Sell your bike

You have bought a new bike or you just want to clean out your bike? Then it's time to sell your used bike sell. Here we explain what you should consider everything:

What is the best way to sell a bike?

You want to sell your used bike. Then we have created a checklist for it:

Determine bike type and bike model

Get the bike out of the basement/garage/bike rack on the wall and gather all the documentation for it. If you don't know which type your old bike belongs to, check out our overview:

Road bike, MTB, Gravel Bike

Also, for city bikes and trekking bikes, it is helpful to specify whether it is a women's bike or a men's bike. The next step can be more complicated. It always helps to know the model of your used bike. Often the model is in the invoice - if there is no invoice, you can search the frame. There are sometimes the model designations on it (for example, manufacturers such as Cube or Canyon). Alternatively, you can also start a Google search or contact the buycycle team. They are happy to help with the research of the model. If necessary, you have to start the sale without model information.

Determine state

An important statement for potential buyers is the condition of the used bike. For example, if it was only in the dry basement, the loss in value is of course less than if you have ridden the bike a lot and in all weather conditions. You can orient yourself very well on the following conditions.

In the case of defective or severe visual defects, you can also take the used bike or e-bike to a bicycle repair shop or order spare parts yourself and carry out a repair. However, experience shows that repairs are a cost factor before the sale, but often the selling price then does not increase to the same extent as the repair costs. A simple alternative is the Premium Check at buycycle. You can set the used bike as a defect and only when sold, the bike is then sent to a certified bicycle mechanic, who removes the defects.

Shoot good photos

Besides the price, the photos are the most important arguments for or against a sale. When taking photos, you should make sure that the used bike for sale can be seen in its entirety from the side. It is always helpful to photograph the bike from the side with the shifting group and crank - especially in the sporty area of road bikes and MTBs, the components play an important role in the purchase decision. In addition to the overall view, all important components should now be photographed. Prefer a few good photos of shifting group, brakes, saddle and Co. than several blurred or poorly lit pictures. Brand names such as Shimano and SRAM should be as legible as possible.

In addition, all signs of use should be photographed to avoid later discussion with those buying. Very important here: Not only your bike is crucial, but also the background. A dark basement looks less serious and inviting than a plain, well-lit wall. Here always applies - a few minutes more in the photo creation are worth it!

Determine price

A selling price must now be determined for your old bike. The first point of reference for this is the new price. If you do not know the price, you can start a Google search or contact the buycycle team. In addition to the new price, the condition and the age of the bike are also important factors for determining the selling price. At buycycle you get an automated price recommendation within just a few clicks. You can find more details about the price determination in the section below.

Determine place of sale / sales platform

There are various providers and options here. From local classifieds and Ebay classifieds to Buycycle. A detailed comparison and analysis takes place in the later section.

When do I sell a bike?

The best time for a bike sale is difficult to predict. Basically, of course, most people in Germany ride their bikes in the summer. Therefore, you see proportionally more purchases in the summer and fewer purchases in the winter. However, buyer behavior differs for different types of bicycles. Therefore, it is also important to know (see section 1) bicycle types of the used bicycle. Here is a first indication of the best times to sell the types of bicycles:

Spring/Summer

The perfect time to sell a city bike, trekking bike or children's bike. These bikes are mostly bought according to immediate needs, i.e. when it is warm and there is no bike available or the old bike is broken, people usually want to solve the problem quickly and buy a new bike. For the above types, there is usually less emphasis on brands or special models, so they are usually NOT bought in the winter (with advance) for the next spring. Basically, this buying behavior also applies to sporty bikes in the low-priced segment. Beginners in racing bikes or mountain bikes usually decide to start the new sport only in the warm seasons. The same also applies to the e-bike versions of the bicycle types mentioned.

Fall/Winter

In the colder seasons, especially high-priced sports bikes are bought. So if you want to sell an expensive road bike, MTB, triathlon bike or e-bike, then the fall/winter is well suited for this. If you look at the buying behavior of triathlon bikes, for example, you can quickly see that the sporty, ambitious buyers are already gearing up for the new season in the winter. The competitions usually take place in the summer, so the triathlon enthusiasts already want to take care of the optimal material with enough lead time. The same applies to high-quality racing bikes and mountain bikes. Most races take place in the warm summer months. Ambitious (hobby) athletes already prepare themselves in winter for the sporting tasks in summer. In a weakened form, it can also be seen that high-quality e-bikes are already being purchased in the winter "in advance of the warm season". Before buying expensive bikes, where several thousand euros are spent, most cyclists conduct a long research on the available models and suppliers. If the right model is then found, buyers usually strike directly before the "run" on the popular models starts in the summer.

Basically, even high-priced bikes are bought in the summer and spring, so you can sell these bikes all year round. But in autumn and winter the chances are at least as good as in the warm months.

What is my old bike still worth?

One of the most difficult tasks when selling a bicycle is to determine the right price. You want to get a reasonable price for your old bike, of course, but you also want it to be attractive enough to "attract" potential buyers in a timely manner. Essentially, one determines the selling price with the following steps:

Determination of the new price of the bike

The price of the then-new bike is one of the most important clues to determine the selling price. If you have already bought the bike used and do not know the new price, it is worthwhile to research online or search for your model in the database of buycycle, where you can find all new prices.

Consider the age and condition of the bike

Similar to a used car, the value of a bicycle decreases with age and wear. It is imperative that both factors are taken into account, since, for example, an 8 year old bike that has hardly been moved and is in very good condition is worth just as much as a 2 year old used bike (same new price), which, however, has already been heavily worn. The condition determination, which was already described in the upper section, helps here as well.

Consider brand and model

Here, too, there are analogies to the automotive market in the bicycle sector. Popular brands (such as Canyon, Cube, Specialized) and especially their popular models (e.g. currently especially the gravel bike models of the popular suppliers) are more in demand than unknown brands and models. More demand leads to a higher selling price.

Research of comparable advertisements

On common sales platforms, you can search for your bike and see which advertisements are posted at which prices. This superficial market research helps to validate one's own selling price and can also help in checking step 3. Popular brands and models are offered more expensively than lesser-known sellers.

Negotiation basis for fine tuning

Last, of course, it always helps to advertise the used bike with a negotiable price. If one receives first counteroffers, this gives an assistance with the determination of the really attainable price. But here also caution is required. On platforms such as Ebay Classifieds, there are often "cheeky" requests with unrealistic prices. One should not be irritated by this. The process described above can often be time-consuming. The buycycle team has reduced this effort. There, with a short selection of the bike, one can receive a price recommendation for the used bike within one minute. The self-learning algorithm takes into account the aforementioned factors such as new price, condition, age, market situation, time of year, search volume and the selling prices of similar advertisements when automatically determining the price.

What is the best way to sell an e-bike?

When selling an e-bike, the above steps apply. With an e-bike, only the issue of the battery and the motor is added. Basically, an e-bike is much more saleable if you can show an "official" statement about battery capacity and motor power. To do this, you can have the battery checked at a bicycle dealer and make use of the buycycle testing service.

Where is the best place to sell my bike?

For the sale of bicycles so far there are several providers:

1. buycycle
2. Ebay Classifieds
3. MTB News
4. Quoka
5. Ebay
6. Local classifieds

Until now, for the sale of bicycles, people usually posted local classified ads or the used bike was advertised on Ebay classifieds. Both variants have some weaknesses:

• One is spatially simply limited, since the buyers would like to pick up the used bicycles above all. This leads to the fact that only the local bicycle market is addressed. It takes a bit of luck to find a suitable owner for your old bike. A shipping option is only available in the rarest of cases.
• Payment is not regulated. Personal arrangements over the phone offer great potential for fraudsters. Unfortunately, there are more and more cases of fraud on platforms such as Ebay Classifieds.
• Potential buyers can only search for their new bike via free texts. But what the interested people are looking for, you can not always estimate in advance. Especially if you do not sell a bike every day.
• In some cases, the buyer complains about traces of use in the aftermath.

The buycycle team started with the goal of offering an alternative without these weaknesses. How can the sale be made simple and secure while appealing to as many interested parties as possible? Here is the description.

Sell bike on buycycle.com

Advertise in simple

Advertisements can be created quickly and easily at buycycle - even without detailed knowledge about his used bike. One simply has to specify the brand (e.g. Haibike), the model (e.g. Backroad) and the year of purchase (of the then new bike). Immediately the suitable bicycles are suggested. One simply selects the right bike, specifies the condition of the bike (e.g. bike in good condition) and the advertisement is created and the bike can be sold.

Secure payment

If one does a private sale and the bike is not picked up by the buyer, one must ensure a digital exchange of the purchase amount. At buycycle it is easy to pay with all common online payment methods, such as Paypal, Klarna, credit card or even installment payment. With the help of privacy settings and secure interfaces to a payment service provider, the money is collected from the buyer and held in trust. As soon as the collection has been arranged, the money is released and sent to the deposited account. Thus one has the money on the account still before the used bicycle was given out of the hand. The special thing about this process - it provides security for both sellers and buyers.

Uncomplicated bike shipping

A shipment always starts with the packaging. buycycle sends home a packaging set (box and protection in the box for components, frame and wheels). The box fits an e-bike, road bike, mountain bike, city bike, trekking bike and also a pedelec.

In the case of a particularly small or large frame height, as well as a children's bike, there are also special variants of the packaging. Now you have to put the bike in the box and cover the components with the protectors provided for this purpose. The used bike is now picked up at home and brought insured to the buyer. The buyer now has the feeling of having received a bike directly from the bike dealer - which hopefully increases the enthusiasm around the bike purchase once again. A direct pickup from the used bike is of course also possible - especially for short distances, a direct pickup makes ecological sense.

buycycle will take care of any queries

Regardless of whether it's a "mechanical" bike or an e-bike, buyers sometimes have questions about the technical details of a used bike. The buycycle team wants to help the buyers with the start into the new bicycle adventure and relieve the sellers of all efforts in after sales. The customer support of buycycle is always available for the buying and answer all questions. In addition, there are partner bike stores and workshops throughout Germany, which can provide on-site support when starting out with the bike. Only in exceptional cases do the sellers have to be contacted in case of queries.

Low cost

Basically, you can advertise a bike at buycycle free of charge. Only in the case of a successful transaction, a fee of 1.5% of the bike price is due. The sale should be as simple and safe as possible. A bicycle purchase is also planned - so you can even sell your bike within a few hours and have the sale price on your account. Traces of use are repaired in this case by a refurbishment, i.e. a reconditioning of the used bike.

Do you have any questions about the article or about selling a bike? Just contact the buycycle-team. Good luck selling your bike!

Here you can find details about sell racing bike or sell mountain bike.