does not charge sellers any listing fees, subscription fees, or monthly platform fees. You only pay when an item sells. Standard sellers pay $0/month — our optional PRO tier ($14.99/mo) unlocks live streaming auctions and advanced tools.

Understanding the Fee Structure

A "seller commission" is a percentage charged on the final sale price (hammer price) of the item. The final price is what the buyer pays for the item itself, before shipping, taxes, or the buyer's premium.

A "buyer's premium" is a fee charged to the buyer, not the seller. This is added on top of the winning bid and is pallet.bid's primary revenue source. As a seller, you receive the full hammer price minus only the seller commission — the buyer's premium does not reduce your earnings.

A "CC processing fee" covers the cost of secure payment processing via Stripe. This fee is charged to the buyer as part of their total checkout amount — not deducted from the seller's payout.

Fee Schedule

Fee TypeRatePaid By
Seller Commission3.5% of final sale priceSeller (deducted from payout)
Buyer's Premium10% of final sale priceBuyer (added to their total)
Payment Processing2.9% + $0.40 on total orderBuyer (added to their total)
Listing Fees$0N/A — Free
Monthly Subscription$0 (Standard) / $14.99 (PRO)Optional

Key advantage: As a seller, your only fee is the 3.5% commission. Payment processing is paid by the buyer, not you. On platforms like Whatnot, sellers pay 8% commission plus 2.9% + $0.30 processing — totaling ~11-12% in seller fees. On pallet.bid, you keep more of every sale.

How We Compare

PlatformSeller CommissionCC Processing FeeTotal Seller Cost
pallet.bid3.5%$0 (buyer pays)3.5%
Whatnot8%2.9% + $0.30~11-12%
HiBidVaries (5-10%)3% + monthly fee~8-13% + fees
eBay13.25%Included13.25%

How to Calculate Your Earnings

Earnings are calculated per sale. Here's a worked example:

Example: Selling an item for $100

Final sale price (hammer price)$100.00
Seller commission (3.5%)-$3.50
Stripe payout/transfer fee-$0.25
Your earnings$96.25

What the buyer pays (for reference)

Item price$100.00
Buyer's premium (10%)$10.00
Shipping (varies)$12.50
Sales tax (varies by state)$8.42
CC Processing Fee (2.9% + $0.40)$4.20
Buyer total$135.12

Notice that as the seller, you receive $96.25 out of $100 — a 96.25% take-home rate. On Whatnot, the same $100 sale would net you approximately $86-88 after their 8% commission and 2.9% + $0.30 CC processing fee.

Shipping Costs

Shipping costs are paid by the buyer and do not come out of seller earnings. pallet.bid supports three shipping methods:

Parcel

USPS, FedEx, or UPS. Shipping labels are auto-created with the cheapest available rate. A 4.25% handling fee is added to the carrier rate.

LTL Freight

For pallets and heavy items. Real-time quotes from national carriers. Includes BOL generation and full tracking.

Local Pickup

No shipping fees. Buyer picks up from your warehouse or specified location. Ideal for live auctions and heavy items.

Sellers who require a liftgate for pickup may have a ~$100 liftgate fee deducted from their payout (only for LTL freight with seller-side liftgate requirements). This is clearly disclosed before listing.

Optional: Featured Listings

Sellers can optionally pay to feature their listings for increased visibility:

  • Basic Featured: $25/day — highlighted in search results
  • Premium Featured: $50/day — homepage placement + highlighted in search

Featured listing fees are charged upfront and are not deducted from sale earnings. They are completely optional.

When Do I Get Paid?

Seller payouts are processed automatically after a successful sale:

  • Standard payout: 2-3 business days after the item is confirmed shipped or marked as picked up
  • Payout method: Direct deposit to your bank account via Stripe Connect
  • Payout breakdown: Hammer price minus seller commission (3.5%) and Stripe transfer fee ($0.25)

You can view your payout history, pending payouts, and per-sale earnings breakdown in your Seller Dashboard → Payouts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to start selling?

Apply in under 2 minutes — no listing fees, no monthly fees.