ThredUp’s 14th Annual Resale Report Reveals New Era of Structural Competition and AI-Driven Discovery
Global Secondhand Market Projected to Reach
Gen Z and Millennials Set to Drive More Than 70% of Market Growth Through 2030.
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“Resale is no longer just growing, it’s taking direct market share,” said
"The global secondhand market is entering a more competitive, structurally complex phase. We expect the U.S. market alone to reach
Inside the 2026 Resale Report
Derived from market modeling, a survey of 3,268
- Secondhand Outpaces New Clothing 2-to-1: Resale isn't just a trend; it's taking over the closet. Over the next five years, the global secondhand market is projected to grow twice as fast as the rest of the fashion industry combined.
- Shopping Moves to Social Feeds: Marketplace apps are no longer the only destination. Nearly 50% of shoppers now discover their next secondhand find through social media, creators, and influencer feeds rather than traditional search.
- Gen Z and Millennials to Drive 70% of Market Growth: Younger generations are the undisputed heavyweights of the resale economy. Through 2030, 71% of all market growth will come from Gen Z and Millennials, with new shoppers making up the vast majority of this new spending.
- AI Makes Buying Used as Easy as Buying New: AI is the engine helping scale resale by improving search and discovery. By automating everything from pricing to verifying authenticity, technology is removing the old headaches of secondhand and making it as fast and efficient as buying brand new.
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Supply is the New Constraint: With rapidly growing demand, the industry is now racing to find enough stock. To unlock an additional
$23.3 billion in U.S. market value, the focus must shift to making the act of selling just as easy as clicking "buy."
To see the full 2026 Resale Report and additional data, visit thredup.com/resale.
About the 2026 Resale Report
ThredUp’s annual Resale Report contains research and data from GlobalData, a third-party retail analytics firm. GlobalData’s assessment of the secondhand market is determined through consumer surveys, retailer tracking, official public data, data sharing, store observation, and secondary sources. These inputs are used by analysts to model and calculate market sizes, channel sizes, and market shares. Further, for the purpose of this report, GlobalData conducted a January-
About
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts. The words "believe," "may," "will," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," "predict" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Except as required by law,
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Media Contact
media@thredup.com
Investor Relations Contact
ir@thredup.com
Resale-as-a-Service Contact
raas@thredup.com
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