The Maze: eBay’s global marketplaces handled US$23.2 billion in paid transactions in the third quarter of 2026, up 15% from a year earlier. Its own revenue grew 14%. But the group now includes fashion resale marketplace Depop, and higher sales came with a lower operating profit margin.
The Details:
Sales through eBay are different from sales earned by eBay. The US$23.2 billion is gross merchandise volume: the value of paid transactions between users, including shipping and taxes. It is not reduced for returns or cancellations. eBay’s separate US$3.206 billion revenue comes from marketplace fees, shipping services, advertising and other charges. Its revenue model includes sellers paying to promote listings. That distinction matters for merchants: a bigger transaction total does not tell them how much they keep after platform charges, fulfilment and returns. All these quarterly figures use U.S. dollars and compare with the same quarter of 2025.
The buyer base grew partly through a change in ownership. eBay completed its Depop purchase on July 30, during the quarter. Total active buyers reached 147 million, up 10%. Excluding Depop and Tise, another acquired resale platform, the figure was 136 million, up just 1%. These are accounts that paid for a transaction during the previous 12 months, rather than unique people shopping this quarter. One person can hold multiple accounts. The figures show why portfolio growth and comparable customer growth need separate readings. They do not establish how much of the transaction increase came from acquisitions.
Advertising expanded while costs absorbed more revenue. eBay’s first-party advertising products generated US$575 million, up 16%; total advertising revenue was US$607 million. Operating profit rose to US$616 million from US$571 million. Yet operating margin—the share of revenue left after operating costs—fell to 19.2% from 20.3%. Marketing expense rose to US$747 million from US$606 million, and product development also increased. The company’s adjusted margin, which excludes specified expenses, fell too. The results therefore show a growing business with higher operating profit in dollars, but less operating profit per dollar of revenue.
MarketMaze Take: eBay offers sellers a larger pool of transactions, but “the marketplace is growing” is an incomplete business case. Customer growth, advertising demand and platform profit measure different things. The useful question is whether the relevant buyers are growing in the seller’s market, at a cost that leaves a profit.
Geography changes the opportunity. U.S. transaction volume grew 27%, while international volume grew 4%. Sellers outside the U.S. should not treat the global 15% headline as their local demand forecast. These are reported results for eBay’s portfolio, with currency and ownership changes included; they do not measure the entire secondhand market.
Do not explain away the growth either. eBay already reported 15% transaction growth in the previous quarter, before Depop joined. The acquisition complicates comparison; it does not prove the underlying marketplace stalled. Meanwhile, rising advertising revenue measures what the platform earns from promotion, rather than the profit sellers earn from buying it. Those returns still need to work in the seller’s own accounts.
Sources: eBay, eBay SEC filing, eBay acquisition release
