Which website has the lowest prices? We compared prices on Walmart vs. eBay vs. Amazon for 110 items in 11 categories and found a clear winner.
Image credit: BigTunaOnline / Shutterstock.com.
Which Site Is Cheapest, eBay, Amazon or Walmart?
On average, we found that eBay is the most expensive and Walmart is the cheapest. Compared to eBay, Amazon is 2% cheaper and Walmart is 6% cheaper.
Total Combined Prices of 110 Identical Items across Walmart, eBay and Amazon
Price Comparison: Walmart vs. eBay vs. Amazon by Category
Comparing prices in 11 categories, Walmart usually has the lowest prices.
Total Combined Prices of 10 Identical Items in Each Category
Categories Where Walmart Has the Lowest Prices
- Baby Supplies
- Toys
- Medicine and Health Products
- Personal Care Products
- Makeup
- Kitchen Supplies and Appliances
- Sports, Fitness and Outdoor Products
Categories Where eBay Has the Lowest Prices
- Electronics
Categories Where Amazon Has the Lowest Prices
- Household and Cleaning Supplies
- Food
- Pet Supplies
Sellers can get the most money for their products on eBay, where they can sell for more in these categories:
- Household and Cleaning Supplies
- Medicine and Health Products
- Personal Care Products
- Food
- Makeup
- Pet Supplies
- Kitchen Supplies and Appliances
- Sports, Fitness, and Outdoor Products
Baby Supplies
Of the 10 items selected under “Baby Supplies,” Amazon is the most expensive. eBay is 9% cheaper and Walmart is 16% cheaper than Amazon.
Household and Cleaning Supplies
Of the 10 items selected under “Household and Cleaning Supplies,” eBay is the most expensive. Both Walmart and Amazon are roughly 16% cheaper in this category, with Amazon being slightly cheaper than Walmart.
Toys
In total, Amazon charges the most for the 10 items in our “Toys” category. eBay is almost 10% cheaper, while shopping on Walmart would lower the total cart cost by 28%.
Medicine and Health Products
The total cost the following 10 medicine and health products is highest on eBay. Amazon is 7% cheaper and Walmart is the cheapest at 10% less than Amazon.
Personal Care Products
Sellers charge noticeably more on eBay for these 10 personal care products. The same list of products is 30% cheaper on Amazon and 32% cheaper on Walmart.
Food
We randomly selected 10 food products and found that eBay was much more expensive. Walmart and Amazon price matched on almost all these items. For this list of items on Walmart and Amazon, you will pay 62% less than on eBay!
Makeup
As a buyer, the total cost of the 10 makeup products below will burn the biggest hole in your pocket on eBay. Go to Amazon to pay 19% less or Walmart to reduce your cost by 26%.
Pet Supplies
Of the 10 pet supplies we looked at, all cost the most on eBay. The total cost of these products was 29% less on Walmart and 31% less on Amazon.
Electronics
This is eBay’s big win. Walmart charges the most for our sample of 10 “Electronics” products. These products’ prices are similar at Amazon, where they are just 3% cheaper. The same products cost 14% less on eBay than on Walmart.
Kitchen Supplies and Appliances
The list of products in our “Kitchen Supplies and Appliances” category cost the most on eBay, but Amazon was not far behind at less than a percent cheaper. These products cost 7% less on Walmart than on eBay.
Sports, Fitness and Outdoors
The item on the far right is "Penn Championship Extra Duty Tennis Balls (1 can, 3 balls)."
In total, shopping for “Sports, Fitness and Outdoors” items costs the most on eBay. These items are 11% cheaper on Amazon, and 19% on Walmart compared to eBay.
Method
Prices
We took the prices listed directly from Walmart, eBay, and Amazon’s websites. Items in the Food category are from:
- Walmart Grocery
- eBay
- Amazon:
- Amazon Grocery
- Amazon Pantry
- Amazon Fresh
Prices fluctuate every minute on these marketplaces, so the prices you see in this article may not match what you see when you visit these sites. This study simply provides a snapshot of prices across the three marketplaces in 2020.
Amazon Prime and Credit Cards
The prices listed do not factor in the Amazon Prime membership fee or discounts from Amazon credit cards.
Shipping
The prices listed do not factor in the cost of shipping. It’s worth noting that Amazon Prime subscribers get free 2-day shipping and Walmart offers free 2-day shipping on orders of $35 or more. On eBay, each seller determines their shipping costs. Many of the eBay items listed here offer free shipping with no membership fees or minimum order size, but for some items, shipping may be an additional cost.
Products
The products we compared are the same in brand, quantity, style and model—identical across the three sales channels. All products included in the price comparison are new—used items were not considered.
Keep in mind that each of these marketplaces has sellers you can’t find on the other two. Amazon and Walmart also have brands of their own. For example, Great Value products are only sold at Walmart and AmazonBasics are household products by Amazon. While a 4-pack of AAA Duracell batteries may be cheaper on Walmart than on Amazon, a 4-pack of AAA AmazonBasics batteries is even cheaper.
Which Marketplace Wins?
Where you should shop or sell depends on the type of product you are dealing with. According to our data:
- Walmart lives up to its reputation for budget-friendly shopping—except in the electronics department.
- Amazon often has higher prices in the baby and toys categories, but offers low-cost options for household items, pet supplies, and food.
- In general, sellers can charge higher prices on eBay.
Whether you are a seller or a bargain hunter, each of these marketplaces offers opportunities to earn and save.
Next Step for Sellers
Now that you have a feel for prices on Walmart vs. eBay vs. Amazon, learn more about selling on Walmart vs. Amazon or how to start selling on eBay. These guides will help you decide if one or all of these channels are best for your business.