Last Updated on August 29, 2023

I’m sharing 12 of the best online thrift stores to find vintage and second hand clothes from the comfort of your own home!

A lot of people lack access to quality thrift stores or the time to search through hundreds of racks searching for that one hidden gem. This is where online second hand stores can really come in handy! Shopping second hand stores online can be a great way to get good deals and help the planet, especially if you don’t have good thrift stores in town. These are the best second hand online stores to save money, compare prices, and shop sustainably.

shopping second hand stores online

Did you catch my last post on how to master second hand shopping? Be sure to check it out, because #4 is extra important when it comes to shopping from second hand stores online.

Before I go shopping, I always like to have a list of the pieces I’m looking for. As someone who previously had a shopping problem, this prevents me from overbuying and really keeps me on task.

Check out my post Why I Wait 30 Days Before Buying Anything for more information and why you might want to add a waiting practice to your shopping schedule.

best online thrift stores

It’s no secret that secondhand shopping is one of the best ways to reduce your impact and avoid fast fashion.

One of the major advantages of shopping online is that you can search for the really, really specific thing you’re looking for. Shopping from the best thrift stores online allows you to filter your search by color, size, brand, and price point to find something matching your exact criteria. 

And, if you’re looking to sell some of your clothes, be sure to check out my blog post where I’ve rounded up the 7 BEST places to resell your clothes online like Flyp and ThredUp. Speaking of ThredUp, it’s the first stop on our list of best places of best online thrift stores!

best second hand online stores

1. thredup:

I’m a huge fan of ThredUp*. I have probably spent a small fortune on all of the clothes I’ve bought through them. 

Their search function works very well, and all of the clothes I’ve ordered have been very high quality. 

Fabric content is really important to me, and they do a great job of listing those details so I can shop for natural fibers.

Natural fibers are far more breathable, stretch longer between washes, and I don’t have to worry about releasing microplastics into our waterways when washing my clothes.

I also love that I can return items that don’t fit! But, I still try to be really careful with what I purchase because I don’t want to be contributing to a lot of extra carbon miles with returns. 

ThredUp ships in cardboard and tissue paper, keeping things totally plastic free! 

I can always find exactly what I’m looking for on their site. If you haven’t used ThredUp before, you can get $10 off your first purchase!*

For all of these reasons, ThredUp is one of the absolute best second hand online stores, in my opinion.

2. swap:

I just placed my first order from Swap.com* and I’m eagerly awaiting the box to report on the quality of what I receive. The deals are so, so good! Almost too good…. like “What’s the catch?” good. 

Some of the exact same items available on ThredUp are so much cheaper on Swap.com — I wonder if it’s just because they’re a less popular online thrift store? 

I was almost scared to share my newest discovery because I wanted to keep it all for myself!! The deals are sooooo good. 

Swap.com isn’t the best at listing out their fiber content, so it doesn’t hurt to double check online. In the above graphic, you can see that they list polyester/silk whereas thredup just lists silk.

With a quick double check on Google, I can see that the garment is 100% silk. I will definitely report back on how the quality is. Get 40% off your first order!*

EDIT:  I received my first box from swap.com and the quality is amazing!! Unfortunately, everything in the box was wrapped individually in plastic.

I will be sending the company an email because that was a real bummer. 

You can only return items for store credit, so I decided to keep what I ordered, and I filmed a fall haul on YouTube with the items I got. 

I spent $150 on the box for 12 really amazing pieces made out of silk, cotton, tencel, and other natural fibers. I’m absolutely thrilled with the quality of these pieces, and I hope they’ll update their packaging soon.

3. poshmark:

Poshmark is a great app, but you can’t return what you buy, so you have to be really careful. 

I think a lot of the items on Poshmark are overpriced by about 20%, but it’s great if you know exactly what you’re looking for.

My favorite pair of sandals in the whole world were worn to death.

They were completely beyond repair, and even though I had bought them three years ago, I was able to snap up a BRAND NEW pair!

On the whole, I still prefer the safety of being able to return what I buy.

So, if you’re going shopping on this site, make sure that you ask lots of questions, know your measurements, and don’t forget to ask the seller for plastic free packaging!

4. ebay:

I have purchased quite a few pieces, as well as homewares, off of eBay. My mom was super into eBay when the site first launched, and she used to buy and sell all the time. She even taught me a few tips and tricks. 

Whenever I’m looking for something specific, I turn to eBay. Some sellers allow you to return, but others don’t. So, always double check if you’re not sure that what you’re buying will fit. 

When you purchase on eBay, make sure that you leave a note to the seller asking that the items are shipped without any plastic, and make sure that you check the secondhand box on the left hand side to ensure that you’re getting a preloved item.  

RELATED POST: Is Online Shopping Eco-Friendly?

5. vestaire collective:

Vestaire Collective skews more towards high-end and luxury designers. Similar to Poshmark or Depop, Vestaire simply acts as the connector — pairing individual sellers to buyers.

Last year for Mother’s Day, I bought my mom a really nice scarf from Vestaire Collective, and the process couldn’t have been easier.

The big difference is that Vestaire authenticates their seller’s items. Before the scarf was sent to my mom, it first went through authentication to ensure it wasn’t a fake item. This is a great addition to security if you’re interested in buying luxury items.

6. etsy:

Etsy is full of vintage and secondhand treasures from all over the world. I’ve ordered a few vintage pieces off etsy and have been incredibly happy with my purchases.

Sellers are typically really responsive and good about listing materials and sizing. Some sellers offer returns, but not many. Just be sure to double check before purchasing.

Etsy is also the first major online shopping destination to offset 100% of carbon emissions from shipping. So every time you purchase an item on Etsy, they balance out the carbon emissions by creating positive environmental impact.

If you want to reduce packaging waste, send a DM to the seller and ask for your package to be plastic free or for them to reuse a shipping envelope!

6.5. test of time vintage

Sophia Esperanza has an amazing Etsy shop she just opened full of vintage, antique, and second-hand pieces. These are curated pieces that have been passed on from generation to generation. You can find items from the 50s to the 90s here.

Sophia says “we began Test of Time Vintage to give clothing another life. Between vintage and new sustainable garments – we believe we can turn the tide on fashion pollution.”

You can find all kinds of garments here like shirts, dresses, bottoms, scarves, and hats. You can follow Test of Time Vintage on Instagram to learn when new additions have been added to the shop.

six online second hand stores i have not personally tried 

I have not ordered from these other online second hand stores, so I can’t attest to their quality or how they work — but I have been a serial browser on Real Real and Tradesy!

7. Tradesy

8. Grailed

9. Vinted

10. Depop

11. ReBag

12. The Real Real

faqs

does shopping from the best thrift stores online product carbon emissions?

Pretty much all online shopping will. However, by taking some precautionary steps while shopping from the best thrift stores online, you can still shop sustainably. Certain shops like Poshmark allow you to select plastic free packaging, and Etsy offsets emissions for all of their orders. Also, avoid returning items whenever possible so you don’t produce more emmissions by sending things back.

why is shopping second hand so important?

By shopping secondhand — even when you do so online — you reduce energy consumption and pollution, help to recycle plastics, tame our growing landfills, and more. The fashion industry is infamous for the waste it produces, but you also can’t go without clothes. Shopping second hand reduces that waste and still allows you to be fashionable.

Do you have online second hand stores that you love to frequent? 

This post contains affiliate linking. It’s denoted with an asterisk. This means if you choose to purchase one of these items I will make a slight commission for referring you. You can read more on my disclosure page.