Yard Sale Earnings Estimate Calculator
Estimate what a yard or garage sale will actually earn — items priced low, only a fraction sell, and permit or table costs eat into the take.
How it works
Items sold = items × sell-through % · Gross = items sold × average price · Net = gross − setup costs
Yard-sale math is humbling: prices are low by design (buyers expect near-giveaway pricing), and only a portion of your table ever sells in a day. Multiplying a realistic sell-through rate by an honest average price — usually a dollar or two, not retail — gives a grounded gross, and subtracting permit, sign and change-fund costs shows the true take. The value of a yard sale is often as much about clearing space as about the cash.
Worked example
With 150 items priced to average $3 and a 50% sell-through, about 75 items sell for 75 × $3 = $225 gross. After $20 for a permit and signs, that is $205 net — roughly $2.73 earned per item that actually sold.
Frequently asked questions
What is a realistic sell-through rate for a yard sale?
Most single-day sales move 30–60% of what is laid out, depending on pricing, weather, foot traffic and how you advertise. Pricing aggressively and grouping small items into "everything on this table $1" bins pushes sell-through toward the high end.
How should I price items?
Yard-sale buyers expect roughly 10–20% of retail, often less for clothing and books. Round to easy numbers ($0.50, $1, $5) to speed haggling, and keep plenty of small bills and coins as a change fund — a cost worth counting.
Is a yard sale worth it versus selling online?
A yard sale clears a large volume of low-value items in one day with minimal effort per item, which online selling cannot match. But high-value pieces almost always earn more listed individually online. Many people do both.
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This calculator is for educational purposes. Double-check important results before acting on them.