I recently decided that I needed to sell some of the old console games that were clogging up my TV cabinet and my natural reaction was to look towards eBay. I have used eBay a number of times in the past and I am always happy with the amount I have received for my listed items and each time I promise myself that I'm going to sell more unwanted items on the site. But inevitably life gets in the way and I never seem to find the time to take photos of the items, list them on the site, answer any customer questions and then go to the post office to post the item once sold.
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So I thought I'd give musicMagpie.co.uk a go as they promise a hassle-free way to receive cash quickly for your old CDs, DVDs and games. The process is a lot quicker than listing numerous items on eBay. You simply enter the barcode of each item on the site and you will be told how much they are willing to give you for it. If you are happy with this price you can then download a freepost label and send the item(s) off . Once musicMagpie have checked all is well with the items they will issue you with a cheque for your goods.
As far as efficiency goes I could not fault the service. I found it quick and convenient so on that basis I would recommend it.
However in terms of value for your items I found musicMagpie paid significantly less than I would have received had I taken the time to list the items individually on eBay.
Below (click to enlarge) is a comparison of the amount musicMagpie paid me for my items versus the amount a recently ended listing for the same item in "used" condition sold for on eBay.
In short I would have received 4 times the total amount from eBay auctions as I did from musicMagpie. In addition I had to supply my own packaging to send the items to musicMagpie whereas on eBay I would pass that cost on to the buyer.
Scanning down the list of items it is evident that the older an item is the smaller the difference in price between musicMagpie and eBay.
Would I use musicMagpie again?
The answer is probably - but in a situation where I was short of time and had a number of very old items to sell. But if I had a couple of recently purchased items to sell then I will stick to eBay everytime!
I thought I’d have a post Xmas clear out. I had 46 DVDs to sell comprising of a box sets, blockbusters and more obscure titles. Musicmagpie only offered just over £15 for the lot!
That works out at around 30p a DVD.
eBay will be more hassle but clearly I’ll get more there.
Have to say their app is good though
Your prices are way off mate, I just looked on ebay and here are the real prices things are going for:
Fifa 09 – You said £10 Actually £2
Left 4 Dead – You said £22 Actually £8
COD4 – You said £15 Actually £10
Brian Lara 2007 – You said £5 Actually £2
C&C 3 – You said £10 Actually £5
Those include postage fees, so if you take off eBay fees, paypal fees and the amount it costs to post then you’re not left with much more than what MM offer, and that’s if your item sells!
Hi James
Thanks for your comment.
At the time of writing I looked on eBay for the maximum amount that these items had recently sold for – which are the prices listed in the article.
Of course your points about postage and fees are true, but you also have to buy your own packaging to send items back to musicMagpie so you still incur costs using that service. So if you are paid just 30p for an item on musicMagpie you may be out of pocket by the time you send it off.
Both services are great and even at the prices you supplied the fact remains that, in percentage terms, you get significantly more for your items on eBay. However on the flip side you have to spend significantly more time and effort to get the maximum price for your item on eBay. This is where musicMagpie’s convenience and speed comes up trumps.
I’d be interested to hear what other readers think.
Wow I didn’t expect such a prompt reply, thanks!
Out of all seriousness, though, you should consider revising those prices as they are way off. You shouldn’t list the maximum prices as these aren’t an accurate representation of the ‘real’ selling prices if you, me or Joe Public decided to sell.
I can tell you are trying to be as unbiased as possible (which don’t get me wrong is very commendable), so this would only be fair to MM. Some of the ones you cite were sold as New and not used, too.
If you do a ‘Completed Listings’ search under the advanced search on eBay and look at the most recent completed listings (Green prices, as opposed to the red, unsold items) and filter by Used, you will find the prices I mentioned are far more accurate.
Also have a look at the ratio of sold to unsold, too. This is important since it costs money to list and your item may not end up selling. With Fifa 09 only around 20% actually sold.
Regarding the packaging costs, MM say to send your items in as few parcels as possible, and to reuse any boxes you have lying around the place. You could easily find a shoebox at home, or if you need anything bigger then a local supermarket can find you a box for free, so no need to spend any money on packing.
Anyway, apart from the prices, good review 🙂
Regards
James