What it is
ThredUp is the largest online secondhand clothing marketplace, with over 55,000 brands and 4 million items in stock at any time. Buyers browse by size, brand, condition, and price. Sellers use a Clean Out Kit: fill a bag, ship it free, and ThredUp photographs, prices, and lists items. The company processes over 100,000 items per day through its distribution centers. Condition grades range from 'like new' to 'good.'
Why we picked this
Extending the life of a garment by just 9 months reduces its carbon, water, and waste footprints by 20 to 30% each. ThredUp makes secondhand as convenient as buying new: search by brand and size, read condition descriptions, and return if it does not fit. The Clean Out Kit removes the friction of selling: no photographing, no pricing, no dealing with buyers. For households trying to reduce their fashion footprint, ThredUp is the highest-impact, lowest-effort option. Buy secondhand, sell what you no longer wear, repeat.
Key takeaways
- Extending a garment's life by 9 months reduces its carbon footprint by 20 to 30%, making secondhand purchasing one of the highest-impact consumer actions.
- ThredUp processes over 100,000 items daily, making it the largest curated secondhand marketplace with quality control that random thrift stores cannot match.
- The secondhand clothing market is projected to reach $350 billion by 2028, growing 3x faster than the overall apparel market as consumer preferences shift.