Amazon and eBay have been around for about the same time, eBay having opened for business in 1995 and Amazon in 1997. Both websites have retained popularity over the years and are the top eCommerce sites in the world!
However, there is much debate about which online store is better. Many consumers claim Amazon is the best but is that the case? If you’d like to find out, keep reading to see what I learned!
Is Amazon Better than eBay?
Amazon and eBay are both better for different reasons. Amazon is known to have a better customer experience due to perks like Prime shipping and its wide selection of products. However, eBay is considered a better website for independent sellers, as they offer lower membership fees and fewer restrictions for seller’s accounts.
Keep reading through this article if you’d like to learn more about how Amazon compares to eBay with its prices, shipping, customer service, seller accounts, and other categories!
Is Amazon Cheaper than eBay?
Amazon’s prices, in comparison to eBay, differ depending on the region a customer lives in as well as the products they’re searching for.
eBay is a good place for bargains if customers search for used, handmade, or antique/vintage products, as these products are quite prevalent on their website.
However, if customers are searching for brand-new products, Amazon usually has better deals for items like electronics, books, and other products that can be pricey in other stores.
Does Amazon Have Better Shipping than eBay?
Amazon has better and faster shipping than eBay due to its Amazon Prime services. While Amazon’s shipping may be more expensive, customers can receive packages as early as the same day they ordered.
With eBay, however, packages can sometimes take weeks to arrive. Unlike Amazon, eBay doesn’t have FBA services attached to their shipping, which makes fulfilling orders more time-consuming, thus resulting in delayed shipping times.
Therefore, while eBay may have cheaper shipping prices, Amazon’s model for shipping and fulfilling orders is faster, more reliable, and considered worth the Prime membership.
Is Amazon More Trustworthy than eBay?
eBay has had issues in recent years with hosting scammers on its website. Due to this, many customers have been cheated out of their money, causing many consumers to be still wary of purchasing from eBay.
However, Amazon has higher detection for scammers. Amazon will often suspend sellers who aren’t following their rules and regulations, which has weeded out many counterfeit sellers from Amazon’s database.
Therefore, many customers feel safer purchasing items from Amazon, as any counterfeit situation will likely be dealt with quickly, posing a little risk for shoppers.
It should be noted, however, that while Amazon is trusted by consumers more than eBay, eBay does offer protection to customers when they have been the victim of a scam.
Is Amazon Better for Sellers than eBay?
Amazon is better for sellers whose business requires a fixed-price business model. Amazon sellers will list their products at a specific price and receive that payment in full when a customer makes a purchase.
However, eBay lists products at auction, meaning sellers may not always receive the price for an item they wished for.
As well, when sellers choose to use the fixed price model for eBay, they will only receive a certain percentage of sales. Therefore, they must sell at much higher prices to break even.
Therefore, Amazon is better for larger businesses that require the structure of a fixed-price model. However, small businesses that sell handmade, vintage, or artisan items may find better success with eBay’s business model!
Also, Amazon has gated product categories that make selling more difficult for companies operating within certain niches.
However, eBay only restricts certain products, which leaves more room for selling within a certain category.
Is Amazon’s Customer Service Better than eBay?
According to previous customers of both eBay and Amazon, eBay has issues with customer service when it comes to resolving issues such as payments and providing feedback.
Amazon’s customer service is also quite flawed in that emails and messages for assistance often go unanswered, or customer service representatives are unable to resolve issues that the website states otherwise.
Overall, both customer service models are quite flawed. However, Amazon does offer more avenues for receiving help, whereas finding assistance on eBay can be more difficult.
Does Amazon Have Better Product Selection than eBay?
Amazon and eBay have very different product selections, which means that one will have better options depending on the type of items customers are searching for.
If customers are more interested in purchasing vintage, antique, handmade, artisan, and used items, eBay has a wider selection of these products.
However, Amazon has a better selection of new and refurbished items such as cell phones, computers, mattresses, and other more high-end products.
Therefore, customers will find better products on both websites depending on the niche they are searching for products in.
Is Amazon Better for Small Businesses than eBay?
Both Amazon and eBay are good for small businesses, depending on the type of businesses a seller needs an account for.
eBay is a good platform for small businesses that only sell a limited number of products per month, such as handmade goods, antiques, collectibles, and other similar items that do not rely on consistent sales.
However, businesses that require more consistency in sales are further ahead to use Amazon, as their pricing policies are set up for fixed prices.
Additionally, Amazon is set up to fulfill orders for shipping much quicker, reducing the work small businesses have to do when sending orders to their customers!
To learn more about Amazon, you can also see our related articles on whether or not Amazon is an ethical company, if Amazon is safe to shop on, and why Amazon shipping is slow.
Conclusion
Amazon is generally considered a better platform for customer experiences and for businesses that require more consistency in sales and profits.
However, eBay is regarded as being more beneficial for small niche businesses due to its lower membership fees. Therefore, both companies are equally beneficial for different reasons.
