eBay 2026 Recommerce Report: UK leads secondhand shopping globally
eBay's 2026 Recommerce Report finds 87% of UK consumers bought secondhand in the past 12 months, with monthly buyers up 13% YoY to 59%. Trust (53% cite quality/accurate descriptions) and cost savings (50%) are the top drivers globally across 10,000+ shoppers surveyed.
As recommerce normalizes globally, platforms without strong secondhand infrastructure (Amazon, Walmart) risk losing repeat buyers to eBay and Depop — accelerating competitive pressure on new-goods sellers in electronics, fashion, and luxury.
Recommerce momentum signals a growing customer segment that Amazon/Walmart sellers are losing to eBay and resale platforms — especially in electronics and fashion. Sellers with refurbished or open-box inventory should audit whether they're listing in Amazon Renewed or Walmart Restored before this demand shifts further off-platform.
Operational Impact
This story may require teams to revisit workflows, monitoring, or platform assumptions.
Bottom Line
Recommerce hits 87% UK adoption, signaling demand Amazon/Walmart sellers must capture.
Source Lens
Industry Context
Useful background context, but lower-priority than direct platform, community, or operator intelligence.
Impact Level
low
Recommerce hits 87% UK adoption, signaling demand Amazon/Walmart sellers must capture.
Key Stat / Trigger
87% of UK consumers bought secondhand in the past 12 months
Focus on the operational implication, not just the headline.
Full Coverage
Britain is leading a new era of pre-loved shopping, according to new research from eBay, with almost nine in ten (87%) UK consumers buying secondhand over the past 12 months – compared with 76% globally – ahead of shoppers in the US, Australia, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Spain amongst others.
Secondhand is now an increasingly regular shopping habit, with the proportion of UK shoppers buying pre-loved at least monthly rising 13% to reach 59% year on year.
eBay’s 2026 Recommerce Report, surveyed over 10,000 shoppers and 1,700 eBay sellers across 10 markets, finding that shopping pre-loved is now an established habit for Brits, driven by value, sustainability, discovery and community.
Key findings include: Younger shoppers are leading the way: 76% of buyers aged 18–29 purchase secondhand at least monthly in the UK compared with 56% of shoppers aged 30 and over. 58% of those aged 18-29 also value the community and shared connections that come with recommerce.
Cost savings remain the biggest driver: half (50%) of UK shoppers rank saving money as their number one reason for buying pre-loved.
Sustainability matters too: 89% believe recommerce has genuine environmental benefits, while among eBay sellers 68% cite extending product life and 85% reducing waste among the most important sustainability benefits of selling secondhand.
Pre-loved is even extending into gifting: Almost 1 in 2 [47%] of 18–29-year-olds are likely to gift pre-loved items, compared with just 1 in 5 [20%] of those aged 45+, highlighting a generational shift in attitudes. Trust is key to making pre-loved an everyday first choice For Brits shopping pre-loved, trust is critical in keeping them coming back.
More than half (53%) of buyers cite consistent quality and accurate descriptions as their top motivator for repeat purchases with the same seller, ahead of customer service and rapport (42%), fast logistics (40%) and fair prices and perks (39%). Among the small minority of Brits yet to buy, trust is also a major barrier to getting started.
More than half (54%) cite uncertainty about product condition, quality or authenticity as a barrier, while guaranteed authenticity and stronger buyer protection (both 44%), alongside accurate listings (43%), could encourage them to start shopping secondhand.
Pre-loved shopping is now firmly mainstream in the UK and there is a kudos to finding quality preloved items for less. The next step is making preloved and refurbished a first choice by default across fashion and luxury through to electronics.
Trust is critical to that – reassurances from money back and authenticity guarantees to a warranty on a refurbished item is what keeps existing buyers coming back and what gives those yet to shop secondhand the confidence to start. – Kirsty Keoghan, GM Fashion & Luxury EU, eBay
List eligible inventory in Amazon Renewed or Walmart Restored now — if you have open-box/refurbished units sitting in 3PL, you're leaving margin on the table while eBay captures that buyer intent.
Audit your listing quality scores in Seller Central or Walmart Seller Center within 30 days — 53% of secondhand buyers return based on accurate descriptions, a standard that applies equally to new-condition marketplace listings.
Original Source
This briefing is based on reporting from Tamebay. Use the original post for full primary-source context.
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