Whatnot Fee Calculator 2026
By Sarah Davis and Axis Intelligence Research · Last updated October 7, 2026
Whatnot Fee & Profit Calculator
Updated for Whatnot’s tiered commission rates (Sept 21, 2026) · 6 markets · Axis Intelligence Research
Your sale
Your profit per item
| Sale price | — |
| Whatnot commission | — |
| Payment processing | — |
| Total Whatnot fees | — |
| Payout before your costs | — |
Your commission tier
| Tier | 4-week sales | Rate |
Estimates from Whatnot’s published rate card as of October 5, 2026. Promotional and custom rates are not modeled; your order receipt in Seller Hub shows the exact amount charged. © Axis Intelligence Research
Quick answer:
On a $50 Whatnot sale with no shipping or tax in the order, a US seller at the Standard tier pays $4.00 in commission (8%) and $1.75 in payment processing (2.9% + $0.30), or $5.75 total. Since September 21, 2026, commission drops by tier as your four-week sales grow, to as low as 3.5% on coins and 4% in some categories.
What This Tool Does
The Axis Intelligence Research Whatnot Fee Calculator turns a winning bid into what you actually keep: commission, payment processing, VAT where it applies, and profit after your item cost. It runs the new tiered commission card for six markets, finds the minimum price you need for a target profit, shows your break-even starting bid, totals a whole show, and projects which tier you’ll unlock next period.
How Much Does Whatnot Take From a Sale in 2026?
Two fees come out of every order. Commission is charged on the item’s sale price only, never on buyer-paid shipping or tax. Payment processing is charged on the whole order the buyer pays, item plus shipping plus tax, with a fixed amount on top.
That split is where most “what will I get” guesses go wrong. A $10 card with $4.99 shipping pays commission on $10 but processing on $14.99, so the flat $0.30 and the shipping-inflated base weigh far more on cheap lots than on slabs. At $10, processing alone runs roughly 7% of the item price once that shipping is in the base; at $500 it’s about 3%.
| Fee | US, Canada, Australia | UK and EU |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | Tier rate by category, on item price | Tier rate by category, on item price, plus VAT |
| Payment processing | 2.9% + 0.30 on total order | 2.42% + 0.25 on total order, plus VAT |
| Listing / subscription | None | None |
Rates as of October 5, 2026.
What Are Whatnot’s New Tiered Commission Rates?
Whatnot replaced its flat commission with a tier ladder on September 21, 2026. Your combined sales across all categories in a 28-day period set your tier; the category of each sale then sets the rate inside that tier. A tier you earn applies to the next period, not the current one.
US commission rates by tier
| Tier | 4-week sales | Sports | TCG | Fashion | Other Collectibles | Coins | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $0–$14,999 | 8.00% | 8.00% | 8.00% | 8.00% | 4.00% | 8.00% |
| Tier 1 | $15,000–$34,999 | 7.75% | 7.75% | 7.00% | 7.25% | 3.90% | 7.00% |
| Tier 2 | $35,000–$49,999 | 7.50% | 7.50% | 6.50% | 6.50% | 3.80% | 6.50% |
| Tier 3 | $50,000–$99,999 | 7.25% | 7.25% | 5.50% | 6.00% | 3.70% | 5.50% |
| Tier 4 | $100,000–$249,999 | 7.00% | 7.00% | 5.00% | 5.00% | 3.60% | 4.00% |
| Tier 5 | $250,000–$499,999 | 6.75% | 6.75% | 4.50% | 5.00% | 3.55% | 4.00% |
| Tier 6 | $500,000+ | 6.50% | 6.50% | 4.50% | 5.00% | 3.50% | 4.00% |
Read the columns, not just the rows. Fashion and “Other” sellers fall from 8% to 4.5% and 4% at the top; sports and card sellers only reach 6.5%. For a breaker moving $40,000 a period, the ladder is worth half a point. For a fashion seller at the same volume, it’s a point and a half — three times the discount on the same dollars.
Canada and Australia
Canada uses the US rates with thresholds in Canadian dollars (C$10,000, 20,000, 35,000, 50,000, 65,000 and 85,000). Australia uses thresholds of A$10,000, 20,000, 35,000, 70,000, 100,000 and 130,000, with sports and TCG stepping down faster to 6% at the top.
UK and EU
UK, German, Austrian and Dutch sellers start at 6.67% (plus VAT) in every vertical except coins, with thresholds at 10,000, 20,000, 35,000, 50,000, 65,000 and 85,000 in local currency. France and Belgium charge a flat 4% on sports and TCG at every tier.
Does Whatnot Charge Commission Above $1,500?
Not in eligible categories. On a single order, commission stops at the first 1,500 (USD, AUD, EUR or GBP) for Comics & Anime, Toys & Hobbies, Coins & Money, Trading Card Games, Entertainment Cards, Sports Singles, Bags & Accessories, and Jewelry & Watches. Sports breaks and surprise products are excluded. Processing still applies to the full order.
On a $2,000 card at the Standard tier, that means $120 in commission instead of $160 — the calculator applies the cap when the box is ticked. Whatnot labels this a limited-time promotion, so treat it as a rate that can disappear.
How to Find Your Minimum Starting Bid on Whatnot
Switch the tool to Target profit → price and enter what you want to clear per item. The calculator solves for the sale price that covers commission, processing and your cost. The break-even starting bid card does the same at zero profit: any auction that closes under it loses money.
That number matters more on Whatnot than on a fixed-price marketplace, because a $1 start can close at $1. If your break-even on a $20 item is $22.78, a $1 start is a bet that the room will carry it three times further.
How Is Your Next Whatnot Tier Calculated?
Whatnot projects your period total as sales so far ÷ days elapsed × 28. Enter both in the tier panel and the calculator applies that same formula: $10,000 by day 14 projects to $20,000. The panel also prices the gap — how much more you’d need to sell to reach the next tier and how much less you’d pay per item once you do.
Cancellations come off your total, and private shows and local pickup orders don’t count toward it. Each seller account earns its own tier.
The Live Seller Keep Rate (LSKR)
The calculator reports one Axis Intelligence Research metric: the Live Seller Keep Rate, the share of each sale dollar you keep after Whatnot’s fees and your own costs.
LSKR = (sale price − commission − processing − VAT on fees − item cost − other costs) ÷ sale price × 100
A $50 item that cost $20, at the US Standard tier with no shipping in the order, keeps $24.25 — an LSKR of 48.5%. The effective fee rate alone ($5.75 on $50) is 11.5%. The gap between those two numbers is your sourcing cost, which is why LSKR, not the commission rate, is the figure to compare across categories and price points.
Why It Matters
Whatnot’s headline rate now varies by tier, category, market and order size at once. A seller who still budgets on a flat 8% will misprice coin lots (4%) and over-estimate fees at volume, while a seller who forgets processing runs on shipping will under-estimate costs on every low-price auction. The calculator puts all four variables on one screen.
Limitations
- Promotional rates (new-seller 0% fees, launch or category promos) and custom rates for the largest sellers are not modeled.
- The Premier Shop 10% commission discount is included only through October 31, 2026, when Whatnot ends it.
- The 1,500 cap isn’t listed for Canadian dollars, so it is disabled for Canada.
- Category mapping is yours: choose the vertical Whatnot assigns to your show (live) or product (marketplace).
- VAT on fees depends on your registration status; enter your rate if you are not VAT-registered.
- Shipping labels, supplies and income tax vary by seller and are inputs, not defaults.
Your order receipt in Seller Hub shows the exact amount charged.
Data Freshness
Rate card constants last verified October 5, 2026.
FAQ
What percentage does Whatnot take from sellers?
At the US Standard tier, 8% commission on the item plus 2.9% + $0.30 processing on the full order. Coins are 4%. Higher four-week sales lower the commission.
Does Whatnot take fees on shipping?
Commission no; processing yes. Buyer-paid shipping and tax are part of the processing base.
What is the lowest Whatnot commission rate?
The lowest public US rates are 3.5% on coins and 4% in the “Other” vertical. Rates as low as 3% are custom terms for the highest-volume sellers.
When does a new Whatnot tier take effect?
At the start of your next 28-day period. Your rate is locked for the current one.
Are Whatnot fees lower than 8% for new sellers?
New sellers start at the Standard tier unless a promotion applies.