E-Commerce · head to head
Mercari vs Swell Commerce
Mercari
E-Commerce
Japan-founded peer-to-peer resale marketplace with a flat seller commission
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Mercari has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Mercari the flat 10 percent commission plus payment processing fees applies even to very low-value items, so selling something for a few dollars can leave the seller with proportionally little after fees and packaging.; Swell Commerce each plan carries an annual revenue ceiling, and exceeding it is charged as a percentage of the excess: 2 percent on Starter down to 0.4 percent on Unlimited
- They diverge on capability: Mercari covers Flat seller commission, Swell Commerce covers Headless architecture.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Mercari and Swell Commerce actually diverge.
| Attribute | Mercari | Swell Commerce |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $29/month |
| Pricing model | Free to list; 10 percent seller commission on sale price plus payment processing fee | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Web | Web |
| Founded | Unknown | 2019 |
Identical on both: 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 Mercari
- Flat seller commission
- Prepaid shipping labels
- Local pickup and offers
- Smart pricing and price drops
- Mercari authenticity guarantee
- Instant or standard payout
Only in Swell Commerce
- Headless architecture
- GraphQL & REST APIs
- Subscription commerce
- Multi-currency support
- Inventory management
- Custom checkout
- Webhook integrations
- Developer-friendly SDK
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Mercari
- Someone clearing out a wide mix of household items, not just clothing, in one listing appnot Swell Commerce
- A casual seller who wants a flat, predictable commission rather than a tiered fee structurenot Swell Commerce
- A buyer looking for secondhand electronics or general goods alongside apparelnot Swell Commerce
- A seller using local pickup to avoid shipping costs on bulky itemsnot Swell Commerce
Swell Commerce
- Running a headless commerce backend with APIs for a custom storefrontnot Mercari
- Selling subscription products alongside one off purchasesnot Mercari
- Operating multi currency stores from one commerce backendnot Mercari
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Mercari
- The flat 10 percent commission plus payment processing fees applies even to very low-value items, so selling something for a few dollars can leave the seller with proportionally little after fees and packaging.
- Shipping is the seller's responsibility to arrange and package correctly, and disputes over item condition or damage in transit are common friction points in buyer-seller resolution.
- Instant payout carries its own fee on top of the selling and processing fees already deducted, so getting money out quickly costs more than waiting for standard transfer.
- Buyer protection and authenticity verification are limited outside the specific luxury authentication programme, so counterfeit risk on unverified categories rests largely on buyer judgement of listing photos and seller ratings.
- Market depth and typical sale prices vary significantly between the Japan and US versions of the app, and the two operate as largely separate marketplaces despite the shared brand.
Swell Commerce
- Each plan carries an annual revenue ceiling, and exceeding it is charged as a percentage of the excess: 2 percent on Starter down to 0.4 percent on Unlimited
- Starter at $29 a month allows 2 admin users and includes only 100,000 API requests and 1GB of storage per month
- Additional API requests cost $5 per 100,000 and extra storage $5 per GB
- Role based permissions and developer support are restricted to the Unlimited plan at $2,250 a month
- Advanced reports and priced currencies require the Standard plan or higher
- Published prices are the billed yearly rates, so monthly billing costs more
Pricing, plan by plan
Mercari
Free- SellingFree
- 10 percent selling fee on final sale price
- Separate payment processing fee, roughly 2.9 percent plus a fixed amount
- Instant payout carries an additional fee versus standard bank transfer
Swell Commerce
$29/month- Starter$29/month
- Up to $50K annual revenue
- Basic reports
- Up to 5 admin users
- Basic$79/month
- Up to $250K annual revenue
- Most popular plan
- Basic reports
- Standard$299/month
- Up to $1M annual revenue
- Advanced reports
- Up to 15 admin users
- Unlimited$2250/month
- Up to $5M annual revenue
- Unlimited scalability and granular control
- Unlimited admin users
Which should you pick?
Choose Mercari if
- You need flat seller commission.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on iOS, Android, Web.
- You also want prepaid shipping labels.
Choose Swell Commerce if
- You need headless architecture.
- You also want graphql & rest apis.
Questions people ask
- Is Mercari or Swell Commerce better?
- Neither clearly leads. Mercari starts at Free and Swell Commerce at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Mercari or Swell Commerce?
- Mercari has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mercari and $29/month for Swell Commerce.
- Does Mercari or Swell Commerce run on more platforms?
- Mercari runs on iOS, Android, Web. Swell Commerce runs on Web.
- Can I use Mercari for free?
- Yes. Mercari has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Swell Commerce starts at $29/month.
- What is Mercari best used for?
- Mercari is most often used for someone clearing out a wide mix of household items, not just clothing, in one listing app, a casual seller who wants a flat, predictable commission rather than a tiered fee structure, a buyer looking for secondhand electronics or general goods alongside apparel, a seller using local pickup to avoid shipping costs on bulky items. Of those, someone clearing out a wide mix of household items, not just clothing, in one listing app and a casual seller who wants a flat, predictable commission rather than a tiered fee structure are not what Swell Commerce is typically brought in for.
- What can Mercari do that Swell Commerce cannot?
- Mercari covers Flat seller commission, Prepaid shipping labels, Local pickup and offers, Smart pricing and price drops. Swell Commerce covers Headless architecture, GraphQL & REST APIs, Subscription commerce, Multi-currency support.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Mercari: How much does Mercari charge sellers?
A flat 10 percent selling fee on the final sale price in the US, plus a separate payment processing fee, both deducted from the seller payout.
Swell Commerce: How much does Swell Commerce cost?
Swell offers four tiers starting at $29 per month for Starter and going up to $2,250 per month for Unlimited. Annual billing provides a 25% discount compared to monthly billing. All prices are in USD.
SourceMercari: Does the buyer pay any extra platform fee?
No separate platform fee is added at buyer checkout the way Vinted adds a buyer protection fee; the buyer pays the listed price plus shipping if not included.
Swell Commerce: What are Swell's revenue tier overages?
Each plan includes a revenue ceiling based on 12-month trailing sales. Starter allows up to $50K with 2% overage, Basic allows $250K with 1.5% overage, Standard allows $1M with 1% overage, and Unlimited allows $5M with 0.4% overage. Custom plans are available for merchants exceeding $10M annually.
SourceMercari: Is Mercari the same marketplace in Japan and the US?
No, they operate as separate marketplaces under the same brand, with different inventory, pricing and fee history.
Related pages
More on Swell Commerce
Other head to heads
- Mercari vs Vinted
- Mercari vs Depop
- Mercari vs Poshmark
- Mercari vs Temu
- Mercari vs Instacart
- Mercari vs Amazon Shopping
- Mercari vs Shein
- Mercari vs Wish
- Mercari vs eBay
- Mercari vs Algopix
- Mercari vs Etsy
- Mercari vs Gumroad
- Mercari vs Drip
- Mercari vs Ecwid
- Mercari vs Inventory Lab
- Mercari vs KORONA POS
- Mercari vs Magento
- Mercari vs Shopkeep
- Mercari vs Square
- Mercari vs BigCommerce
- Mercari vs Vendure
- Mercari vs Contentful
- Mercari vs Medusa
- Mercari vs Braze
- Mercari vs Oracle Commerce
- Mercari vs Saleor
- Mercari vs Squarespace Commerce
- Mercari vs commercetools
- Mercari vs Printful
- Mercari vs SAP Commerce Cloud
- Mercari vs Square for Retail
- Mercari vs 3dcart
- Swell Commerce vs Vinted
- Swell Commerce vs Depop
- Swell Commerce vs Poshmark
- Swell Commerce vs Temu
- Swell Commerce vs Instacart
- Swell Commerce vs Amazon Shopping
- Swell Commerce vs Shein
- Swell Commerce vs Wish
- Swell Commerce vs eBay
- Swell Commerce vs Algopix
- Swell Commerce vs Etsy
- Swell Commerce vs Gumroad
- Swell Commerce vs Drip
- Swell Commerce vs Ecwid
- Swell Commerce vs Inventory Lab
- Swell Commerce vs KORONA POS
- Swell Commerce vs Magento
- Swell Commerce vs Shopkeep
- Swell Commerce vs Square
- Swell Commerce vs BigCommerce
- Swell Commerce vs Vendure
- Swell Commerce vs Contentful
- Swell Commerce vs Medusa
- Swell Commerce vs Braze
- Swell Commerce vs Oracle Commerce
- Swell Commerce vs Saleor
- Swell Commerce vs Squarespace Commerce
- Swell Commerce vs commercetools
- Swell Commerce vs Printful
- Swell Commerce vs SAP Commerce Cloud
- Swell Commerce vs Square for Retail
- Swell Commerce vs 3dcart