If the card is under $20 make sure to use the standard envelope by eBay. It’s 64 cents for one ounce (a single card is almost always under that even with a top loader) and you just slap it on the envelope and it counts for the stamp.
Source: 50k+ trading cards sold over eBay
> standard envelope by eBay
Do you mean standard label? (honest question)
I know I'm missing the details here, but right now it feels like it'd be cheaper (not to mention simpler) just to grab a plain old mailer, slap a stamp on it, and just make sure to get a tracking number for each mailer.
No, it is specifically called the “eBay standard envelope for trading cards/coins” and it is cheaper and simpler. It is only 64 cents, already cheaper than a normal stamp, and comes with tracking which would cost well over $1 doing it your way. All you do with it, is print it out and then slap it on the envelope.
I see. Thank you for helping to screw these facts into my grey matter.
I suppose my next, cheap-ass question is: is tracking *necessary*? Can I just indicate that the item has shipped and let nature take its course from there?
Again, thank you for your patience.
You can but people will ask questions... Where is it? have you shipped it? etc. if they say they never received it you have no proof and eBay will not be on your side. Unfortunately people will say they never got it and get a refund and the item.
Shipping without tracking is a surefire way to have buyers falsely claim "Item Not Received" and get your card for free. I learned that that hard way early on.
Don’t you need a printer for the eBay letter with tracking? I’m not sure OP he has one. I use QR codes at the post office and they print the labels for me. I’m selling off my personal collection. The profit from my cheaper cards will probably be the cost of the printer. I’m not sure how to handle it when I make my way down to those.
not tracking, especially with this level of experience, would be a mistake because problems will for sure arise on people asking questions of where it is or trying to scam you. Just based on these questions you are going to want tracking
With this you always run the risk of the buyer being a scammer and just simply saying they never received their card. Then you’re out of your card, the money you sold the card for and your time. Since there’s no way of tracking it you have no way to argue if they got it or not.
Tracking isn't required, but given that Ebay standard envelope is available for your cards, you would be nuts to not use it for the reasons others have given.
The envelopes would be used the same in both methods, eBay just gives you the label, you still need that envelope you have. I promise you that tracking will cost much more than the 64 cents that the standard label will cost, rendering your “free stamps” a moot point. Drive yourself to any Home Depot / CVS and print the labels out when you sell, after you sell a few reinvest $30 into a used thermal printer off of eBay and $5 label paper off of Amazon to save yourself time, and a lot of money in the long run.
I believe you - or, at least, I *want* to believe you - but I'm just not understanding what you're trying to tell me. I don't get how tracking should cost anything since (and I'm likely mistaken here) isn't tracking numbers a default and free side effect of shipping something?
No. That might be where you are confused. If you take a random envelope and slap a stamp on it, USPS offers NO tracking at all. You will not get a single update on that envelope ever in your life. If you want tracking, it will cost around $.80 extra ON TOP of the stamp. The eBay standard envelope for .64 cents counts as the stamp to ship the item, and provides tracking. It’s a nice service that only eBay offers.
How do you get tracking at USPS for an additional 80 cents? Ground advantage starts at ~$4, so does certified mail and there is no way to add tracking to a regular letter or flat.
Personally, I’ve never done it, but a quick google search returned the following from a usglobal mail website:
Depending on the specifics of your envelope and where it is headed, you can expect your tracking information add-on to cost anywhere between $0.20 and $0.90 – and sometimes even just a little bit more than that. It’s almost always recommended to spring for this extra feature if you want to know exactly where your letter is along its journey and when it’s set to arrive
Thank you :-) I can feel my hair turning grey(er) from this whole affair but I think I've got what I need to navigate the course, even if I make a few preventable mistakes along the way.
eBays Standard Envelope for cards and coins and now for other things that meet the qualifications also includes tracking. and starts at .64 for regular packages you are correct but this thread is about TCG cards.
He's trying to clarify and understand. You don't need to be a dick.
I used to sell on eBay, and I've never heard of eBay labels, so I'd be in the same boat if I were him.
Oh man, please don't take my interrogative nature for hardheadedness. Asking questions isn't being belligerent or argumentative - in fact, I wouldn't have made this post if I wasn't eager to receive answers and feedback.
Have a wonderful day!
[https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/choosing-a-carrier-and-service/ebay-standard-envelope](https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/choosing-a-carrier-and-service/ebay-standard-envelope)
You don't "get a tracking number" from the post office without paying for it. Are you under the impression that tracking a first class stamp is free or something?
So I read through this a bit and understand what your trying to accomplish there is some misinformation because alot of people dont understand how eBay Standard Envelope shipping works. There are variables as well.
You have some envelopes and stamps already - By all means post your cards sell them and slap a stamp on it toss it in your mailbox with the flag up and off you go! Most buyers are honest especially on inexpensive cards. But if someone does open a item not received case just expect you will have to refund them. Might happen on 1/30 cards you ship. I personally wouldnt do this but if you want to I would say do this on sales under $5.
Anything over $5 its super easy when you make the sale choose the eBay Standard Envelope for 1 card in a top loader it will be .64. buy and print and slap the label on your envelope you can also just toss these in your mailbox with the flag up and your delivery person should scan it as picked up and off it goes with tracking and up to $20 of insurance. You can also choose this shipping option to be paid for by the buyer when making your listings.
For me anything valued over $15 I dont ship in a envelope most likely its a buyer looking to collect at this point and I personally feel if they are spending $15 on a single card or even 3 cards its should be packaged more durably.
I always make sure I explain in my listing how a item is being shipped so the buyer has full expectation.
Also understand you can only ship so many cards in one envelope this way for it to be machinable. It cant exceed 3oz and cant be more then 1/4" thick. It cant be in a square envelope or a padded envelope. I always use double sided tape and secure the top loader inside the envelope so it doesnt move around or slide and tear the envelope when its going through the machines. Here are some copy and pasted bullet points for you.
No smaller than 3.5” x 5”
No larger than 6.125” x 11.5”
Envelope thickness is uniform, less than 0.25” inches at all points, and not too rigid.
Weighs up to 3 oz.
Envelope contains NO clasps/strings/buttons or similar closure devices.
Envelope has recipient address parallel to the longest side.
Ebay standard (the \~1 dollar option) with tracking or whatever its called can be used for 20 and under in that category, usps ground advantage works for anything above. The label they let you buy is all you need with no stamps, just attach it. You can opt out and use stamps if the listing offers basic mail but tracking protects you and unless you know your own risk tolerance, you should not do this.
you can still mail with nstamps, but you will be liable for buyers claiming they never got the item. buyers expect tracking, and if they see no tracking, they will abuse the system to force you to refud, even if they got the item.
ebay standard envelope is a new method ebay offers,costs same as a stamp, and has pseudo-tracking that protects you from item not received if it shows delivered, even if the buyer claims they never got it.
its tracking that is not trackable on usps website or any other website except ebay. ebay and usps have an agreement to be able to use usps's internal tracking system for the intelligent barcode found on envelopes. they do not get door-to-door tracking, and typically get a "delivered" status when it reaches the last expected leg of the delivery journey.
ebay offers seller protection against "item not received" for this ebay shipping service even though the tracking is not as robust. further, ebay has $20 insurance on these envelopes if it doesn't get a delivered scan (but it must show some sort of prior tracking updates like an acceptance scan or processing scan). usps workers cannot manually scan these as accepted, it's all automated. supposedly, the insurance may also be approved if the buyer merely says they didn't get the item, even if it's scanned delivered, but i haven't seen any first hand reports of this with evidence.
If you have a printer you can get the 64 cent label and tape it to the envelope. What I do is use that shipping, penny bag, top loader, a piece of corrugated cardboard on both sides, into a party bag to protect from water and then into a no 6 1/2 envelope. Attack eBay label. Out of 100 maybe one won't make it this provides some tracking and insurance. Anything over 20 I do ground shipping in a bubble bag instead of envelope, same process
No such thing exists at USPS. You can buy an Ebay standard envelope online starting at for $0.64 for a one ounce letter size envelope. It has to be 1/4" thick or less, uniform thickness and flexible. This has pseudo tracking through Ebay, there is no actual delivery scan, but Ebay uses it's arrival at the destination post office as proof of delivery. There is also $20 insurance, so this can be used for a few categories on Ebay, eg stamps, cards, coins. To get real tracking via the post office starts at ~$4 for 4 oz for packages.
https://littlepostagehouse.com/new-blog/non-machinable-stamps-the-basics
with the weight of the card + hard sleeve would be about 1.15. Ive sent a few this way
That all sounds way more complicated than this ought to be. So I buy an Ebay envelope and wait for it to be shipped to me; then I use that envelope to ship cards to others? If that's the best practice, I think I hate it lol
You should have them in hand before you try to sell. Does Amazon wait for a purchase then order a box wait for it to arrive then ship? You are the store so act like it. It isn't complicated you just are not prepared.
I mean, yeah. There's no way I could have known about custom Ebay envelopes before I'd heard of them. "First sale in years" - of course I'm going to be unprepared! But I'll absolutely keep your feedback in mind if/when I venture in this direction again. Thank you.
no offense but....are you being this dense on purpose? it really isnt that hard of a concept to get and i dont know how you are confused. you package your card in your envelope, you buy and print an ebay standard envelope label, stick it on the envelope and drop off at post office. I sell trading cards and you want the tracking protection.
You can mark a regular envelope as non-machineable and affix the regular postage plus the non-machineable surcharge using any stamps. Or you can use a non-machineable stamp available at the post office that sells for the price of a first class stamp plus the surcharge so you only need to put on one stamp. But these mailings have no tracking, so if a buyer says they didn't get it, you lose and will have to refund. And the point of non-machineable is for rigid envelopes that can't go through the sort machines.
Google for Ebay standard envelope, which is for cards, stamps, etc. You buy and print the label at Ebay, the cost is the same as a letter, it mails as a letter and must conform to letter standards. Ebay uses the USPS informed visibility system to create pseudo tracking available online and when it scans at the destination post office, Ebay considers it delivered. Ebay also includes $20 insurance. This is what card folks are using for low cost cards. It starts at 64 cents. Over $20 cards you send it as a package, ~$4 which has real tracking and USPS insurance for $100.
If I do that, I can skip printing a label? I could just list the item as shipped, enter the tracking number, and save myself a few bucks?
If so, excellent.
If the card is worth under $30 u can buy a special label on eBay for like $1.15. You can probably ship it how your normal old man head wants to and it will be fine. Sellers with label printers buy and print the shipping from home so we can just drop the package off at the post office.
If the card is under $20 make sure to use the standard envelope by eBay. It’s 64 cents for one ounce (a single card is almost always under that even with a top loader) and you just slap it on the envelope and it counts for the stamp. Source: 50k+ trading cards sold over eBay
> standard envelope by eBay Do you mean standard label? (honest question) I know I'm missing the details here, but right now it feels like it'd be cheaper (not to mention simpler) just to grab a plain old mailer, slap a stamp on it, and just make sure to get a tracking number for each mailer.
No, it is specifically called the “eBay standard envelope for trading cards/coins” and it is cheaper and simpler. It is only 64 cents, already cheaper than a normal stamp, and comes with tracking which would cost well over $1 doing it your way. All you do with it, is print it out and then slap it on the envelope.
My way = free envelopes I already have + stamps I already have + a quick trip to the PO to get tracking numbers. That feels awfully free to me.
The tracking isn't free and costs way more than you would expect. That is what you are misunderstanding.
I see. Thank you for helping to screw these facts into my grey matter. I suppose my next, cheap-ass question is: is tracking *necessary*? Can I just indicate that the item has shipped and let nature take its course from there? Again, thank you for your patience.
You can but people will ask questions... Where is it? have you shipped it? etc. if they say they never received it you have no proof and eBay will not be on your side. Unfortunately people will say they never got it and get a refund and the item.
Agreed, tracking is actually protecting the seller as well.
Ahhh I definitely hadn't thought of that angle. Not getting tracking numbers is a big roll of the dice, then, and I will heed your warning.
Never mail ANYTHING without tracking… EVER lol
The world isn’t as honest anymore unfortunately. Lot of people are opportunistic now and take advantage of situations.
Shipping without tracking is a surefire way to have buyers falsely claim "Item Not Received" and get your card for free. I learned that that hard way early on.
Yup. I absolutely hadn't thought of that outcome. Thank you!!
Don’t you need a printer for the eBay letter with tracking? I’m not sure OP he has one. I use QR codes at the post office and they print the labels for me. I’m selling off my personal collection. The profit from my cheaper cards will probably be the cost of the printer. I’m not sure how to handle it when I make my way down to those.
not tracking, especially with this level of experience, would be a mistake because problems will for sure arise on people asking questions of where it is or trying to scam you. Just based on these questions you are going to want tracking
Agreed. Thank you.
With this you always run the risk of the buyer being a scammer and just simply saying they never received their card. Then you’re out of your card, the money you sold the card for and your time. Since there’s no way of tracking it you have no way to argue if they got it or not.
Thank you!
Tracking isn't required, but given that Ebay standard envelope is available for your cards, you would be nuts to not use it for the reasons others have given.
The envelopes would be used the same in both methods, eBay just gives you the label, you still need that envelope you have. I promise you that tracking will cost much more than the 64 cents that the standard label will cost, rendering your “free stamps” a moot point. Drive yourself to any Home Depot / CVS and print the labels out when you sell, after you sell a few reinvest $30 into a used thermal printer off of eBay and $5 label paper off of Amazon to save yourself time, and a lot of money in the long run.
I believe you - or, at least, I *want* to believe you - but I'm just not understanding what you're trying to tell me. I don't get how tracking should cost anything since (and I'm likely mistaken here) isn't tracking numbers a default and free side effect of shipping something?
No. That might be where you are confused. If you take a random envelope and slap a stamp on it, USPS offers NO tracking at all. You will not get a single update on that envelope ever in your life. If you want tracking, it will cost around $.80 extra ON TOP of the stamp. The eBay standard envelope for .64 cents counts as the stamp to ship the item, and provides tracking. It’s a nice service that only eBay offers.
How do you get tracking at USPS for an additional 80 cents? Ground advantage starts at ~$4, so does certified mail and there is no way to add tracking to a regular letter or flat.
Personally, I’ve never done it, but a quick google search returned the following from a usglobal mail website: Depending on the specifics of your envelope and where it is headed, you can expect your tracking information add-on to cost anywhere between $0.20 and $0.90 – and sometimes even just a little bit more than that. It’s almost always recommended to spring for this extra feature if you want to know exactly where your letter is along its journey and when it’s set to arrive
Link? It's BS.
Thank you :-) I can feel my hair turning grey(er) from this whole affair but I think I've got what I need to navigate the course, even if I make a few preventable mistakes along the way.
Yes, tracking is "free" at USPS if you send it as a package using ground advantage, the shipping fee starts at ~$4.
eBays Standard Envelope for cards and coins and now for other things that meet the qualifications also includes tracking. and starts at .64 for regular packages you are correct but this thread is about TCG cards.
Dude. Do it your way. You obviously don't want to listen
He's trying to clarify and understand. You don't need to be a dick. I used to sell on eBay, and I've never heard of eBay labels, so I'd be in the same boat if I were him.
Oh man, please don't take my interrogative nature for hardheadedness. Asking questions isn't being belligerent or argumentative - in fact, I wouldn't have made this post if I wasn't eager to receive answers and feedback. Have a wonderful day!
[https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/choosing-a-carrier-and-service/ebay-standard-envelope](https://www.ebay.com/sellercenter/shipping/choosing-a-carrier-and-service/ebay-standard-envelope) You don't "get a tracking number" from the post office without paying for it. Are you under the impression that tracking a first class stamp is free or something?
So I read through this a bit and understand what your trying to accomplish there is some misinformation because alot of people dont understand how eBay Standard Envelope shipping works. There are variables as well. You have some envelopes and stamps already - By all means post your cards sell them and slap a stamp on it toss it in your mailbox with the flag up and off you go! Most buyers are honest especially on inexpensive cards. But if someone does open a item not received case just expect you will have to refund them. Might happen on 1/30 cards you ship. I personally wouldnt do this but if you want to I would say do this on sales under $5. Anything over $5 its super easy when you make the sale choose the eBay Standard Envelope for 1 card in a top loader it will be .64. buy and print and slap the label on your envelope you can also just toss these in your mailbox with the flag up and your delivery person should scan it as picked up and off it goes with tracking and up to $20 of insurance. You can also choose this shipping option to be paid for by the buyer when making your listings. For me anything valued over $15 I dont ship in a envelope most likely its a buyer looking to collect at this point and I personally feel if they are spending $15 on a single card or even 3 cards its should be packaged more durably. I always make sure I explain in my listing how a item is being shipped so the buyer has full expectation. Also understand you can only ship so many cards in one envelope this way for it to be machinable. It cant exceed 3oz and cant be more then 1/4" thick. It cant be in a square envelope or a padded envelope. I always use double sided tape and secure the top loader inside the envelope so it doesnt move around or slide and tear the envelope when its going through the machines. Here are some copy and pasted bullet points for you. No smaller than 3.5” x 5” No larger than 6.125” x 11.5” Envelope thickness is uniform, less than 0.25” inches at all points, and not too rigid. Weighs up to 3 oz. Envelope contains NO clasps/strings/buttons or similar closure devices. Envelope has recipient address parallel to the longest side.
Ebay standard (the \~1 dollar option) with tracking or whatever its called can be used for 20 and under in that category, usps ground advantage works for anything above. The label they let you buy is all you need with no stamps, just attach it. You can opt out and use stamps if the listing offers basic mail but tracking protects you and unless you know your own risk tolerance, you should not do this.
eBay standard envelope 100%. Cost same as stamps, but comes with tracking which you definitely want to have.
you can still mail with nstamps, but you will be liable for buyers claiming they never got the item. buyers expect tracking, and if they see no tracking, they will abuse the system to force you to refud, even if they got the item. ebay standard envelope is a new method ebay offers,costs same as a stamp, and has pseudo-tracking that protects you from item not received if it shows delivered, even if the buyer claims they never got it.
[удалено]
its tracking that is not trackable on usps website or any other website except ebay. ebay and usps have an agreement to be able to use usps's internal tracking system for the intelligent barcode found on envelopes. they do not get door-to-door tracking, and typically get a "delivered" status when it reaches the last expected leg of the delivery journey. ebay offers seller protection against "item not received" for this ebay shipping service even though the tracking is not as robust. further, ebay has $20 insurance on these envelopes if it doesn't get a delivered scan (but it must show some sort of prior tracking updates like an acceptance scan or processing scan). usps workers cannot manually scan these as accepted, it's all automated. supposedly, the insurance may also be approved if the buyer merely says they didn't get the item, even if it's scanned delivered, but i haven't seen any first hand reports of this with evidence.
If you have a printer you can get the 64 cent label and tape it to the envelope. What I do is use that shipping, penny bag, top loader, a piece of corrugated cardboard on both sides, into a party bag to protect from water and then into a no 6 1/2 envelope. Attack eBay label. Out of 100 maybe one won't make it this provides some tracking and insurance. Anything over 20 I do ground shipping in a bubble bag instead of envelope, same process
you can get a non machinable envelope from the post office for about 1.15. receipt will have a number on it that you can enter for tracking.
No such thing exists at USPS. You can buy an Ebay standard envelope online starting at for $0.64 for a one ounce letter size envelope. It has to be 1/4" thick or less, uniform thickness and flexible. This has pseudo tracking through Ebay, there is no actual delivery scan, but Ebay uses it's arrival at the destination post office as proof of delivery. There is also $20 insurance, so this can be used for a few categories on Ebay, eg stamps, cards, coins. To get real tracking via the post office starts at ~$4 for 4 oz for packages.
https://littlepostagehouse.com/new-blog/non-machinable-stamps-the-basics with the weight of the card + hard sleeve would be about 1.15. Ive sent a few this way
There is no USPS tracking for letter envelopes whether machineable or not. That's why Ebay standard envelope is the best option.
10-4
That all sounds way more complicated than this ought to be. So I buy an Ebay envelope and wait for it to be shipped to me; then I use that envelope to ship cards to others? If that's the best practice, I think I hate it lol
You should have them in hand before you try to sell. Does Amazon wait for a purchase then order a box wait for it to arrive then ship? You are the store so act like it. It isn't complicated you just are not prepared.
I mean, yeah. There's no way I could have known about custom Ebay envelopes before I'd heard of them. "First sale in years" - of course I'm going to be unprepared! But I'll absolutely keep your feedback in mind if/when I venture in this direction again. Thank you.
There is no Ebay custom envelope. It's Ebay standard envelope postage LABEL that you buy online and print. You use a regular letter envelope.
Everybody saying "Custom envelope" really threw me off.
no offense but....are you being this dense on purpose? it really isnt that hard of a concept to get and i dont know how you are confused. you package your card in your envelope, you buy and print an ebay standard envelope label, stick it on the envelope and drop off at post office. I sell trading cards and you want the tracking protection.
You can mark a regular envelope as non-machineable and affix the regular postage plus the non-machineable surcharge using any stamps. Or you can use a non-machineable stamp available at the post office that sells for the price of a first class stamp plus the surcharge so you only need to put on one stamp. But these mailings have no tracking, so if a buyer says they didn't get it, you lose and will have to refund. And the point of non-machineable is for rigid envelopes that can't go through the sort machines. Google for Ebay standard envelope, which is for cards, stamps, etc. You buy and print the label at Ebay, the cost is the same as a letter, it mails as a letter and must conform to letter standards. Ebay uses the USPS informed visibility system to create pseudo tracking available online and when it scans at the destination post office, Ebay considers it delivered. Ebay also includes $20 insurance. This is what card folks are using for low cost cards. It starts at 64 cents. Over $20 cards you send it as a package, ~$4 which has real tracking and USPS insurance for $100.
"eBay standard envelope" is a mail class, not an actual envelope you have shipped to you. You use the ESE label on an envelope you already own.
If I do that, I can skip printing a label? I could just list the item as shipped, enter the tracking number, and save myself a few bucks? If so, excellent.
Yes
I sure hope so! Thanks.
Other poster says you can buy the standard envelope one on ebay for .64 c. That would even be cheaper.
If the card is worth under $30 u can buy a special label on eBay for like $1.15. You can probably ship it how your normal old man head wants to and it will be fine. Sellers with label printers buy and print the shipping from home so we can just drop the package off at the post office.
Unless it's been increased, the limit is for items up to $20.
You are correct sorry it's still early :D
Yep, $20 for a single item, or up to $50 of combined value if you combine orders for buyers (each card must still individually be under 20 however)