Delivery on Gumtree: How to Post What You Sell

Delivery is switched on per ad, and only in the categories Gumtree has opened up so far: clothing and fashion, sports apparel, kids' toys and baby items, entertainment (books, games, DVDs) and home textiles. The item must be priced at £250 or less. Watches, high-value jewellery and vinyl records are excluded even though they would otherwise fit, and Gumtree has said more categories will be added through 2026. Furniture, phones, bikes, cars and anything over £250 stay collection-only, arranged in messages as before.

Because the service runs on Evri, Evri's limits apply to the parcel itself: 15 kg, a longest side of 120 cm and a combined size (length plus twice the width plus twice the height) of 245 cm, or 62 × 57 × 39 cm if you use an Evri locker. Within the eligible categories that is rarely a problem; a coat, a bundle of children's clothes or a boxed board game all fit comfortably.

When you tick delivery you choose a parcel size, and that choice sets the delivery price the buyer sees. Gumtree's own rules make the seller responsible for 'selecting the correct size of the parcel' and warn that additional charges may apply if the actual weight or size exceeds the selection. Weigh the item packed, measure the packed dimensions and pick the size that matches; a parcel that turns out bigger than declared can be surcharged or refused at the counter.

Delivery is always charged to the buyer and added to the order automatically, so you do not need to work out postage or build it into the price. The buyer also pays a buyer protection fee of between 5% and 10% of the item price, depending on value and category. Listing itself is free.

Once a buyer pays, Gumtree provides a prepaid Evri label. You can print it at home and attach it, or use the QR code: show it at any of Evri's 9,000-plus ParcelShops and staff print and apply the label, or scan it at an Evri locker and the terminal prints it. The buyer chooses at checkout whether the parcel comes to their door or to an Evri shop or locker for collection. Tracking is enabled automatically and linked to the order.

You must send the item within 7 calendar days of the purchase — calendar days, not working days, so a Friday sale needs to be on its way by the following Friday. Use the label exactly as issued, with no amendments, and make sure it is fully visible on the parcel. Keep the ParcelShop receipt or the locker confirmation: Evri usually scans ParcelShop drop-offs at the evening collection, and the receipt is your proof until the tracking updates.

Do not send the parcel with your own postage. The Evri label is what ties the tracking to the Mangopay payment; a parcel sent another way is outside the process, and you would be relying on the buyer's honesty to release the money.

• Print-at-home PDF or QR code at an Evri ParcelShop or locker
• Post within 7 calendar days of purchase
• Label unaltered and clearly visible; keep the receipt
• Buyer can choose home delivery or collection from an Evri shop or locker

Delivery on Gumtree replaces the old cash-or-bank-transfer arrangement with a held payment. The buyer pays Gumtree's payment provider, Mangopay, at checkout. The funds stay held until the buyer confirms they have received the item, or until 48 hours have passed since the tracking shows it was delivered — whichever comes first. The money is then released to you.

That is why a tracked, scanned Evri parcel matters: the tracking is the clock. If the buyer says nothing, delivery plus 48 hours releases the payment automatically. If the item is lost in transit or arrives damaged and you followed the packaging and label guidelines, compensation of up to £250 is available, which is also the ceiling on item value for the service.

Gumtree's delivery flow is closest to Depop Shipping: Evri only, one prepaid label, the buyer paying postage. Vinted gives the buyer a choice of seven carriers and adds InPost lockers; eBay's Simple Delivery adds Royal Mail, InPost and DHL and prices by item value. Gumtree's advantages are that listing is free, buyers still expect to haggle a little, and a lot of Gumtree's audience is local — you can offer delivery and collection on the same ad. The disadvantages are the £250 cap, the narrower categories and the fact that a Gumtree buyer may still ask for a cash deal outside the system, which loses the protection.

For items that fit InPost's compartments and would sell to Vinted's audience, InPost's £1.99 locker postage keeps the buyer's total lower. For bulky fashion or bundles that need Evri anyway, Gumtree's flow costs the buyer roughly what an Evri label costs elsewhere and gives you a held-payment guarantee you never had on Gumtree before.