Coupons don’t just save you money, they can also make you money!
Whether it’s electronics, clothes, online promo codes, or grocery coupons, we all use them to save money.
But today you’re going to learn how to make money by selling coupons on eBay.
At the time of writing, I counted there were 38,957 coupon listings on eBay for auction and some of these bids really look fantastic!
But isn’t selling coupons on eBay illegal?
Not illegal, but more of “not allowed”.
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Most coupons are made in a way that they’re not to be resold. eBay also insist that you use words to that effect, or risk having your listing deleted at their site.
But if you are clever enough, you can make it work!
To get around this issue, eBay sellers word the ad in a way that makes it sound like the winning price is nothing more than compensation for their time to collect, clip, and ship the coupon. So, it is not the face value of the coupon at stake here.
Table of Contents
My Test
Before I wrote this post, I gave it a shot myself to see if it actually does work.
I listed 3 different items:
- A pack of 50 Marlboro coupons with savings worth over $150 for $15
This was Buy it Now and sold just after 2 days for $15. - A pack of 8 Lowes 10% Off Coupons
This was Bid Now and sold for $25 after 8 bids. - A pack of 13 Save $1.00 on Cottonelle toilet paper coupons
This was also Bid Now and sold for $7 after 6 bids.
Sure, I had a few dollars in listing expenses, but the coupons themselves were free (I show you later how and where to get them).
It probably took me less than 15 minutes to get them listed.
So, taking a few dollars out for expenses leaves me with around $40 pure profit. Not bad for 15 minutes of work.
The experiment showed me that it really works and people do buy coupons. So, I did some research to learn as much as I could about this.
The most important thing I learned is that to really make money selling coupons on eBay, you have to sell “high value” coupons (more on that later).
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Sure, it takes a good deal of discipline to gather enough coupons to make a decent earning, if you are after those one-of-a-kind coupons… But your time and effort could be better compensated when you lay your hands on those on-demand coupons that fetch significant dollars.
Where to Find Coupons
There are lots of places you can get coupons for anything – groceries, clothes, tools, prescriptions, etc.
Here are some of the best places to look:
- Coupon Books
The best place to find high-value coupons is in that famous Coupon Saving book by entertainment.com. You pay about 20 bucks, but you get coupons worth thousands of dollars. - Newspapers
Regardless of the doomsaying about the demise of newspapers, they remain the primary target to search for coupon inserts. Even discounting your actual need for specific coupons, you should have some to spare. - Magazines
There are tons of magazines that have manufacturer coupons. Take a look at Woman’s Day, Red Book, Family Circle and Good Housekeeping. - In the store
Sometimes stores have coupons on the shelves that you can grab. Also, many stores will print coupons for you when checking you out. - Friends & Family
Another good source is friends and family. Just ask candidly if there is any unused coupon that they are happy to give. - Online
Tons of websites that specialize in getting you coupons. Coupons.com and SmartSource are two of the big ones. - Junk mail
Sure, junk mails are annoying, but I notice more and more of those “high value” coupons appear in those junk mail. - Direct from the manufacturer
Most manufacturers have a coupon section on their website where you can print them out. Some even send coupons by mail. - On products
These days almost any product you buy has a coupon attached to it (or inside of it in some cases). It’s a way for manufacturers to keep you coming back.
How to Sell Your Coupons?
Listing your coupons for sale is the same as listing any other item on eBay. Most eBay sellers sell their coupons, usually of the same type, in bundles (20 or so).
Tip: If you just want to test the waters without paying any fees, take advantage of the 5 free auction listings that eBay gives you each month.
Over time, it has occurred to me that people (buyers) don’t really care if they come in lots of 20. In fact, I have noticed a number of transactions going at the same price as the 20 lot even if the bundle had no more than 15 pieces.
One thing expected of you is to spell out clearly the corresponding specifications in your eBay listing (i.e. whether the coupon can be doubled, expiration date, exclusions, etc).
But if you feel that there is too much hassle to gather 12-15 copies of the same coupon, you may want to consider listing your coupons as a mixed collection. In this case, you may want to pitch your coupons as a sort of value-for-money offering. I would say maybe do these in lots of 100 and above.
How Much Money Can You Make Selling Coupons on eBay?
It’s hard to give you an exact number.
It’ll depend on many things, like what kind of coupons you sell, how you package them, whether you list them as Buy it Now or Bid Now, etc.
During my research, I found people who seem to be making a few hundred dollars a month. I also talked (online) with a seller who claims he makes around $1000 a month selling coupons on eBay and Craigslist.
But one thing is for sure, I don’t think the majority of us can count on selling coupons on eBay as a way to make a living, but making some extra money is doable.
Wrapping Up
I would love to hear from you if you have any experience.
Are you currently a coupon seller, or have you ever sold coupons on eBay and did you make a good profit?
I tried selling one coupon on ebay and got a message saying that my account was too new and I was not an establish trader, so I wasn’t allowed to sell coupons.
Hmm… I have never encountered that, nor have I heard of anyone else having this issue, David. Have you tried to contact eBay?…
I too have that problem… I get automatically denied listing anything related to coupons because I am not a proven, experienced seller.
I have read the coupon policy numerous times and, though I’m not a lawyer, I don’t believe I am in violation of their policies.
Other people are selling the EXACT same coupons! (I don’t know how to become an experienced seller if I’m not allowed to sell anything!)
That is weird. I really don’t know what would be causing this, Betty. Have you tried contacting eBay?…
How do you determine your sale price for the coupons??
Hi Myrissa,
Thanks for your question.
The easiest way is to look at the past “Sold” numbers. You can search on eBay and refine the search setting to show you only the items that have already sold. Looking at those numbers, you can get a good feeling for what people are willing to pay for the kind of coupon you are selling.
Hope that helps. Let me know if you need help.
I think they have updated their policies. It now says that you are NOT selling your time to collect the coupons and that you shouldn’t say that. Also that you cannot sell more than 25 coupons in a month.
“Under eBay rules, the coupons themselves are the items being sold.” -http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/manufacturers-coupons.html
Thanks for the heads up, Ambaa. eBay, like most other companies, do update their policies from time to time. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll check it out.
Yeah, this article says updated in 2015 but Ebay changed its coupon policies in 2013 and there is no mention of that. They have such strict rules that it’s impossible to make any money without breaking the rules and your competitors will report your listings to eliminate you as competition. It did not happen to me but I saw it done.
LF, that’s why we have the “But I thought you couldn’t sell coupons!?” section in the article.
ebay sent me a message that I can only sell 25 coupons per month and they even went as far as to freeze my account for 24 hours so how did you sell so many at one time?
Denise, this was before eBay implemented the new rules. Selling coupons on eBay was much easier and more profitable a few years ago. But since they have changed their rules things have changed a little.
Here is what Ebay allows:
Allowed
You may sell up to $100 or 25 valid, unexpired, original coupons per month. (See additional information below for more guidelines.)
Restricted
Multi-quantity listings: You can’t sell more than 25 coupons in a single listing. The allowed 25 coupons per month include multi-quantity listings.
Make sure you clearly state in your description how many coupons you’re selling. If we can’t tell how many coupons are offered, the listing violates our policy.
Not allowed
Coupons for “free” products: You can’t sell coupons for “free” products. This restriction includes coupons for free items, or coupons where the coupon holder buys a quantity of items at one price, and receives additional items for free.
Electronic “scanned” coupons: All coupons sold through eBay must be physical coupons printed on paper, not coupons that can be sent electronically to the buyer to be printed. Also, to reduce the potential for coupon fraud, don’t include unaltered scans of coupons in their listings that could be copied, printed, and redeemed in stores.
Note: The sale of scanned or photocopied coupons may violate federal copyright laws, and sellers of unlawful items like these could face prosecution under federal law. We don’t allow the sale of these kinds of coupons.
Coupons for recalled items: Coupons for items that have been recalled can’t be listed on eBay.
Recalled coupons: Coupons that have been recalled can’t be listed on eBay.
Coupon Inserts: Coupon inserts containing numerous coupons commonly found in Sunday papers or delivered with your mail or to your door.
Additional information
Coupon buyers should note that retailers might refuse to accept coupons that have been obtained in a way that violates the terms on the coupon.
Also, you can’t claim that the price of the coupon is based on the value of the labor involved in clipping the coupons instead of the coupons themselves. Under eBay rules, the coupons themselves are the items being sold.
Thank you so much for taking time to explain the details for us, Tamara. I am sure a lot of people reading this will benefit from it.
If you don’t mind me asking, do you sell (coupons) on eBay as well?
I see tons of Home Depot and Lowes coupons for 10% everywhere. They are selling 20+ every 24 hours. Where do they find these? They’re all coupons that they email to you when you buy so they aren’t even physical coupons.
I also read the Ebay policy today and it says you can’t sell more than 25 coupons in a month for some reason.
Thanks for sharing this information. I’ve collected tons of coupons fromg places like Bed Bath & Beyond, Skoal, Johnson & Johnson and other popular stores/brands and I never use them. I never considered sell them on eBay but after a quick Google search for best places to sell coupons, I ran across your site and have decided to give it a whirl. I will post a follow up after the coupon auctions I post end and let you know how well I’ve done with selling them and which ones sold.
Sounds good, Amber. I look forward to hearing about your experience. Good luck.
You can’t make any money selling coupons on ebay since they restricted sellers to 25 coupons a month.
I love coupons, these are how I me and my 5 kids get by.