eBay
eBay is a 30-year-old marketplace where returns, shipping, and pricing are seller-controlled, with the eBay Money Back Guarantee serving as the critical platform-level buyer protection. Trust ratings are sharply bifurcated: the mobile apps earn 4.6-4.7 stars from millions of users, while independent review sites like Trustpilot and Sitejabber skew negative due to seller disputes. No loyalty program exists since eBay Bucks was discontinued in 2021.
Return Policy
B- Return window
- 30 days
- Holiday extension
- No
- Restocking fee
- Seller-set; many sellers charge 15-20% restocking fees
- Return shipping
- Varies by seller — buyer pays unless seller opts into free returns
- In-store returns
- No
- Receipt required
- No
eBay Money Back Guarantee backs buyers for virtually all listings, but each seller sets their own return policy. Standard eBay policy is 30 days; some sellers offer 60. 'No Returns' listings still have Money Back Guarantee coverage for significantly-not-as-described items.
Price Matching
F- Offers price matching
- No
eBay is a marketplace — no platform-level price matching. Buyers rely on auction/BIN dynamics and Best Offer negotiations with individual sellers.
Shipping
B-- Standard delivery
- 3–5 days
- Same-day delivery
- No
- Store pickup
- No
- International shipping
- Yes
Shipping is seller-controlled. Many listings offer free shipping. eBay Guaranteed Delivery program (for qualifying listings) commits to arrival dates. eBay International Shipping (successor to the Global Shipping Program, which was retired in 2023) handles international orders.
Payment Methods
- Apple Pay (online)
- Yes
- Apple Pay (in-store)
- No
- Google Pay
- Yes
- PayPal
- Yes
- Buy Now, Pay Later
- Afterpay, Klarna
- Store credit card
- Yes
- Gift cards
- Yes
Loyalty Program
N/A- Program name
- None (eBay Bucks discontinued April 2021)
- Free to join
- Yes
eBay discontinued eBay Bucks in April 2021. No general-purpose loyalty/rewards program today. eBay Plus (paid subscription) was sunset in US markets.
Customer Service
- Live chat
- business hours
- Phone support
- business hours
- Email support
- Yes
Pricing Transparency
A-- Fake sales frequency
- low
- Strikethrough honesty
- mixed
- Dynamic pricing used
- No
eBay's core model is auction/BIN — prices are seller-set. Some sellers use inflated strikethroughs but the platform itself doesn't manufacture sales events. Dynamic pricing isn't algorithmic at the platform level.
Privacy & Data Practices
- Sells customer data
- Yes
- Targeted advertising
- Yes
- Account required to shop
- No
- 2014: ~145M user accounts breached via compromised employee credentials (full names, encrypted passwords, DOB, addresses exposed).
Third-Party Trust Ratings
- Trustpilot
- 1.4 / 5 (24,000 reviews)
- Better Business Bureau
- B+
- Sitejabber
- 2.1 / 5
- Knoji
- 4.1 / 5
- Apple App Store
- 4.7 / 5
- Google Play
- 4.6 / 5
Company
- Legal name
- eBay Inc.
- Headquarters
- San Jose, California, USA
- Founded
- 1995
- Ticker
- NASDAQ: EBAY
- Annual revenue
- $10.1B
- Employees
- 11,800
- Website
- https://www.ebay.com
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EBay
- https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/ebay-money-back-guarantee-policy
- https://www.ebay.com/help/buying/returns-refunds/returning-item
- https://www.trustpilot.com/review/ebay.com
- https://www.bbb.org/us/ca/san-jose/profile/online-retailer/ebay-inc-1216-72002332
- https://www.sitejabber.com/reviews/ebay.com
- https://ebay.knoji.com/reviews/
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ebay-online-shopping-selling/id282614216
- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ebay.mobile
- https://investors.ebayinc.com/
- https://community.ebay.com/t5/Announcements/eBay-Bucks-Program-Ending/ba-p/31891430
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