In January, the USPS increased their rates, making it more difficult for sellers to profit when selling low-value orders online. In response, we’ve been engaging with our community and listening to suggestions. Based on feedback from both our buyers and sellers, we’ll be implementing changes with the following goals in mind:

Increase Profitable Orders for Our Sellers - Account for the USPS rate increases while ensuring more orders can be profitable than ever before.

Make It Easier for Buyers to Shop on TCGplayer.com - The easier it is for buyers to shop, the more orders they’ll place.

Solving the $2 Order Minimum for Both Buyers and Sellers

Goes into effect this summer

Since we implemented the $2 order minimum in 2017, many sellers have asked us to increase it even more to help offset growing labor and postage costs. At the same time, buyers have been getting frustrated that they’re unable to check out with less than $2 in their carts—ultimately abandoning their orders entirely. It became clear that we needed a solution that works for both buyers and sellers, something that better protects sellers when they ship low-value orders while making it easier for buyers to check out and get the cards they want.

Starting this summer, we’re going to revamp the $2 order minimum with a new shipping and handling minimum on orders under $5. If buyers have less than $5 of products in their cart from a seller, we’ll collect a minimum of $0.78 for shipping and handling on behalf of the seller. This will help cover the increased postage and labor costs for sellers while giving buyers the flexibility to purchase the cards they want, even if they total less than $2.

EXAMPLE: A buyer adds a $0.25 card to their cart. The seller offers free shipping, but the cart is less than $5. The buyer will see that they need to add $4.75 in products from that seller to their cart if they want to get free shipping. If they prefer, they can choose to purchase just that card and pay the $0.78.

Why will this be great for buyers?

Check out even with less than $2 in your cart. If you’re only looking for a few commons, you won’t need to add extra items to your cart just to check out.

See lower prices. Currently, many sellers offering free shipping need to increase their prices to cover the high cost of shipping low-value cards. After we make this change, sellers won’t need to account for this in their listing price and as sellers become used to the new system, you’ll see better deals on the marketplace.

Cart Optimizer improvement. Based on your feedback, we know that removing the $2 minimum will make it easier for you to find better deals and will allow the Cart Optimizer to make better choices for you. We also have many planned upgrades lined up to streamline Cart Optimizer.

More free shipping options. As this change protects sellers on low orders, sellers will be much more likely to offer free shipping on orders over $5.

Why will this be great for sellers?

Earn more money on all your sales. Collecting this minimum shipping and handling of $.78 on your behalf will give you a huge buffer against losing money on shipping low-value orders.

Get a higher order volume. While the $2 order minimum has helped cover shipping expenses, it’s ultimately led to buyers abandoning their carts. Buyers aren’t placing as many orders as they could be. Once we make this change, more buyers will complete their checkout and purchase more of your products.

Enjoy the flexibility of choosing a shipping rate that works for your business. Want to offer free shipping on orders over $5? Now you can without worrying about what that will mean for your low-value orders.

Price effectively. This summer you will be better protected on low-value orders and can more comfortably adjust your pricing without having to include additional costs to each card to help offset shipping and labor.

This exciting change will go into effect on TCGplayer.com this summer and will make buying and selling on TCGplayer even better.

If you’re looking for more info on the order minimum changes coming this summer, check out our FAQ.

Updates for Sellers in TCGplayer Direct

Goes into effect March 6th

With the USPS rate increase and growing labor costs, we need to make adjustments to our Direct pricing for the first time since its launch in 2014. However, we want sellers to continue to benefit from the program when selling orders of all sizes, so Shipping Replacement Costs will only increase between $0.06 and $0.25 per band. Sellers will still pay less to ship through Direct than they would outside of the program. For example, when shipping out an order through TCGplayer Direct versus shipping it yourself, you’ll save up to $4.97.

Make More Money on Direct Orders Under $3

Goes into effect March 6th

Finally, to prevent the USPS rate increase from negatively impacting low-value TCGplayer Direct orders, we’re making one final change. Direct is designed to help sellers profit beyond usual marketplace sales by increasing online orders and saving time and money on order fulfillment. That means sellers should be making more profits on all orders. To maximize profits, we currently waive all commission and processing fees on orders under $2. Instead, we split the cost of the order 50/50 to ensure more money stays in the seller’s pocket. To counter the impact of the USPS rate increase—we’re raising the 50/50 split to include orders below $3, thus ensuring more profitable orders for sellers.

These changes to the TCGplayer Marketplace and Direct are based directly on feedback from our community of buyers and sellers. Thank you for your insights on how to improve your experience buying and selling. If you would like additional information on these changes, please contact us and our team will be happy to help!