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E-Commerce · head to head

eBay vs Retail Pro

E

eBay

E-Commerce

Global marketplace where sellers list into eBay's audience under eBay's fee schedule and rules

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Retail Pro logo

Retail Pro

E-Commerce

Comprehensive retail management software

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: eBay the final value fee applies to the total the buyer pays including postage and tax rather than to the item price, so a low value item with expensive shipping loses a much larger share of its margin than the headline percentage implies.; Retail Pro pricing details not disclosed; requires sales consultation
  • They diverge on capability: eBay covers Auction and fixed price listings, Retail Pro covers Point of sale.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which eBay and Retail Pro actually diverge.

Attributes where eBay and Retail Pro differ
AttributeeBayRetail Pro
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
PlatformsWebiOS, Android, Windows
FoundedUnknown1988

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (E-Commerce).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in eBay

  • Auction and fixed price listings
  • Managed payments
  • eBay Stores
  • Promoted Listings
  • Bulk listing tools
  • International selling programmes
  • Money Back Guarantee
  • Seller performance standards

Only in Retail Pro

  • Point of sale
  • Inventory management
  • Customer database
  • Employee management
  • Sales analytics
  • Promotion management
  • Multi-store support
  • Reporting tools

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

eBay

  • Selling used, refurbished or one-off stock that has no natural search demand on its own sitenot Retail Pro
  • Parts and spares catalogues where buyers search by fitment rather than by brandnot Retail Pro
  • Liquidating returns or excess inventory without building an audience for itnot Retail Pro
  • Testing whether demand exists for a product line before investing in a standalone storefrontnot Retail Pro

Retail Pro

  • Multi-location retail POS operations (1 to 250+ stores)not eBay
  • Inventory management with serialized product trackingnot eBay
  • Customer loyalty programs via AppCard integrationnot eBay

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

eBay

  • The final value fee applies to the total the buyer pays including postage and tax rather than to the item price, so a low value item with expensive shipping loses a much larger share of its margin than the headline percentage implies.
  • Fees stack rather than substitute, since a Store subscription, a per order fixed fee, Promoted Listings and cross-border percentages all apply on top of the category rate, and the effective take rate is only visible after a full month of settlement reports.
  • eBay controls search placement, so as a category gets competitive the practical cost of visibility becomes the Promoted Listings rate, and that is an auction against other sellers that only goes one way.
  • You do not get the customer relationship, because eBay mediates messaging and does not supply a marketing list, so repeat business depends on eBay showing your listing again rather than on anything you own.
  • The account is the entire asset and it is governed by policies eBay enforces unilaterally, so a suspension or a category restriction ends the revenue immediately with no portable equivalent of a domain, a theme or a customer database to move elsewhere.

Retail Pro

  • Pricing details not disclosed; requires sales consultation
  • No published technical requirements or system specifications
  • International deployment requires fiscal/tax compliance consultation per region

Pricing, plan by plan

eBay

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the eBay review.

Retail Pro

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Retail Pro review.

Which should you pick?

Choose eBay if

  • You need auction and fixed price listings.
  • You also want managed payments.
eBay review

Choose Retail Pro if

  • You need point of sale.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Windows.
  • You also want inventory management.
Retail Pro review

Questions people ask

Is eBay or Retail Pro better?
Neither clearly leads. eBay starts at On request and Retail Pro at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, eBay or Retail Pro?
eBay starts at On request and Retail Pro at On request.
Does eBay or Retail Pro run on more platforms?
eBay runs on Web. Retail Pro runs on iOS, Android, Windows.
What is eBay best used for?
eBay is most often used for selling used, refurbished or one-off stock that has no natural search demand on its own site, parts and spares catalogues where buyers search by fitment rather than by brand, liquidating returns or excess inventory without building an audience for it, testing whether demand exists for a product line before investing in a standalone storefront. Of those, selling used, refurbished or one-off stock that has no natural search demand on its own site and parts and spares catalogues where buyers search by fitment rather than by brand are not what Retail Pro is typically brought in for.
What can eBay do that Retail Pro cannot?
eBay covers Auction and fixed price listings, Managed payments, eBay Stores, Promoted Listings. Retail Pro covers Point of sale, Inventory management, Customer database, Employee management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

eBay: What does selling on eBay actually cost?

A category-dependent percentage of the total buyer payment including postage, plus a fixed fee per order, plus any Store subscription, advertising rate and international fees. Model all of them together, not the first one alone.

Retail Pro: How much does Retail Pro cost?

Retail Pro does not publish specific pricing on its website. The company describes a 'Pay As You Grow' model but directs interested retailers to request a consultation or brochure to obtain actual pricing quotes customized to their business needs.

Source
eBay: Can I use my own payment provider?

No. Payments run through eBay and settle to your bank account on eBay's payout schedule, so you do not choose the processor and you do not control settlement timing.

eBay: Do I get my customers' email addresses?

Not for marketing. eBay mediates buyer contact, which is why sellers who rely on it have no list to fall back on if the channel changes.

eBay: Is eBay an alternative to having my own store?

It is a channel, not a substitute. Sellers who use it well treat it as demand they rent while building something they own in parallel.

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