HMRC eBay, Vinted and Depop tax calculator: do you need to tell HMRC?
Use this marketplace seller tax calculator to check whether your eBay, Vinted or Depop sales are covered by the £1,000 trading allowance, estimate taxable profit, and see if HMRC Self Assessment registration is required for 2025/26.
Tax year: 2024/25 | 2025/26 | 2026/27
Last verified against GOV.UK rates: 7 May 2026.
Methodology: this calculator uses the main Income Tax rates for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the standard Personal Allowance, and self-employed Class 4 National Insurance rates. It does not cover Scottish Income Tax bands, student loans, pension contributions, VAT, benefits, tailored reliefs, or personal tax advice.
Important: Income tax bands are different if you live in Scotland.
Calculated estimate
Tax Calculation Results
- Estimated take-home profit
- ~£
- Additional Income Tax
- ~£
- National Insurance
- ~£
| Main Income: | £ |
| Side Hustle Income: | £ |
| Side Hustle Expenses: | £ |
| Side Hustle Profit: | £ |
| Estimated Additional Income Tax: | ~£ |
| Estimated National Insurance Contributions: | ~£ |
| Estimated Total Additional Tax (Income Tax + NI): | ~£ |
| Estimated Effective Tax Rate (Income Tax + NI): | % |
Based on this gross side hustle income, Making Tax Digital may apply from . Check HMRC guidance because digital records and quarterly updates may be required.
Marketplace seller decision summary
Based on the figures you entered, here is how the £1,000 trading allowance, DAC7 platform reporting, and Self Assessment registration rules apply to your eBay, Vinted or Depop activity.
- £1,000 trading allowance
- Covers your gross sales Does not cover your gross sales Gross trading income of £ is at or below £1,000. Gross trading income of £ is above the £1,000 trading allowance.
- Self Assessment registration
- Likely required Not normally required for this income Register by 5 October after the tax year your gross trading income first crosses £1,000. You may still need a tax return for another reason, for example existing self-employment or higher PAYE income.
- DAC7 platform reporting
- Your platform likely reports you to HMRC Below the £1,740 reporting threshold by value Platforms still report sellers with 30 or more separate sales in a calendar year even if total value is under £1,740.
- Estimated taxable profit
- £ after the costs or allowance you entered.
Reporting under DAC7 does not by itself create a new tax. The existing trading rules below decide whether your activity is taxable trading or personal possession sales.
Quick answer: do eBay, Vinted and Depop sellers pay UK tax?
If you are clearing out your own wardrobe, garage or kids' room on Vinted, eBay or Depop, you usually do not owe Income Tax on those sales, even if the platform shares your details with HMRC under DAC7. You are disposing of personal possessions, not running a trade.
If you buy or make items specifically to resell for profit, list them regularly, or run the activity like a small business, HMRC can treat it as taxable trading. In that case the £1,000 trading allowance may cover small amounts of gross sales. Above £1,000 of gross trading income in a tax year you normally need to register for Self Assessment and pay Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance on the profit.
This page is general guidance for UK marketplace sellers, not personal tax advice. For borderline cases, mixed personal and resale activity, or Capital Gains Tax on single high-value items, check HMRC guidance or speak to a qualified adviser.
How the £1,000 trading allowance works for marketplace sellers
The trading allowance is a £1,000 tax-free allowance on gross trading and miscellaneous income in a UK tax year (6 April to 5 April). It applies across all your trading side hustles combined, not per platform.
- Gross trading income £1,000 or less: the allowance usually covers it and you do not need to register for Self Assessment for that income.
- Gross trading income over £1,000: you normally need to register for Self Assessment. You can then choose between deducting the £1,000 allowance or your actual allowable costs (item cost, postage, packaging, eBay or Vinted fees), whichever gives the lower taxable profit. You cannot use both for the same trade.
- The allowance is based on gross sales before any costs, fees or postage refunds. Vinted's "buyer protection fee" paid by buyers is not part of your gross sales.
The same £1,000 limit applies whether you sell on one platform or across eBay, Vinted, Depop, Facebook Marketplace and Etsy combined. Add the gross figures from each platform together when checking whether you are above the allowance.
Personal possessions vs taxable trading: the badges of trade
HMRC uses long-standing "badges of trade" to decide whether activity is taxable trading or simply disposing of personal property. No single badge is conclusive — HMRC looks at the overall picture.
| Usually personal selling | More likely to be taxable trading |
|---|---|
| Selling your own used clothes after a wardrobe clear-out. | Buying clothes from charity shops, car boots or wholesale to resell at a profit on Vinted or Depop. |
| Selling an old console, phone or laptop you used personally for years. | Sourcing electronics, refurbishing them and listing them regularly on eBay. |
| One-off sale of inherited or gifted items you never intended to sell. | Buying job lots, vintage stock or pallets specifically to break up and resell. |
| Occasional Depop listing of an outfit you wore a few times. | Running a Depop shop with consistent branding, regular drops and repeat customers. |
If you do both — selling personal items and trading — keep separate records. Trading sales count towards the £1,000 allowance. Personal possession sales generally do not, although Capital Gains Tax can apply to chattels sold for more than £6,000.
See GOV.UK: check if you need to tell HMRC about income from online platforms for HMRC's own decision guidance.
DAC7 platform reporting: the £1,740 and 30-item thresholds explained
Since 1 January 2024, UK digital platforms including eBay, Vinted, Depop, Etsy and Airbnb have to share seller information with HMRC under the OECD DAC7 model rules. The first reports for the 2024 calendar year were due to HMRC by 31 January 2025. Reports cover platform sellers who, in a calendar year:
- Have gross payments of more than €2,000 (about £1,740), or
- Make 30 or more separate sales on that platform.
Platforms report your name, address, date of birth or business number, total gross consideration, fees charged, and the number of transactions. HMRC then matches this against Self Assessment records to look for sellers who should be declaring taxable trading income.
Important: DAC7 reporting is not a new tax and not a new tax-free allowance. Crossing the £1,740 or 30-item threshold does not automatically mean you owe tax — it just means the platform shares your data. Whether tax is due still depends on the £1,000 trading allowance and whether your activity is taxable trading or personal possession sales.
When and how to register for Self Assessment
Register for Self Assessment as self-employed if any of these apply for the 2025/26 tax year:
- Your gross trading income from marketplace selling and other side hustles combined is more than £1,000.
- You want to pay voluntary Class 2 National Insurance to protect your State Pension record while profits are below the Small Profits Threshold (£6,845 for 2025/26).
- You have other reasons to file a return, such as Child Benefit High Income Charge or untaxed property income.
Key 2025/26 Self Assessment deadlines
- 5 October 2026: register for Self Assessment if 2025/26 is your first year of taxable trading income above £1,000.
- 31 January 2027: file the 2025/26 online return and pay the tax due.
- 31 July 2027: pay the second payment on account if your 2025/26 bill triggers payments on account (Self Assessment liability of £1,000 or more, where less than 80% is collected at source).
Register at gov.uk/register-for-self-assessment/self-employed. You get a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) by post within about 10 working days.
Platform-specific notes
eBay sellers: when occasional listings become a trade
eBay is a mixed-use platform. Listing old household items after a move is usually personal selling. Sourcing stock from car boots, charity shops, wholesalers or returns pallets and reselling at a margin points to taxable trading. Common eBay seller scenarios:
- Casual clear-out: £400 of gross sales clearing your loft. Trading allowance covers it; no Self Assessment needed for that income.
- Side hustle reseller: £6,000 of gross sales with £3,200 of stock costs, £450 of eBay fees and £600 of postage. Profit of around £1,750 is taxable; you can compare claiming actual costs against the £1,000 trading allowance.
- PAYE worker with eBay shop: £14,000 gross sales on top of a £42,000 salary. Profit pushes you into the 40% higher rate band; the calculator above estimates the combined Income Tax and Class 4 NI hit. See the eBay tax calculator UK for a single-platform view.
For the HMRC eBay private seller calculator question — if you are genuinely a private seller selling your own possessions, the answer is usually no tax. The calculator is for sellers whose activity has tipped into trading.
Vinted sellers: wardrobe clear-out vs resale activity
The vast majority of Vinted users are clearing out their own wardrobes and owe no tax, even if Vinted reports them to HMRC under DAC7. The picture changes if you:
- Buy items at charity shops, car boots or bundles specifically to resell on Vinted.
- Run a "thrift flip" or vintage reselling side hustle with regular drops.
- Make or alter clothes and accessories to sell for profit.
Vinted buyer protection fees (paid by buyers, on top of your asking price) are not your income. Your gross trading income for the £1,000 allowance is the price you receive for the item plus any shipping charge you keep, minus refunds. For a single-platform view of profit and tax, use the Vinted tax calculator UK.
Depop sellers: shops, drops and resale
Depop sellers often start as casual users and grow into shop-like operations: branded packaging, regular drops, repeat customers and clear profit motive. That looks much more like trading than a one-off clear-out. If you source vintage stock, screen-print or upcycle items to sell, treat the activity as taxable trading from the start, keep stock and cost records, and compare actual costs against the £1,000 allowance once gross sales exceed £1,000.
Depop fees (selling fee, payment processing fee) are deductible as business costs if you are trading. Personal sales of your own used clothes on Depop are usually outside Income Tax in the same way as on Vinted.
Facebook Marketplace, Etsy and others
The same UK rules apply on Facebook Marketplace, Etsy, Preloved, Shpock and similar UK platforms. Etsy activity, where most sellers make or source products for profit, is more often taxable trading from the first sale. See the Etsy tax calculator UK for an Etsy-specific view.
FAQs
How much can you sell on eBay before paying tax in the UK?
If your eBay activity is taxable trading, the £1,000 trading allowance is based on gross trading income before costs. If your gross trading sales are £1,000 or less in the 2025/26 tax year, the allowance may cover them and you usually do not need to register for Self Assessment for that income. Above £1,000 you normally need to register and pay Income Tax and Class 4 National Insurance on the profit.
Do I have to declare Vinted income to HMRC?
Selling your own unwanted clothes on Vinted is usually not taxable trading. You should declare income if you buy or make items to resell for profit and gross trading income is over the £1,000 trading allowance, or if HMRC asks you to file a tax return. Vinted platform reporting under DAC7 does not by itself create a new tax — the existing trading rules decide.
Does Depop report to HMRC?
Yes. From January 2024, UK digital platforms including Depop, Vinted, eBay and Etsy report seller information to HMRC under the OECD DAC7 model rules. Reports go to HMRC once gross payments cross €2,000 (about £1,740) in a calendar year or after 30 separate sales. Reporting is not a new tax — HMRC uses the data to check whether sellers should already be declaring taxable trading income.
What is the £1,000 trading allowance for online sellers?
The trading allowance is a £1,000 tax-free allowance on gross trading and miscellaneous income in a UK tax year. If your gross trading sales from eBay, Vinted, Depop and other side hustles combined are £1,000 or less, you usually do not need to tell HMRC. Above £1,000 you can choose between claiming the £1,000 allowance or deducting your actual allowable costs (item cost, postage, packaging, platform fees) — you cannot claim both.
When are you trading on Vinted, eBay or Depop?
HMRC looks at the badges of trade: profit motive, frequency of sales, whether you bought or made items specifically to sell, length of ownership, modifications or improvements before sale, and how the activity was organised. Selling personal possessions you originally bought to use is usually not trading. Buying stock, making items, or repeatedly listing for resale points to trading.
Do I pay tax on Vinted, eBay or Depop if I am just clearing out my wardrobe?
Usually not. Sales of personal possessions you originally bought to use, such as a clear-out of clothes, shoes, books or furniture, are not normally taxable trading. Capital Gains Tax can apply to single items sold for more than £6,000, but ordinary wardrobe sales are outside Income Tax even if your platform sends a DAC7 report to HMRC.
How do I register for Self Assessment as a marketplace seller?
Register at gov.uk/register-for-self-assessment/self-employed. The deadline is 5 October after the end of the tax year in which your gross trading income first crossed £1,000. For 2025/26 income (6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026), register by 5 October 2026 and file the online return and pay by 31 January 2027.
Related platform selling calculators
Use these more specific pages if you already know which platform best describes your selling:
Official sources
- GOV.UK online platform income
- GOV.UK trading allowance
- GOV.UK Self Assessment registration
- GOV.UK digital platform reporting (DAC7)
- GOV.UK self-employed expenses
Important: This calculator provides estimates based on current UK tax rates and the trading allowance. For accurate advice specific to your situation, consult a qualified tax professional or HMRC.