Record keeping for resellers: what to write down, and when

Most resellers find out what records they need in April, when a marketplace form shows every dollar that came in and nothing about what went out. The sales side is easy to rebuild, because the marketplace has it. The cost side lives only in your head and your camera roll.

This guide to record keeping for resellers covers the five numbers every item needs, what marketplace reports already hold, what the IRS expects you to keep and for how long, and a routine that takes about a minute per item. It isn’t tax advice. It’s the paperwork that makes tax advice quick.

The five numbers for every item

For each thing you sell, a tax return eventually wants to know:

1. What you paid and when. The price, plus any sales tax you paid on it. The date matters because an item bought in December and sold in February counts in February’s tax year.
2. What it sold for and when. The item price the buyer paid, after any offer, and what they paid for shipping.
3. What the marketplace took. Final value fees, commission, payment processing, ads and boosts. Your payout statement shows the total; a calculator shows where it came from.
4. What shipping cost you. The label, if you bought it, and packaging.
5. Anything else the sale cost. Cleaning, repairs, authentication.

Profit on the item is the sale price plus the shipping the buyer paid, minus everything else. Add a year of those up and you have most of a reseller’s Schedule C.

What do marketplace reports already keep?

eBay, Poshmark, Mercari, Etsy, Depop and Whatnot all let you download your sales. Download them at the end of each year and keep the files; they’re your proof of income and of fees. Here’s what they cover, and what they can’t:

A sales report says you sold a casserole dish for $85. It doesn’t say you paid $15 for it at an estate sale in March. Without that number, the sale looks far better than it was.

One sale, recorded properly

Here’s that casserole as a complete record, worked out with Hustl’s fee engine and Mercari’s 10% selling fee:

Every line except one is in Mercari’s report. The $15 is the line that makes record keeping for resellers worth doing, and it’s the line you can only write down on the day.

What to keep beyond the numbers

The IRS lets you choose your own system, as long as it shows income and expenses. It also expects proof behind the entries:

For a reseller, that translates to:

• Receipts when you get them. Thrift stores and estate sales usually give one. Photograph it the same day, because thermal paper fades.
• A note when you don’t. Yard sales and flea markets rarely give receipts. A dated note made at the time (“Sat 7 Mar, Elm St yard sale, 3 shirts and a lamp, $14”) beats a guess made a year later.
• A mileage log if you drive to source or to ship. See the mileage deduction guide; it’s often one of a reseller’s biggest deductions.
• Bulk buys, split up. When you pay $40 for a box of twelve items, divide the cost across them as you list them. The cost of goods sold guide shows two fair ways to do it.

Record keeping for resellers: a routine for busy weeks

The routine that works is the one that happens where the money changes hands:

1. At the shop, or in the car after: log what you bought and what you paid. One line per item, or one line for a lot that you split later.
2. When it sells: open the item and add the sale price and shipping. The fees can be worked out from the marketplace’s own rules.
3. Once a month: glance at the month’s profit. If it looks wrong, it’s usually a sale you forgot to log, and it’s easy to find while the month is fresh.
4. Once a year: download each marketplace’s sales report, check it against your records, and keep both.

A spreadsheet can do this; our free reselling spreadsheet template has the columns. So can Hustl, where a fee calculator turns into a row when you tap save. If you’re choosing between them, our app or spreadsheet review lays out the trade-offs honestly.

Is a 1099-K your profit?

No. A marketplace sends a Form 1099-K when your payments for goods pass the federal threshold, which the IRS currently gives as more than $20,000 across more than 200 transactions. The figure on it is gross: what buyers paid, before fees, shipping and what the items cost you.

Your income is taxable whether or not a form arrives. The IRS’s 1099-K page puts it simply: whether or not you receive one, you must still report any income on your return. Good records are what let you report profit rather than gross sales.

That’s also why record keeping for resellers starts with costs, not sales. The marketplace will always be able to tell the IRS what you took in. Only you can show what it cost you to take it in.

Selling your own used things for less than you paid isn’t a gain, but you still need to be able to show that. A note of what you originally paid, even an estimate made at the time, helps.

How long should resellers keep records?

If you’re wondering how long to keep records in practice, many accountants simply say “keep everything for seven years”, which covers the lot. Digital copies are fine, so a phone photo of each receipt in a dated folder does the job.

Sources: IRS What kind of records should I keep, How long should I keep records and Understanding your Form 1099-K, all checked on 22 October 2026. This guide explains record keeping; it isn’t tax advice.