The best place to sell your car stereo is on eBay or Facebook marketplace, as you’ll cut out the middle man at places like pawn shops and have access to a vast pool of buyers.
- Highest Prices: eBay or FB Marketplace
- A Mixed Bag: Classified Ads / Forums
- Most convenient: Pawn Shop, Scrap or Recycle / Donate
There are various places you can sell your existing car stereo, but it depends if you think it’ll be worth your time to do so.
eBay and Facebook marketplace will reach you at the highest prices, but they can be time-consuming to set up, deal with buyers’ questions, and finally ship the item to them or meet in person.
The most convenient thing to do will be to take it to a pawnshop if they accept it and get a lower amount.
Alternatively, you could take it to the nearest recycling center, although you’ll get no money doing it this way.
After replacing the radio, many will wonder what to do with the old, stock radio that came with the car? You sell it, of course!
Selling on eBay
eBay is the number one second-hand marketplace.
Many will think of eBay when they are considering buying a used car radio. Naturally, you want to attract as many as possible to your stereo. Here are a few tips to follow when considering listing your equipment for sale on eBay:
- Search current and finished, and completed listing to gauge an idea of your listing price.
- Pay close attention to your auction’s starting and ending time (Unless using Buy it now).
- List the item in the proper category.
- Take high-quality images of your car audio equipment
- Detail as much information as you have in the listing description
Selling on eBay can be more time-consuming as, generally, you’ll need to create the listing and post the item anywhere around the country the buyer is in.
Depending on the item’s value, it may not be worth your time.
eBay US & UK average Selling prices
| eBay.com | eBay.co.uk | |
| Single DIN (Basic Stereo) | ~ $10 – $60 | ~ £10 – £25 |
| Double DIN (Higher end Stereo) | ~ $40 – $200 | ~ £20 – £100 |
*At the time of writing
The prices vary massively due to the quality of the stereo on the platform. For instance, damaged scratches on stereos with missing wires will sell for significantly less than an almost new stereo.
eBay Fee Structure
You should strongly consider eBay fees and shipping when selling your stereo on the platform, as it will degrade the money you end up in your pocket.
For the UK and US, they are as follows:
- Listing fee: Free
- Selling Fee: Between 2 – 12.2%
- Listing fee: Free (For most people)
- Selling Fee: 12.8% + £0.3
Shipping your Sold Stereo
Shipping is an essential factor when selling your product on eBay.
First, you’ll have to consider whether you will cover the shipping cost or make the customer pay.
This will vary massively depending on the customer’s location and the weight of the stereo you are sending.
See if the sold listings include shipping or add it on top and base your decision on that.
You’ll also need to consider if you’ve got packing supplies and boxes at home to send your stereo in.
Use a shipping cost calculator and comparison:
USA – GoShippo
UK – Parcel2Go
Here are a few other tips for selling car stereos on eBay:
- Bidders or buyers may have a question to ask about your radio equipment. You should respond quickly to these questions.
- You should contact the highest bidder soon after the auction closes if you’re using an action feature. This is because you will want to finalize the sale as quickly as possible.
- You should always ship the item as soon as you receive payment confirmation for a better rating.
Selling Your Car Radio at a Pawn Shop
Not all pawnshops will buy car stereo equipment, especially if it’s old and outdated, as it probably has little resale value.
They may also ask for a receipt as car stereos have a reputation of being stolen.
Many factors will be taken into consideration during the sale of stereo equipment at a pawnshop.
The valuation of the equipment will occur. Equipment-free from scratches and with all pieces intact will yield a higher profit.
The pawnshop is likely to use information from closed auctions on sites like eBay to assess the market rate for the radio and offer a lower price than what they’ve seen online.
In addition, pawn and cash converter shops sell their products on sites such as eBay, so you’ll be giving money away to a middle man such as them.
Branded equipment is also extremely important as this will help increase the resale value.
Brands that may be worth more include (See these articles for specific brands):
While you won’t get the most money for it at a pawn shop, if you want to make a quick sale, you should consider taking your items to your local pawnshop for fast cash if they can take it.
They will have to give you a valuation of the equipment and make you an offer to take or leave.
You should know that a pawnshop would rather buy than offer a loan on low-cost stereo equipment.
If you’re interested in learning more, see our dedicated article on: Do pawn shops buy stereo equipment?
Selling Car radio on Classified Ads, Newsgroups, and Forums
The classified ads in your local newspaper may be longer and a bit of a hassle.
You may have to meet the person you are selling to. You should always agree to meet at a public venue if you feel uncomfortable or the item is highly valued.
If you are going to use the local newspaper for selling your items, you may want to take caution. The ad may cost you significantly less to place.
Besides, you can’t put colorful pictures of the equipment in the advertisement.
Another fantastic avenue for selling your car stereo is in newsgroups and forums. Many newsgroups and forums have threads users can use to post items they have for sale. Be sure to use the correct thread, though.
You would not want to get banned for posting in the wrong thread.
Selling Car stereo on Facebook Marketplace
Facebook marketplace is a great place to locally sell your car radio as there are NO FEES when meeting the person and receiving payment in cash.
However, it can be a hassle to organize and meet and weed out the people trying to lower your advertised price.
Researched Listing Prices Selling Prices On FB Marketplace Of Car Stereos:
| Single DIN (Basic Stereo) | £20 – £50 | $10 – $50 |
| Double DIN (Higher end Stereo) | £100 – £300 | $100 – $200 |
People often bargain 10% – 20% off the selling price on the Facebook marketplace, which is why it might seem a little high
The prices vary massively due to the quality of the stereo on the platform.
For instance, damaged scratched stereos with missing wires will sell for significantly less than open box stereos, basically brand new equipment.
You’ll get lots of messages on forums and marketplaces!
Sometimes when we list items for sale, you may have a problem with potential buyers.
These types of people will flood your inbox with spammy questions.
For example, if you have listed your items for sale, and want the buyer to pick them up, make this clear in the advert to avoid this.
If you are getting many messages asking you to ship the item, you can ignore those messages. By sending it in the mail, you could get a better price, so bear this in mind.
Scrap Or Recycle
Lastly, if the stereo has very little resale value, you can always scrap or recycle it.
Most recycling centers will take it off you for free.
However, if you’re looking to get a bit of money for it, your best bet is to take it apart and separate the precious metals into different types.
At best, you’re looking at >$4 or>£2, which is probably not worth most people’s time, but it could be worthwhile if it’s a weighty piece of equipment.
UK – You can find places to donate your electronics at recycleyourelectricals.org.uk
US – Environmental protection agency for places to recycle
Sell Car Audio for Cash Near Me
If you’re after cold hard cash, your options for selling your car audio or radio equipment will be more limited.
In my experience, the only platform that almost exclusively trades in cash car audio equipment is Facebook Marketplace.
This is because they are often done locally from consumer to consumer rather than through any form of business.
Some pawnshops may offer cash (with ID), and on your eBay listing, you can specify “cash on collection”.
However, this will limit potential buyers to a smaller area and exclude them from eBay buyer protection.
People Also Ask
Are Old Car Radios Worth Anything?
Depending on the radio’s age, there could be some resale value. The best way to check is to look on eBay and see recently sold items matching your car radio. Unfortunately, the scrap value of an old car radio is typically meager, only a few dollars or pounds sterling.
How Much Can you Sell a Car Radio for?
You can sell a car radio for as little as $10 (£10) to as much as $200 (£300). But, of course, it all depends on how old the radio is and if it’s a desirable stereo model. You can determine how much it’s likely to sell for by checking platforms such as eBay and Facebook marketplace.
