Depop boosting at 12%: what a view-based fee does to one sale

On Depop, a boost is paid when a viewer buys

Boosted Listings is Depop's advertising service. A boosted item appears in tiles marked "Boosted," and you pay nothing until the item sells. The catch is in how a boosting sale is defined: Depop charges the boosting fee if a buyer saw the boosted version of your listing and buys within 28 days, even if they never tapped the tile and even if you stopped boosting before they bought.

Before boosting, work out what the fee does to your margin on that specific item.

How Depop describes boosting

Depop's Boosted Listings Policy, effective March 23, 2026 and checked November 8, 2026, says:

The policy also says boosting fees are in addition to payment processing fees, and that you remain responsible for fees on views that happened while the listing was boosted even if you stop boosting before the sale.

Step 1: Know your fees without boosting

Depop's seller fees page says US sellers pay no Depop selling fee, and a payment processing fee of 3.3% plus $0.45 on the item price plus shipping and any applicable taxes, for sales through Depop Payments. That is your baseline.

Step 2: Add the boost to the same sale

In this chosen example, a top sells for $40 and the buyer pays $6 for Depop Shipping. To keep the arithmetic simple, sales tax is left out; in practice the processing fee also applies to tax, so the real fee is slightly higher.

Because this sale used a Depop Shipping label, the boost applies only to the item price. On a $40 item, boosting nearly quadruples the fees. If your profit on the top was $10 before fees, boosting leaves you about $3.23 instead of $8.03.

The Depop fees guide explains the processing fee in more detail, and the marketplace net tool lets you test your own numbers.

Attribution check: Because a view alone can make a later purchase a boosting sale for 28 days, turning boosting off doesn't immediately end your exposure to the fee on items buyers already saw. Decide before boosting, not after.

Step 3: Decide which items to boost

Boosting tends to make more sense for:

• Items with a healthy margin, where 12% leaves enough profit.
• Items in crowded searches where visibility is the main obstacle.
• New listings you want seen while they are fresh.

It makes less sense for low-margin items, items already priced at the floor, or listings whose photos and descriptions need work first. The Depop descriptions guide can help with the latter.

Step 4: Shop boosting versus listing boosting

Boosting the whole shop is convenient, but it applies the fee to every attributed sale, including items that would have sold anyway and low-margin pieces. If your shop has a mix of margins, boosting individual listings gives you more control.

Step 5: Check receipts after sales

Depop says boosting fees appear on your receipt alongside processing fees, and that you can view receipts in the app under Depop Balance or on the web in your Selling Hub. Check each boosted sale's receipt against your expected fees and record them with the sale.

Common mistakes

• Assuming a click is needed before a fee applies.
• Boosting a whole shop that includes low-margin items.
• Expecting the fee to stop instantly when you unboost.
• Forgetting the processing fee also applies.
• Assuming every listing carries the same rate: Depop's fees page marks the 12% UK and US boosting fee as applying to new listings from March 23, 2026, so check each receipt.

Boost what can afford it

On Depop, a 12% boost is charged on any purchase within 28 days of a buyer seeing the boosted tile. Boost items with room for the fee, and work out the total before you switch it on.