Whatnot lowers its commission rates to accelerate business growth

Selling more on Whatnot soon means paying a lower commission rate.

Starting next week, we’re fundamentally changing how commission rates work on Whatnot. As your sales reach new thresholds, you’ll automatically unlock progressively lower rates for the next four-week period. It’s one of the biggest changes we’ve made for sellers since Whatnot started, helping more of every sale stay with you.

Because Whatnot only takes commission on sales, excluding tax and shipping costs (more on this below!), our rates are already competitive, whether you’re running your first show or selling full-time. Now, they can get even better as you scale, reaching as low as 3%. There’s nothing to apply for and nothing to enroll in.

Our sellers are what made this possible. The businesses you’ve built have brought more buyers, products, and communities to Whatnot. As the marketplace has expanded, we’ve gained new ways to support what sellers are building here. Lower commission rates, built into how Whatnot works rather than offered as a limited-time promotion, are the next step.

More sellers are turning what they love into a living

Across Whatnot, sellers are building bigger businesses. Today, 1 in 8 sells full-time on the platform, and in the last year alone, the number of sellers with more than $1 million in lifetime sales has more than doubled.

Growth often comes with a series of decisions: buy more inventory, hire an employee, move into a larger space, or run more shows. We’re lowering commission rates to make it easier to say yes to that next investment.

Eyen Duque, who leads e-commerce operations at Arkollab, saw that firsthand. After participating in the pilot and unlocking lower commission rates on Whatnot, Arkollab roughly doubled its monthly sales while saving thousands of dollars each month. The company reinvested those savings into its team, including better incentives for live sellers and more people to support additional shows.

Arkollab is aiming even higher. “Now that we can see other companies generating more than $1 million in monthly sales, that has become our next major goal,” Duque said. “We want to reach the highest sales tiers, qualify for the lowest possible commission rates and go full throttle with our live selling operations on Whatnot.”

Not every seller is trying to build a company that size, and there’s no single definition of success. What matters is that sellers are reaching new levels on Whatnot, and our fee structure should support them as they do.

How lower commission rates work

Our new structure is built to scale with you. Your total sales from the previous four weeks will determine your tier for the next four weeks. Each tier sets your commission rate by category for all sales during the next four-week period.

In the U.S., Tier 1 starts at $15,000 in total sales over four weeks. It’s a milestone sellers can grow into quickly: nearly 1 in 5 sellers generating $15,000+ in the last four weeks were generating less than $5,000 in four weeks six months earlier.

There are a lot of ways to get there. At a $25 average order value, $15,000 works out to about 150 orders a week. Reach $15,000, and you'll automatically unlock a lower commission rate for the next four-week period. Keep growing, and there are additional thresholds with even lower rates.

Lower rates mean more money stays with you to put toward whatever comes next: more inventory, another show each week, help packing orders, a better setup, or more money in your pocket.

Your commission is based on the item price, not the total 

Even at the base tier of 8%, Whatnot offers some of the lowest commission costs in the industry. One reason is what our commission rate applies to. Whatnot uniquely calculates commission using Gross Merchandise Value, or GMV, meaning we charge commission only on the price of the item(s) you sell. Most other marketplaces use Gross Transaction Value, or GTV, which can include taxes and buyer-paid shipping. Because of that difference, a marketplace advertising a lower rate can still charge you a higher fee. 

Here’s an example: say you sell an item for $10. On Whatnot, commission is calculated on that $10. On another marketplace, commission may be calculated on a total closer to $15 when you add in shipping and taxes. That difference can add up. With lower rates as you grow, sellers have an even greater opportunity to reinvest in their businesses.

So when you compare fees, look at both the rate and what it applies to. On Whatnot, you are only paying commission on what you sell. 

When more sellers succeed, the whole marketplace gets stronger

This change is possible because of the businesses sellers have built here. As more sellers grow, more buyers come to Whatnot to shop, discover new products, and find shows they love. That makes the marketplace stronger and gives us more ways to invest back into the seller experience.

Lower commission rates are one way we’re building for that next stage. Coming this month.