Should You Sell or Donate Your Clothes?

Selling clothes takes more time than people estimate, and the honest calculation includes that time.

Decluttering1 min readAugust 16, 2026Maya Elliot

In short

Work out the hourly rate. Photographing, listing, answering questions and posting takes 20–30 minutes per item.
A narrow band is worth selling. Recognisable brands, coats, boots and unworn items with tags.
Donating has a real value too. It is faster, it is immediate, and the item reaches someone who needs it.

Selling clothes takes more time than people estimate, and the honest calculation includes that time.

Photographing, listing, answering questions and posting takes 20–30 minutes per item. Divide the expected price by that.

Recognisable brands, coats, boots and unworn items with tags. Below roughly £20 resale value it rarely repays the effort.

It is faster, it is immediate, and the item reaches someone who needs it. That is not a consolation prize.

Is it worth selling clothes online?

For items likely to fetch over about £20 — brands, coats, boots and unworn pieces. Below that, the time cost exceeds the return.

Where should I donate clothes?

Charity shops for good-condition wearable items, clothing banks for worn but usable ones, and textile recycling for anything damaged.