Secondhand goods span peer-to-peer sales, charity shops, online marketplaces, reuse organizations and business liquidation channels. The figures below cover the United States, Ireland, the European Union and global apparel, with observed results separated from surveys, estimates, forecasts and policy targets.
Key Secondhand Goods Statistics
The most useful headline figures include:
- In the United States, the recommerce market was projected to reach $306.5 billion by 2030 in the OfferUp Recommerce Report 2025.
- OfferUp projected 55% growth in U.S. recommerce from 2024 to 2029.
- OfferUp projected $291.6 billion in U.S. recommerce in 2029, with resale transactions representing 8% of total retail.
- eBay generated $75 billion in global GMV in 2024, a paid transaction-value measure rather than eBay revenue.
- 35% of U.S. shoppers tried resale for the first time during the year covered by OfferUp’s 2024 report.
- 85% of U.S. shoppers bought and/or sold secondhand items in the past year measured by OfferUp’s 2023 report.
- 25% of the U.S. multi-category resale economy was clothing in OfferUp’s 2025 report.
- Ireland recorded 83,400 tonnes of secondhand products reused in 2024.
- Ireland’s observed 2024 reuse rate was 15.5 kilograms per person.
- Ireland’s national reuse target is 20 kilograms per person per year by 2030.
- 55% of relevant Irish respondents used a charity or secondhand shop when buying or receiving any secondhand item during the past 12 months of the 2023 survey.
- 74% of Irish adults made at least one product available for reuse during the past 12 months of the 2023 survey.
- eBay had 134 million active buyers globally at December 31, 2024.
- eBay had 2.3 billion live listings globally at December 31, 2024.
- 50% of U.S. resale participants used resale as a side hustle or supplementary income source in OfferUp’s July 2024 survey.
- B-Stock sold 140 million units through its platform in 2024, including returned and overstock merchandise.
- Ireland recorded 38,300 tonnes of reused furniture and 4,660 tonnes of reused textiles in 2024.
- The global secondhand apparel market was estimated at $227 billion in 2024, equal to 9% of global apparel spending.
Contents
- Secondhand goods market size and forecasts
- Participation and first-time adoption
- Categories beyond clothing
- How people source, sell and give away goods
- Marketplace activity and seller economics
- Reuse volumes and measured outcomes
Secondhand Goods Market Size and Growth Forecasts
Forecasts describe possible future market scale, while marketplace measures describe activity on a particular platform. They should not be combined into one total because definitions, coverage and currencies differ.
| Measure | Period | Geography or scope | Figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recommerce market forecast | 2030 | United States | $306.5 billion |
| Recommerce market forecast | 2029 | United States | $291.6 billion |
| Forecast growth | 2024–2029 | United States | 55% |
| Forecast resale share of retail | 2029 | United States | 8% |
| Recommerce market forecast | 2028 | United States | $276 billion |
The OfferUp Recommerce Report 2025 projected a U.S. recommerce market of $306.5 billion by 2030. The projection is a company report estimate, not an observed 2030 total: OfferUp Recommerce Report 2025.
OfferUp’s 2024 report projected 55% growth from 2024 to 2029, reaching $291.6 billion, and projected resale transactions at 8% of total U.S. retail in 2029. These are company-report projections based on GlobalData analysis, not measured current shares: OfferUp’s 2024 Recommerce Report.
The prior OfferUp report projected $276 billion by 2028. It is a separate forecast period and should not be treated as a later observed market total: OfferUp Recommerce Report 2023.
For platform scale, eBay reported $75 billion in global GMV during 2024 and $19.3 billion in the fourth quarter. GMV is paid transaction value flowing through eBay platforms, includes shipping fees and taxes, and is not eBay revenue or a secondhand-only total; 49% of annual GMV came from outside the United States: eBay 2024 Annual Report.
Secondhand Shopping Participation and First-Time Adoption
Survey estimates show broad participation, but the wording of each measure matters. Some figures count buying or selling together, while others measure first-time activity or stated future intentions.
- OfferUp’s 2024 report found that 35% of U.S. shoppers tried resale for the first time over the year covered by the report; this was an OfferUp/Pollfish survey result: OfferUp’s 2024 Recommerce Report.
- OfferUp’s 2023 report found that 85% of U.S. shoppers bought and/or sold secondhand items in the past year, while 27% bought or sold secondhand for the first time; the combined buy-or-sell wording matters: OfferUp Recommerce Report 2023.
- Consumers said they planned to allocate 34% of their apparel budget to secondhand during the following 12 months in the 2025 survey reported by ThredUp. This is stated intention, not observed spending: ThredUp Resale Report 2025.
- In that same ThredUp report, 39% of younger-generation U.S. shoppers made a secondhand apparel purchase on a social-commerce platform in the prior 12 months; the generation definition follows the report and is narrower than all consumers: ThredUp Resale Report 2025.
Participation statistics are therefore not interchangeable. A shopper survey, a platform account count and a planned budget allocation each measure a different part of secondhand adoption.
Secondhand Goods Categories Beyond Clothing
Clothing is prominent, but the available estimates show why secondhand goods statistics should not be reduced to apparel. OfferUp’s category denominator also differs between reports.
| Category or measure | Period | Geography or scope | Figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clothing share of multi-category resale economy | 2025 report | United States | 25% |
| Clothing share of recommerce items | 2023 report | United States | 23% |
| Transactions outside apparel | 2023 report | United States | 77% |
| Reused furniture | 2024 | Ireland | 38,300 tonnes |
| Reused textiles | 2024 | Ireland | 4,660 tonnes |
Clothing accounted for 25% of the U.S. multi-category resale economy in OfferUp’s 2025 estimate. In the 2023 report, clothing represented 23% of recommerce items and 77% of transactions were outside apparel; the denominators differ, so the figures are not a time-series comparison: OfferUp Recommerce Report 2025 and OfferUp Recommerce Report 2023.
The global secondhand apparel market was estimated at $227 billion in 2024, equal to 9% of global apparel spending, and was estimated to have grown 15% from 2023 to 2024. These are GlobalData estimates reported by ThredUp and cover apparel only: ThredUp Resale Report 2025.
Ireland’s 2024 national reuse statistics recorded 38,300 tonnes of reused furniture and 4,660 tonnes of reused textiles. The Irish EPA says the reuse data are subject to further validation: Reuse Statistics for Ireland.
How People Source, Sell and Give Away Secondhand Goods
Ireland’s EPA National Reuse Survey 2023 covers adults aged 16 and over. The percentages below refer to the relevant product or respondent base and should not be summed across categories.
| Irish secondhand activity | Past 12 months, 2023 | Population or product base |
|---|---|---|
| Used a charity or secondhand shop for any secondhand item | 55% | Buyers or recipients of any secondhand item |
| Used a charity or secondhand shop for clothing | 65% | Clothing buyers or recipients |
| Used an online website or platform for clothing | 25% | Clothing buyers or recipients |
| Used an online website or platform for small electronics | 41% | Small-electronics buyers or recipients |
| Used an online website or platform for large furniture | 46% | Large-furniture buyers or recipients |
These sourcing results come from National Reuse Survey 2023: Sourcing Second hand. For any secondhand item, 55% of relevant respondents used a charity or secondhand shop; the product-specific shares show stronger online use for large furniture and small electronics than for clothing.
The disposal and transfer side was also substantial in the Irish survey. 74% of adults made at least one product available for reuse during the past 12 months, including 80% for clothing, 33% for small furniture and 29% for small electronics or electrical equipment.
- 15% of Irish adults sold or gave clothing away through online websites or platforms during the past 12 months.
- 12% sold or gave small electronics away through online websites or platforms.
- 24% made textiles other than clothing available for reuse.
- 19% made large furniture available for reuse.
- 13% made bikes available for reuse.
These figures are from National Reuse Survey 2023: Making available for reuse. They are nationally representative survey results for Irish adults aged 16 and over, not tonnage estimates.
Secondhand Marketplace Activity and Seller Economics
Large marketplaces provide scale indicators, but listings, bids, units and GMV represent different stages of commerce. eBay’s active-buyer measure counts an account that paid for a transaction during the prior 12 months, and duplicate accounts may exist.
| Marketplace indicator | Period | Figure | Scope note |
|---|---|---|---|
| eBay active buyers | December 31, 2024 | 134 million | Global marketplace accounts |
| eBay live listings | December 31, 2024 | 2.3 billion | Listings, not completed sales |
| eBay marketplace footprint | 2024 | More than 190 markets | Global markets |
| eBay enthusiast buyers | FY2024 | 16 million | At least six purchase days and $800+ annual spend |
| B-Stock units sold | 2024 | 140 million | Platform units, including returns and overstock |
| B-Stock bids | 2024 | More than 3.8 million | Platform bids |
The eBay figures come from eBay’s 2024 Annual Report. The annual report also says 49% of 2024 GMV was generated outside the United States, while the 16 million enthusiast buyers met eBay’s specific purchase-day and annual-spend definition.
OfferUp reported that 50% of resale participants used resale as a side hustle or supplementary income source in a July 2024 survey of 1,500 U.S. adults. In the 2023 report, 39% of shoppers said reselling helped them make ends meet and 38% used resale earnings for bills or everyday living expenses; these are self-reported outcomes: OfferUp’s 2024 Recommerce Report and OfferUp Recommerce Report 2023.
B-Stock sold 140 million units and recorded more than 3.8 million bids in 2024. Customer returns made up 65% of items sold, rather than overstock; the platform includes returned and overstock merchandise, so it describes secondary-market inventory activity rather than used-goods transactions exclusively: The State of B2B Recommerce.
Reuse Volumes and Measured Economic and Environmental Outcomes
Ireland reported 83,400 tonnes of secondhand products reused in 2024, equivalent to 15.5 kilograms per person. The per-person figure is a national rate, not a household or shopper average.
| Reuse outcome | Period | Geography | Figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondhand products reused | 2024 | Ireland | 83,400 tonnes |
| Reuse rate | 2024 | Ireland | 15.5 kg per person |
| National reuse target | 2030 | Ireland | 20 kg per person per year |
| Reported reuse measures | 2024 | Ireland | 26 |
| Organizations contributing information | 2024 | Ireland | 8 |
| Average reported reuse | 2021 reference year | EU-27, 20–21 reporting Member States | 13 kg per capita |
Ireland’s 2030 national reuse target is 20 kilograms per person per year, a policy target rather than an observed result. The 2024 statistics identified 26 reuse measures, with information contributed by eight organizations: Reuse Statistics for Ireland.
Across the EU-27, Member States reported an average 13 kilograms per capita of reuse across textiles, electrical and electronic equipment, and furniture for the 2021 reference year. The European Environment Agency notes early reporting, substantial cross-country differences in scope and methods, and coverage of 20–21 reporting Member States rather than a complete all-goods EU total: European Environment Agency: Weight of reuse.
A separate official estimate illustrates a measured economic outcome. New South Wales reuse organizations were estimated to have saved the community A$432 million compared with buying new items; this is an EPA estimate for reuse organizations in New South Wales, not a global secondhand-market total: NSW EPA: Measuring the environmental, economic and social impacts of reuse.
The available outcome measures are consequently local and definition-specific: Ireland reports national tonnage, the EU reports an early cross-country per-capita measure, and New South Wales reports an estimated community saving. None should be read as a single global environmental-benefit figure.