For many women, two of the most important dresses you ever wear are your prom dress and your wedding dress. But after the glamor of your awesome prom night wears off, you may realize that you have a gorgeous, expensive gown that you will never wear again. If you want to get back some of the money you spent on your lovely dress, you probably want to know where to sell a used prom dress for cash.
Websites and apps like Poshmark, Queenly, the Dress List, and Yoogi’s Closet all offer simple methods for selling a used prom dress for cash. Popular online forums like eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist also provide easy ways to sell a prom dress online. Some consignment stores and pawn shops also offer a local way to sell a prom dress for cash.
In this article, you will find seventeen different ways to sell a used prom dress for cash. You will find out how websites like Poshmark work. Finally, you will get tips on selling your dress to consignment stores.
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What To Do With Old Prom Dresses
You can resell, reuse, or donate your old prom dress after the big night is over. Reselling a formal dress bought for just one occasion has become much more popular in recent years, largely because of the many easily accessible online forums that have sprung up to handle these sales.
If you don’t need the money, you could also consider donating your dress. Donation centers such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army money accept formal wear, and they resell these gowns at very low cost to people who may not have the means to purchase a brand-new dress for their own special occasion.
Then again, if you want a more whimsical use for your special prom dress, you could also reuse it. One popular way to reuse a prom dress is to save it for five or ten years and then ask your high school class to wear their prom outfits for a reunion! You can also find lots of fun ideas for how to alter a prom dress into a dress you could wear out clubbing or to your cousin’s wedding.
But the big question for most used prom dress owners is, can you resell a prom dress? You will want to consider a few key points as you make this decision.
- Does your dress have a well-known brand name or designer? If so, you will find it easier to sell. You could get as much as 30-50% of the original price, in some cases!
- Is your dress in good condition? If you paid a lot for your dress, consider having it professionally dry cleaned before you sell it. This will make it look a lot nicer.
- Did you have any alterations done before you wore the dress? Make sure you describe these in detail in the product description.
- You will also want to include specific measurements of the dress to help potential buyers decide if your dress will fit.
- Make sure you clearly state that the dress is used and that you did wear it.
If you bought your prom dress at TJ Maxx, good for you! You probably found a fun and quirky dress that matched your frugal budget. The downside here is that you will not get much money back for a lesser-known brand or a cheaper dress.
On the other hand, if you have a dress from a popular brand or designer, it is in great condition, and you had it cleaned right after prom, you can resell it for up to 50% of its original price in some cases. You can often get a good idea of a price point for your dress by browsing eBay to see similar listings.
This also depends on how you choose to sell the gown, as you will see by checking out 17 easy ways to sell your prom dress in the next section!
Where to Sell Used Prom Dresses for Cash: 17 Methods
You can sell your used prom dress for cash through large-scale online forums like eBay or through tailored websites like Poshmark designed just for reselling pre-owned formal wear. If you prefer to sell locally, you can look into Facebook Marketplace or nearby consignment stores.
Every resell option comes with a few pros and cons, such as whether or not you want to pay postage or whether or not you feel comfortable meeting the buyer in person.
1. Poshmark
Poshmark has both a website and an app connecting millions of buyers and sellers of used clothing. It ranks as one of the largest fashion commerce sites in the world for clothing and accessories. Plus, you will find the process super easy to navigate. You download the free app, create a free account, and then snap pics of your dress to upload along with your product description.
Poshmark does charge a fee for every successful sale; for any sale over $15, the site will charge you a 20% commission fee. You may also have to go through an authentication process if you plan to sell your dress for more than $500. You do get lots of bonuses as a seller on Poshmark, though, such as the chance to sell items at Posh Parties.
2. Queenly
The great thing about Queenly is that this website focuses strictly on dresses. You can sell prom dresses, wedding gowns, and any fancy evening gown through this easy-to-use app. You simply download the app, create an account, and follow the simple guides to post your dress for sale!
Queenly will send you a prepaid shipping label to make sending the dress to the buyer easy as pie. If you sold your prom dress for more than $500, you will have to send the gown to Queenly’s headquarters first for authentication. Plus, Queenly does take a 20% commission from each sale.
3. Facebook Marketplace
Facebook marketplace is like one big virtual yard sale that lets you buy and sell locally. While not specifically set up for selling prom dresses, it is a popular forum for pre-owned formal wear sales. The big advantage of this kind of sale is that Marketplace does not charge any listing fees or commission on your sales.
On the other hand, the downside is that you need to agree to either pay to ship the dress to the buyer or meet the buyer in person to exchange the dress for the payment. You may also find that you can easily make a quick, profitable sale if you wait till a little before the next Prom season when buyers are looking for dresses.
4. The Dress List
As the name suggests, The Dress List provides a dress-specific sale point for buyers and sellers of pre-owned formal dresses. This website makes a lot of wedding gown sales and has a strong line of prom dresses. This website works very much like eBay or Craigslist, allowing you to post your dress for sale once you have created a free account.
This online portal does not charge any fees or take a commission, though you can pay for marketing to make your dress more visible if your choose. Really the only downside to this user-friendly sale portal is that it is not as well known as sites like eBay, meaning that it does not get as much traffic.
5. Yoogi’s Closet
Yoogi’s Closet is an online consignment store for luxury items such as designer prom dresses. The website provides details about which designers and labels they will accept. One of the big advantages of this setup is that you do not have to interact with the buyer directly.
To sell to Yoogi’s Closet, you answer a few questions on the website to get a quote for your dress. Then, if you like the quoted amount, you ship your dress in so that the Yoogi’s Closet people can verify its authenticity. After that, you do have to wait for the dress to sell–you will receive your payment within two days after the sale, minus a 30% commission.
6. Etsy
You probably know Etsy as a great place to find handmade arts and crafts or explore your favorite fandom! But Etsy also has a thriving market for used clothing, especially pre-owned wedding and prom dresses. The biggest advantage to using Etsy is that it has a huge reach and millions of users worldwide.
Selling on Etsy is not the easiest process in the world, though. This portal is not set up for one-time sellers. You will need to essentially create an Etsy shop before posting your dress. Plus, you do have to pay a $0.20 listing fee and then a 5% commission fee on your dress once it sells.
7. DePop
DePop is a trendy, app-based, used clothing sale portal for buyers and sellers. It is still pretty new but has a rapidly growing base of shoppers. Though you will find luxury items and popular brands for sale here, the main focus of this store is sustainability and buying used instead of throwing away clothes.
You can easily post one or more items for sale by downloading the free app and creating a free account. You do not have to pay to list an item, but you will pay a 10% commission to DePop when your dress sells. One of the neat things about this modern, vibrant sale portal is that it offers training tips for new sellers, such as photography ideas to make your items look stylish.
8. OfferUp
Like Craigslist, OfferUp is an online portal for selling pretty much everything, but it does have a popular line of dresses and formal dresses. You can sell a prom dress easily by downloading the free app and uploading details and photos of your dress for buyers to view. You have the option to choose whether you want to meet the buyer in person or ship the dress once it sells.
You do not have to pay to post your items on OfferUp, and you do not get charged a commission fee for a sale. However, the site does offer paid promotions if you want to make your dress more visible to potential buyers.
9. Nearly NewlyWed
Nearly NewlyWed focuses primarily on wedding dresses, as you might have guessed, but does sell other formal wear as well. This luxury boutique site allows you to create a free account and follow simple guidelines to post a dress. You do have to pay a $19.99 listing fee to do this.
Once the dress sells, the store will take a 30% commission fee. On the other hand, the store manages the shipping and authenticating, making this a smooth process for you and the buyer!
10. Once Wed
As you might expect, this online sale portal has a strong focus on wedding gowns and provides a space to buy and sell other formal wear. Once Wed has a strong marketing reach with over 40,000 dresses regularly posted for sale.
You simply create a free online account through the website to get started. For prom dresses, you have to pay a $5 listing fee upfront, but you do not have to pay any other fees after the sale of your dress. You do have to do a lot of the work of interacting with the buyer as you would on Craigslist, in terms of setting up to exchange the dress and what kind of payment you want.
11. Still White
Still White is a modern, flashy-looking online portal for selling pre-owned wedding dresses and some formal wear. The downside to this very cool online portal is that the main focus is on weddings, not on prom, so you may not get as many customers looking for your dress. On the other hand, this cool website allows you to post all kinds of cool promotions, such as video content of your dress.
You can easily create a seller account on the website and post your dress by filling in some information. You do not have to pay a commission on any sales through Still White. There is a listing fee of $25, though.
12. The Real Real
The Real Real is a rapidly growing online store for gently used luxury items, including prom dresses and formal wear. The store has many listings and excellent sales, many of them raking in thousands of dollars for high-end products! The good thing about the Real Real is that, as a brick-and-mortar consignment store, you do not have to do any work beyond setting up an account and sending your item to the Real Real experts.
The store sells the item for you and then charges a 20-30% commission based on the price of the dress. You do not have to pay to send your dress in for evaluation or have your dress listed for sale.
13. eBay
Everyone knows eBay as the place to buy and sell pretty much everything! This sale portal has a huge market in used clothing, including prom dresses and wedding gowns. Because of its vast, global reach, you may find eBay one of the best choices for used dress sales, especially if you do not have a luxury or brand-name dress.
You can easily set up a seller’s account without paying any fees. The website walks you through taking photos and posting your items for sale, too. You will have to follow the correct shipping rules once your dress sells, and you do have to give up a 10% commission after the sale.
14. Craigslist
Craigslist is like a less sophisticated version of eBay, with the advantage that you can shop and sell locally through this venue. This portal lets you post items for sale in a few free and easy steps. You can choose whether you want to ship your dress to the buyer or meet in person to exchange the dress for payment.
The downside to this free and convenient selling method is that Craiglist has a pretty outdated website, though it maintains a solid following of users.
15. Tradesey
Tradesy is a sale portal for pre-owned designer items such as prom dresses. Once you download the app and create a free account, you can easily upload images to post items for sale in just minutes. The catch is that Tradesy does require only authentic luxury items on its website.
The pros of this site are that you can easily contact helpful customer service by email or phone if you need help. Plus, you get a free, simple shipping kit to help you send out your dress. You do have to pay a 19.8% commission on the sale price, though.
16. Consignment Stores
Consignment stores sell pre-owned items and then collect a hefty commission on the sale price. You can think of this as paying rent for the physical space your dress used in the store before it sold! The exact percentage of the commission varies from one store to another, but this usually ranges from 20% to as much as 60% of the sale price.
The good thing about selling your dress through a consignment shop is that it’s pretty hands-off. You deliver the dress and agree on a price range with the store owner (in most cases), and then you leave and let the dress wait on the rack till it sells! The downside is that some stores give you a certain window for sale, such as three to six months, and may ask you to reclaim the dress if it does not sell during that time.
17. Pawn Shops
Pawnshops have a pretty seedy reputation overall, but if you do some research to find a reputable shop, you can easily sell your prom dress to this kind of store as well! Pawnshops work differently from consignment or thrift stores because they offer the chance to pawn something, meaning that an owner can give the store an item on loan and get a cash advance. If the owner can pay back the cash, they can reclaim the item. If not, the store wins the item and can resell it at a profit.
Many pawnshops will also directly buy an item like a dress from you. You may need to negotiate this price and come prepared with tags and labels to prove the brand name or designer of the dress. The big advantage to this kind of sale is that you get cash right away, rather than waiting for your dress to sell through an online venue.
What is the Average Price of Prom Dresses?
The average price of a new prom dress ranges from $100 to $600, and the average price of a pre-owned prom dress usually falls between $30 and $500. Of course, this is just an average–if you have a designer dress or a highly sought-after brand, you will see prices easily reach into the thousands of dollars.
It’s safe to say that most teenagers pay around $200 for a dress, though. Keep in mind that you will need to sell your pre-owned dress for significantly less than you paid to buy it new. This is like the new car rule–once you drive it off the lot, it loses a lot of value to future customers.
Does Platos Closet Have Prom Dresses?
Plato’s Closet sometimes carries prom dresses, but not as a regular sale item. For this reason, they may not want to buy a used prom dress from you. Plus, this consignment store does not have a great reputation for giving good prices to sellers–they typically purchase brand-name clothing in excellent condition for about 30% of the original sale price.
On the other hand, buyers often love this cute teen-friendly store that only offers brand names or trendy items. If you have a prom dress with a special brand or label, you can try asking your local Plato’s Closet. If you like to shop there, you will get a much better deal if you accept store credit instead of cash for the dress.
How Do I Sell on Poshmark?
You can sell on Poshmark by easily setting up an account through the free app and then posting your dress or items for sale. You don’t have to pay to put up these listings, but you will get charged a 20% commission on the final sale.
The company will give you free shipping labels and walk you through the sale process step-by-step as well.
Consignment Store Evening Gowns
Consignment stores often buy and sell evening gowns like prom dresses, bride’s maid dresses, or wedding gowns. They offer prices to the original owner of the dress based on its condition, its brand name, and its original price. If you want to sell your used dress to a consignment store, you should keep the original price tags and receipts!
One of the cool things about buying a prom dress or evening gown from a consignment store is that you often get personalized service. You can bring in your Pinterest mood board and show a store assistant, who can quickly let you know if the store has anything in stock that would fit your needs.
Most towns and cities host a variety of consignment stores. Some of these shops specialize in certain products, such as baby clothes or teen clothes. Others focus solely on evening gowns and wedding attire. If you want to buy or sell an evening dress at a consignment store, look for one that focuses on formal wear.
Where to Sell Prom Dresses for Cash Near Me
If you want cash in hand quickly, you can sell your prom dress at places near you, such as consignment stores, pawn shops, or through local online portals such as Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.
Of these options, Facebook Marketplace may give you the easiest, most profitable results. You can set your own price and choose if you feel comfortable meeting the buyer in person or not. Not everyone has a Facebook account, but it’s pretty rare to find a hold out these days, which means that Marketplace also gives you a wide customer base.
Then again, selling directly to a pawnshop means no wait at all–you agree on the price, they give you cash, and you walk away with the sale complete. This is the quickest option you will find, though you will probably not make as much money.
Finally, you could also consider local community yard sales or even reach out through friends or family to see if anyone has a younger sister or cousin looking for a dress. This technique works especially well if you wait till just before prom season!
Conclusion
You made lots of wonderful memories while wearing your prom dress, but there comes a time to let it go! When you decide to resell your used prom dress for cash, you can find many easy-to-use online options to help you market your dress and turn a profit on it. Popular portals like eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist let you list your dress for free or very cheaply.
Online stores that use apps or websites to sell the dress for you often charge a commission of 10-30% of the sale. These include big-name sellers like DePop, Queenly, and Poshmark. You can also check out local brick-and-mortar consignment stores like Plato’s Closet if you want a quick turn-around on the sale.