Secondhand shopping saves money because used goods carry a lower price than new ones while still doing the same job, from clothing to cars to furniture. The savings are substantial and broad-based: thrift shoppers who buy pre-owned clothing save an average of $1,760 a year compared with people who buy only new items, according to ThredUp's annual Resale Report data. That figure covers clothing alone. Once vehicles, electronics, and furniture are factored in, the category-by-category savings add up to one of the most reliable ways to cut everyday spending without changing what you buy — only where it comes from.
Table of Contents
- How Much Do Secondhand Clothes Actually Save?
- Where Does Secondhand Shopping Save the Most Money?
- Is a Used Car Really a Smarter Buy Than New?
- What About Electronics and Furniture?
- Does Buying Secondhand Have Benefits Beyond Price?
- Frequently Asked Questions
How Much Do Secondhand Clothes Actually Save?
Clothing is where secondhand shopping is most visible and most measured. ThredUp's 2026 Resale Report found that 59% of U.S. consumers shopped secondhand apparel in 2025, up from 52% three years earlier, and projects the global secondhand apparel market will reach $393 billion by 2030 — about 10% of all apparel spending. The shift isn't a niche habit anymore.
The same report found U.S. secondhand apparel sales grew 19% in 2025, the fastest annual growth since 2021, with online resale alone projected to grow from $29.7 billion in 2025 to $48.3 billion by 2030, per ThredUp. More sellers listing more inventory means more selection at lower prices, which is part of why the average annual savings for pre-owned clothing buyers runs as high as $1,760. Beyond price, shoppers report a second motivation that reinforces the savings habit: ThredUp's 2025 Holiday Report found that 62% of shoppers buy secondhand gifts for better value, while 56% cite finding unique, one-of-a-kind items — meaning the money-saving motive and the shopping experience work together rather than against each other.
Where Does Secondhand Shopping Save the Most Money?
Not every category saves the same amount, and knowing the gap size helps decide where to shop secondhand first. The pattern across every category is the same: the gap between new and used reflects depreciation the first owner already absorbed, not a drop in quality or usefulness.
- **Clothing**: Average savings of $1,760 a year for pre-owned buyers versus new-only buyers, per ThredUp-sourced data.
- **Vehicles**: As of March 2026, the average new-vehicle transaction price was about $49,275 versus roughly $25,390 for a used vehicle — a gap near $24,000, according to WeBuyAnyCarUSA.
- **Electronics**: Refurbished marketplace Back Market lists a refurbished iPhone 12 at $168 against a $629 new price, and a refurbished Apple Watch at A$373 against A$778.86 new — savings in the 50-70% range, per Back Market.
- **Furniture**: Furniture and mattresses made up about $7.2 billion of the $21.2 billion U.S. secondhand home-goods market in 2022 — roughly a third of all home-category resale — per Furniture Today.
Is a Used Car Really a Smarter Buy Than New?
Vehicles show the clearest dollar case for buying secondhand because the price gap is large and well documented. WeBuyAnyCarUSA puts the average new-vehicle transaction price at about $49,275 as of March 2026, against roughly $25,390 for a used-vehicle listing — a difference of about $24,000.
A narrower comparison tells the same story differently. Edmunds transaction data, cited by CarEdge, found a 3-year-old used vehicle averaged $32,553 in June 2026, versus $48,899 for a new one — a roughly $16,000 difference. The gap exists mainly because the first owner absorbs the steepest depreciation in a vehicle's first few years, and a buyer purchasing that car used pays a price that already reflects it.
- A new-vehicle buyer pays the full sticker price and takes on the fastest depreciation period themselves.
- A used-vehicle buyer, even one buying a car as recent as three years old, pays a price that has already absorbed that depreciation hit.
- The savings scale with age: a slightly older used vehicle costs less than a near-new one, though the comparison above shows meaningful savings even at just three years old.
What About Electronics and Furniture?
Refurbished electronics make the savings concrete at the individual-item level rather than as an average. Back Market, a refurbished-electronics marketplace, lists a refurbished iPhone 12 at $168 against a $629 new price, and a refurbished Apple Watch at A$373 against A$778.86 new, according to Back Market's own listings. Those examples put savings in the 50-70% range on devices that function the same as new ones for daily use. Furniture follows a similar pattern but at the scale of an entire market.
Furniture and mattresses accounted for about $7.2 billion of the $21.2 billion U.S. secondhand home-goods market in 2022 — close to a third of total home-category resale — per data reported by Furniture Today. Furniture holds its functional value for years, which is part of why it resells at a large enough scale to represent a third of an entire resale category rather than a marginal slice of it. For both categories, the money-saving mechanic is the same as with clothing and cars: someone else already paid the steepest part of the depreciation curve, and buying secondhand lets a second owner skip it.
Does Buying Secondhand Have Benefits Beyond Price?
Secondhand shopping also reduces the volume of goods that end up discarded, which matters because those goods pile up fast. Textiles made up 17 million tons — 5.8% — of U.S. municipal solid waste generated in 2018, with 11.3 million tons of that landfilled, according to EPA data.
The EPA does not measure how much reuse through secondhand channels offsets that figure, but every garment or appliance that gets a second owner is one that isn't added to it. The scale of the waste problem has grown sharply over time: U.S. textile waste in municipal solid waste has risen 811% since 1960, per EPA data reported by Retail Dive. Buying secondhand doesn't reverse that trend on its own, but it keeps usable items circulating longer instead of adding to it — a side effect that runs alongside the direct savings on clothing, cars, electronics, and furniture covered above.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which category offers the biggest dollar savings from buying secondhand?
Vehicles show the largest gap in dollar terms — about $24,000 between average new and used transaction prices as of March 2026, per WeBuyAnyCarUSA.
Does a 3-year-old used car still save significant money over a new one?
Yes — Edmunds data cited by CarEdge found a 3-year-old used vehicle averaged $32,553 in June 2026 versus $48,899 for new, a roughly $16,000 gap.
How much can refurbished electronics cost compared to new?
Back Market lists examples like a refurbished iPhone 12 at $168 versus $629 new, putting savings around 50-70% on individual devices.
