How to sell cards on Whatnot: shows, fees and shipping

To sell cards on Whatnot, apply in the app, complete its seller verification, then schedule a live show or list cards for fixed-price sale. Whatnot takes a commission on the item price alone, 8% for a US seller of sports or TCG cards at its standard tier. The buyer pays shipping by default and you print the label Whatnot makes. You ship within two business days, and in the US the money is usually ready up to 4 hours after the carrier confirms delivery.

How do you apply to sell?

In the app, tap + Sell, then Get Started. The application asks about your selling experience and plans, has you agree to Whatnot’s Community Guidelines, and asks for a main category, your full name as it appears on your ID, and the address you will ship from. Whatnot uses that address to work out what buyers pay for shipping. Many applicants get seller access within minutes, and some go to a further review.

Before you go live, you complete seller verification: a code sent to your phone, a payment method, and a government-issued photo ID. The gated categories Whatnot names, such as luxury bags and wholesale, need extra approval. Cards are not among them.

Why do applications get turned down?

Whatnot lists the usual reasons:

• missing or broken links to your shop or profiles on other selling sites
• photos or videos that don’t show enough stock, or show it poorly
• little selling experience elsewhere
• products Whatnot doesn’t support

You can usually apply again 30 days after the decision. Photos of stock that isn’t yours, profiles that aren’t yours, or signs of counterfeit goods rule out a second try.

How does a live show differ from a listing?

You can use both. A show sells in real time on camera, and a listing sells from your shop whenever a buyer finds it.

For your first show, you pick a date and time, a main category and a thumbnail that shows what you are selling. You don’t need to show your face; many sellers just film the cards. Full access to Seller Hub opens once you complete the first-show checklist and go live.

How does an auction work?

You set a starting bid, which Whatnot says should be the lowest price you are happy to take, and a minimum running time. In the last 10 seconds, every new bid puts the clock back to a counter time you pick. Whatnot says many auctions last 30 seconds or less. The top bidder buys the card, and if nobody bids, it doesn’t sell. Once an auction starts, it can’t be cancelled or stopped, so check the card and the starting bid first. Buyers can place bids before the show on items you list ahead of time, and a practice mode lets you rehearse.

What must a card listing show?

Whatnot asks for photos of the actual card, with at least one clear shot of all of it, and a title and description that state its condition accurately. List each card in the right category, and post one listing per item, raising the quantity for copies. A signed card needs certification from one of the five companies Whatnot names (JSA, PSA, Fanatics, Beckett or B.A.M.), shown with a photo of the certification card, Beckett’s newer sticker model aside.

For a slab, the iPhone app can scan the label to fill in the details for PSA slabs of sports and Pokémon cards and CGC slabs of TCG cards. The form has fields for the grading company, the grade and the cert number.

Raw cards use Whatnot’s own condition scale. Its top step covers cards with no visible marks at all, then come Near Mint, Good and Damaged. Whatnot lines its Good up with what card shops call Moderately Played, and its Damaged with Heavily Played and Damaged. Our guide to card condition grades explains those shop terms.

What does Whatnot charge?

Two charges come off each sale:

• Commission: a share of the item price only. Shipping and tax paid by the buyer are not included.
• Payment processing: 2.9% of everything the buyer pays (item, shipping and tax) plus $0.30 per transaction, for US, Canadian and Australian sellers.

The commission falls as your sales grow. Your total sales across all categories in a four-week period set your tier for the next period, and the rate is locked for the whole period. These are the US rates for sports and TCG. The last two columns are Rip.fan’s arithmetic for one card, with $5 of shipping paid by the buyer and 7% sales tax on the card plus shipping.

On the $100 card, payment processing is $3.56 at every tier (2.9% of $112.35, plus $0.30). On the $1,000 card it is $31.49. “Kept” is the card price less both charges; the $5 pays for the label.

Two more rules matter for cards:

• Above $1,500. Since January 14, 2026, Whatnot has charged 0% commission on the part of a single sale above $1,500 in TCG and sports singles categories. Sports breaks are excluded, and it is a limited-time promotion that Whatnot can end at any time.
• The right category. Listing in a category that doesn’t match the card, to get a lower rate, counts as fee avoidance under Whatnot’s policies.

Our seller fee calculator runs these sums at the standard 8% rate, with 0% on any part of a card’s price above $1,500, for the price, shipping and tax you enter, and our guide to where to sell cards online sets Whatnot against TCGplayer.

How does shipping work?

Every listing carries a shipping profile: the packed weight of the card plus its mailer and padding. Whatnot uses it to price shipping for the buyer, choose the service and make the label, and it combines a buyer’s purchases into one parcel where it can. If the weight is too low, the label may be underpaid and you may have to cover the difference. If it is too high, the buyer overpays. Whatnot suggests choosing the heavier profile when an item falls between two.

After a sale, you make a prepaid label on the Shipments page and print it, as a 4 by 6 inch thermal label or on letter paper. You can’t print with a QR code at the post office, and you can’t use your own label unless Whatnot approves you for that.

How fast must you ship?

Within two business days of the sale. Whatnot counts an order as shipped at its first drop-off scan, from the in-app scanner, a carrier or kiosk scan, or a carrier manifest. Making the label doesn’t count. How fast you ship, measured over a rolling 30 days, shows on your profile, shows and listings. If no label or scan arrives in time, a buyer may cancel or get a refund, and Whatnot bills that amount back to you.

How should cards be packed?

Whatnot’s packing rules for cards:

• Put high-value cards in a penny sleeve and a properly sized toploader, sealed with painter’s tape.
• Put raw cards in a team bag, and slip each slab into a team bag or a sleeve made for graded cards.
• Use a bubble mailer or padded packaging, with no empty space for the cards to move.

On Whatnot, items over $20 may not go by First-Class Mail letter, the plain white envelope. Shipping protection costs 1% of the item value plus shipping on US domestic parcels, covering up to $10,000. A signature costs $4.36 by USPS or $6.25 by UPS. Whatnot may add a signature on its own to some higher-value US parcels, and you see the cost before you make the label. Both costs are the seller’s. Our guide to shipping a graded card covers packing a slab in more detail.

When does the money reach you?

For a US seller, the money becomes available up to 4 hours after the carrier confirms delivery. Some shipping methods follow a fixed clock instead:

Sellers whom Whatnot approves for early access to their sale money can draw it as soon as they make the label. Whatever the route, you then ask for a transfer from Seller Hub to your bank, which goes through Stripe Connect. In the US, most transfers arrive within 1 to 2 business days. The bank account must be in the country and currency you registered with, and PayPal is no longer offered to new sellers.

A buyer of sports or TCG cards has 7 days from delivery, or 30 days from purchase if that comes first, to ask for a refund, and 30 days for a card thought to be fake. Our guide to avoiding card scams online covers that side, and how to sell a card collection helps decide which cards suit a show.

Frequently asked questions

Can you sell on Whatnot from outside the US?

Yes, from Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, with Japan open as a limited pilot, as of October 27, 2026. The US list takes in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands but not Guam.

When did Whatnot's tiered commission start, and what counts toward a tier?

It started on September 21, 2026. Each 28-day period starts from zero, cancelled orders, private shows and local pickup orders come off the total, and each seller account builds its own tier.

What does Whatnot charge sellers in Canada and the UK?

In Canada, TCG and sports cards start at 8%, but the tiers run in Canadian dollars, and Tier 6, at 6.50%, begins at C$85,000 in four weeks. In the UK the standard rate is 6.67% plus VAT, with processing at 2.42% plus £0.25 and VAT, as of October 27, 2026.

Can buyers make offers on a Whatnot listing?

Yes, when the seller turns on Accept Offers for a Buy It Now listing. A buyer suggests a percentage off or a custom price, and an accepted offer charges the buyer at once.

What proof should a Whatnot seller keep when shipping a high-value card?

One continuous video showing the card packed, the package sealed and the tracking label applied, kept for at least 75 days, since Whatnot does not accept photos alone as proof. Reply within 2 calendar days if Trust and Safety asks about a missing card.