# TCGplayer Fees Explained: What Sellers and Buyers Actually Pay in 2026

_2026-08-03 · Bill_

Understand every TCGplayer fee — marketplace commission, payment processing, shipping — and how to calculate your true net when selling Riftbound cards.

If you sell on TCGplayer, your real payout is never the sticker price. Between the marketplace commission and payment processing, a typical seller keeps somewhere in the low-to-mid 80% range of each sale before shipping costs — and the exact figure depends on your seller tier and how you fulfil orders. This guide breaks every TCGplayer fee down so you can calculate your true net and decide when another marketplace (or a direct sale) makes more sense.

## The short answer: what does TCGplayer take?

TCGplayer's cost to sellers comes from two stacked layers:

1. **Marketplace commission** — a percentage of the item price, charged on each sale. This is tiered: higher-volume sellers on paid seller programs pay a lower commission rate than casual sellers on the free tier.
2. **Payment processing** — a percentage plus a small fixed per-transaction fee, applied to the total the buyer pays (item + shipping).

On top of that, you carry the actual cost of shipping and supplies. Buyers, meanwhile, don't pay a platform fee directly, but they do pay shipping and any applicable sales tax, which TCGplayer collects and remits.

Because the commission is tiered and processing applies to the full order total, the only reliable way to know your payout is to run the math on each sale. That's exactly what RiftCompare's [cross-store comparison](/tools/deal-finder) does automatically — it shows the all-in cost so you can compare a TCGplayer price against eBay and local stores on equal footing.

## Fee layer 1: marketplace commission

The marketplace commission is the headline fee. It's charged as a percentage of the item's sale price (not including shipping). The rate you pay depends on your seller plan:

- **Casual / free-tier sellers** pay the highest commission percentage.
- **Paid seller-program members** (higher-volume storefronts) pay a reduced commission percentage in exchange for a monthly subscription.

The practical takeaway: if you're moving enough volume, the paid tier's lower commission can more than offset its monthly cost. If you sell only occasionally, the free tier is cheaper overall despite the higher per-sale rate. Calculate your monthly sales volume, multiply by the commission difference, and compare it to the subscription price before upgrading.

## Fee layer 2: payment processing

Payment processing is a separate charge applied to the entire amount the buyer pays — item price plus shipping. It's structured as a percentage plus a fixed per-order fee. Two consequences follow:

- The fixed per-order component **hits small orders hardest**. Selling a $2 common card means the fixed fee eats a large share of the sale, which is why bundling multiple cards into one order is more efficient.
- Because processing applies to shipping too, charging the buyer for shipping doesn't fully "pass through" — you still pay processing on that shipping amount.

## Worked example: selling a $40 Riftbound card

Assume a $40 card, $1 shipping charged to the buyer, a mid-tier commission rate, and standard processing:

| Line | Basis | Effect on your payout |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Item price | — | +$40.00 |
| Shipping collected | — | +$1.00 |
| Marketplace commission | on the $40 item | − a percentage of $40 |
| Payment processing | on the $41 total | − a percentage of $41, plus the fixed per-order fee |
| Your shipping/supply cost | actual | − whatever you spend on a mailer and postage |

Your net = $40 + $1 (shipping collected) − commission − processing − your actual shipping cost. In practice, a seller nets meaningfully less than the $40 sticker. Run this same subtraction for every card, and you'll quickly see which low-value cards aren't worth listing individually.

## TCGplayer fees vs eBay and CardMarket

| Marketplace | Fee shape | Applies to | Best suited to |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| TCGplayer | Tiered commission + separate payment processing | Commission on item only; processing on item + shipping | Bulk and mid-value singles |
| eBay | Final value fee, commonly around 13.25% for trading cards, plus a small per-order fee | The total **including** shipping | Scarce cards where auction demand sets the price |
| CardMarket | Its own commission structure | Europe-focused | EU/UK sellers |
| Direct / local sale | No marketplace commission | — | Local trades; costs you reach and buyer protection |

eBay's auction format also lets demand set the price, which can beat a fixed TCGplayer listing for scarce cards — [our eBay bidding guide](/blog/ebay-bidding-strategies) covers that mechanic from the buyer's side.

The right marketplace depends on the card's value, your location, and your volume. High-value chase cards often net more at auction; bulk and mid-value singles often move most efficiently on TCGplayer. If you're weighing the whole field rather than just these three, [we compared the main Riftbound marketplaces](/blog/best-riftbound-marketplaces) and wrote up [how to choose between them](/blog/how-to-choose-a-riftbound-marketplace).

RiftCompare shows all of these side by side with shipping included, so you can pick the venue that nets you the most.

## How to reduce what you pay in fees

- **Bundle orders:** combine multiple cards into one sale to dilute the fixed per-order processing fee.
- **Match your seller tier to your volume:** upgrade to the paid plan only once your commission savings exceed the subscription.
- **Price with fees baked in:** set your listing price so your post-fee net still beats your floor.
- **Right-size shipping:** use the cheapest tracked method appropriate to the card's value; over-insuring cheap cards wastes money.
- **Check the market first:** use [RiftCompare](/browse) to confirm the going rate before you list, so you don't underprice and lose margin to fees on top. [Browse by set](/sets) or [by champion](/champions) to find the exact printing you're selling.

Selling across a border adds another layer on top of all of this — see [currency conversion fees](/blog/currency-conversion-fees) before you price for an overseas buyer.

## Key takeaways

- TCGplayer sellers pay **two stacked fees**: tiered marketplace commission (on item price) and payment processing (on item + shipping, plus a fixed per-order fee).
- Buyers pay no direct platform fee but do pay shipping and sales tax.
- The fixed per-order fee makes cheap single-card sales inefficient — **bundle them**.
- Upgrade to a paid seller tier only when your volume justifies it.
- Always compare net-of-fees across TCGplayer, eBay, and local stores with RiftCompare before listing.

## Stop guessing your real payout

RiftCompare shows the true all-in price of any Riftbound card across TCGplayer, eBay, and local US/UK/AU/NZ/CA/SG stores — shipping included — so you can price listings that still net a profit after fees. Check the live comparison before your next listing, and start from [the US buying guide](/blog/buy-riftbound-cards-us) if you're selling into the US market.

Source: https://riftcompare.com/blog/tcgplayer-fees