Selling and listing
Should I buy it? The sourcing calculator
Enter a buy price and shipping cost on any scan result to see net profit and ROI per platform before you pay for an item.
The "Should I Buy It?" check appears on every scan result. It turns the AI valuation into a straight answer: if you paid this much, here is what you would clear after fees and shipping.
It is built for standing in the aisle at a thrift store or estate sale, so it works on web or mobile.
How to use it
- Scan the item where you found it, using a photo from your camera or an image you upload.
- Scroll down the scan result to the "Should I Buy It?" section.
- Enter what you would pay for the item.
- Enter your estimated shipping cost.
- Read the profit breakdown for each platform and decide to buy or pass.
You can change the buy price as many times as you like. Adjusting the numbers does not use another scan.
What you see
- Net profit per platform, after all fees and shipping.
- ROI percentage, calculated as profit divided by total cost, times 100.
- The platform fee breakdown behind those numbers, for the marketplaces that operate in your country. For US sellers: eBay 13.6 percent plus $0.30 or $0.40 per order, Poshmark 20 percent (a flat $2.95 at $15 and under), Mercari 10 percent, Facebook 10 percent on shipped orders ($0.80 minimum), and Etsy 6.5 percent plus payment processing. In the UK and EU you see eBay, Vinted (no seller fee) and Etsy, and UK and German private sellers pay no eBay selling fee on domestic sales.
Reading it well
The estimate is only as good as the identification behind it, so check two things before you trust the profit number. First, that the item named at the top is your exact item. Second, the recent sales, which are real completed sales with clickable links you can open and verify.
Also check Competition and How fast it sells. If there are far more items for sale than recent sales, price toward the low end of the range when you run your numbers, because a saturated market usually means a slower or cheaper sale.
If you buy the item, save it and record the purchase price so your real profit is tracked later instead of estimated.
Frequently asked questions
- Does using the sourcing calculator cost an extra scan?
- No. The calculator is part of the scan result you already ran, so it costs nothing extra. You can change the buy price and shipping cost as many times as you want. Only scanning a new item or re-analyzing a saved item counts as a scan.
- What platform fees does the sourcing calculator use?
- It uses the fees of the marketplaces that operate in your country. For US sellers that is eBay at 13.6 percent plus $0.30 or $0.40, Poshmark at 20 percent, Mercari at 10 percent, Facebook at 10 percent on shipped orders ($0.80 minimum), and Etsy. UK and German private sellers pay no eBay selling fee on domestic sales, so none is taken off. Those fees come off the price, and with your buy price and shipping cost they are used to show net profit and ROI on each platform, so you can compare where the item would earn you the most.
- Can I check profit before I buy an item at a thrift store?
- Yes, that is what it is for. Scan the item in the store on web or mobile, find "Should I Buy It?" on the result, and enter what the tag says plus your estimated shipping. You get net profit and ROI per platform on the spot.
Related guides
Try it on web or mobile
Your first scan is free, no card. Plans start at $5 a month and packs at $3 for 5 scans.
Updated 2026-09-28. Something wrong or missing? Tell us and we fix the guide, not just the reply.