Check Your Closet: These Are the Clothing Brands With the Best Resale Value

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You’re ready to update your wardrobe, but first, you need to make room for new pieces. Reselling clothes can allow you to earn extra cash, but all items don’t have equal value.

See: What To Do If You Owe Back Taxes to the IRS

Knowing what specific resale clothes are in demand can increase your earnings potential. This can also save you time, as you may opt to donate items that don’t have a high resale value instead of wasting time creating a listing.

ThredUp’s 2023 Resale Report provides selling insights on items currently in demand. Keep reading to find out which items in your closet can bring in the most money.

What Are the Best Places To Resell Clothes?

There has never been a better time to sell clothes online. The global secondhand market is expected to nearly double by 2027, reaching $350 billion, according to the ThredUp report.

Given this number, it isn’t a surprise that brands are starting to get into the market. The number of retailers with branded resale shops more than quadrupled from 36 in 2021 to 165 in 2023, according to ThredUp.

ThredUp partners with brands like J.Crew, Kate Spade and H&M to manage their resale programs. The company also accepts seasonal styles from a wide variety of brands, so check its website to see if your items qualify.

Of course, there’s no shortage of places to sell clothes online. Some other options include The RealReal for luxury items; Poshmark for clothing, home decor and beauty items; and eBay.

Read the fine print when deciding which site is best for your resale clothes. Different sites offer different levels of involvement in the process.

For example, some sites put you in charge of creating and managing the listing — i.e., taking pictures of the item, writing the product description and choosing the price. Other sites maintain more control of the process, so decide whether you want to take a hands-on or hands-off approach to selling.

Top Resale Brands by Popularity

Interested in reselling clothes? Here’s a look at the top resale brands ranked by popularity, according to ThredUp:

1. Torrid
2. Lululemon Athletica
3. Madewell
4. Zara
5. Free People
6. Patagonia
7. Reformation
8. Urban Outfitters
9. Everlane
10. Vuori
11. Levi’s
12. Anthropologie
13. Abercrombie & Fitch
14. ModCloth
15. Lane Bryant
16. Johnny Was
17. Rothy’s
18. The North Face
19. Lilly Pulitzer
20. Tory Burch

Most Popular Resale Brands by Budget

You can sell used clothes at a variety of price points. Of course, some brands are more popular than others.

Whether the items you hope to resell fall under one budget category or several, it’s possible to find buyers at a variety of price points. Here’s a breakdown of the most popular brands by budget, according to the ThredUp report.

$

• Lululemon Athletica
• Madewell
• Everlane
• Torrid
• Levi’s

$$

• Anthropologie
• Longchamp
• Rothy’s
• Patagonia
• Birkenstock

$$$

• Tory Burch
• Johnny Was
• Dooney & Bourke
• Coach
• Kate Spade New York

What Clothes Are Good for Resale?

You’re ready to clean out your closet to look for resale clothes, but you’re not sure what to focus on. The good news is that people are searching for a variety of items and brands at several different price points.

Of course, some resale clothes are more popular than others. It’s hard to put an exact resale price on these items — even those that are very similar — because no two secondhand items are exactly the same.

For example, a brand new item with the tags attached will likely sell for a higher price than a visibly used version of the exact same item. Therefore, you need to be realistic and use your best judgment when pricing your resale clothes.

Here are the most popular resale items, broken down by category, according to ThredUp.

Handbags

• Fjällräven backpack
• Madewell leather crossbody
• Lululemon belt bag
• Tory Burch tote
• Vera Bradley weekender

Outerwear

• Patagonia vest
• SmartWool track jacket
• The North Face raincoat
• Madewell wool coat
• Columbia snow jacket

Dresses

• Sézane casual dress
• Hill House casual dress
• ModCloth jumpsuit
• Reformation cocktail dress
• Everlane jumpsuit

Footwear

• Dr. Martens boots
• Hoka sneakers
• Rothy’s flats
• Birkenstock sandals
• Tory Burch flip-flops

Tops

• Skims tank top
• Jenni Kayne pullover sweater
• Anine Bing short-sleeve T-shirt
• Carhartt pullover hoodie
• Johnny Was long-sleeve blouse

Bottoms

• Gap overalls
• Vuori casual pants
• Spank faux leather pants
• Lululemon skort
• Mother jeans

Create Space in Your Closet

You might not think your unwanted clothing items have value, but you could be mistaken. Cleaning out your closet and putting items you no longer want or need up for sale online is a quick and easy way to earn extra cash.

Making time for this activity on a seasonal basis is a great way to get rid of clothing you’re not wearing. It’s easy to simply leave items in your closet to collect dust, but the sooner you get rid of them, the more likely they are to have a higher value.

Look at it this way — making space in your closet, while also earning money, basically gives you an excuse to go shopping. If you’re like many people, that alone is pretty enticing.

Putting your used clothing back on the market is also a sustainable move. Buying and wearing secondhand clothing, instead of purchasing new, reduces carbon emissions by an average of 25%, according to ThredUp.

Essentially, you can’t lose by reselling clothes. This benefits your wallet, the environment and someone else’s wardrobe, so get to work cleaning out your closet. You won’t regret it.

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