Flipping items can be a fun and rewarding side hustle. While some items may require a bit of work to resell, it's worth it. If you pick the best items to flip, you can make a good amount of money.
All the extra cash you make from flipping can add up more quickly than you’d think. So before we cover the best items to flip for extra money, here's why you should consider flipping as a side hustle!
Why you should start flipping for profit
You might wonder if it’s worth your time to start flipping for money. After all, there are a lot of ways to make money; why flip items? Flipping for profit is a good business for a few reasons. First, it’s easy; you just need to find things to sell, fix them up, and resell for a profit.
Obviously, there may be some business aspects that take some time, as well. Next, when you pick the right items, it’s good money. Last, it’s a pretty flexible side gig. You can work whatever hours you want, selling as much or as little as you like.
Let’s take a look at what to sell (from household items and more) and also where to sell items.
Where to sell items
Another great perk to flipping is there are plenty of places to sell your items. Here are the top places to sell items for profit!
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is ideal for finding buyers that live in your area. All you need is a Facebook account to get started. This is an excellent way to begin if you are pretty comfortable with Facebook; you might even find some deals for things to buy and resell.
ThredUp
Used clothing is one of the easiest things to flip. ThredUp will provide you with a bag to pack your used items into. Then you simply send it off, and they will pay you depending on what things they’re able to sell. Get paid in cash or by ThredUp credit. And it’s free, so there’s that.
Amazon
This site is vast, and they have a well-organized approach for sellers. You can sell various things on Amazon, so it’s a great place to get started if you’re new to flipping items.
eBay
eBay is a good place to begin selling items because you can sell almost anything, including books, toys, clothes, and furniture. If you want a one-stop-shop for selling your items, this is it.
OfferUp
This is a unique and easy way to sell items. OfferUp is an app, and it’s pretty simple to set things up. Household items are pretty popular, so you can quickly look around at what you have at home and sell some things right away.
Etsy
Etsy is a site that almost everyone has heard of. Although you can find many things, Etsy specializes in unique and crafty items like jewelry, clothes, art, and decor. It’s a great place to sell original items.
25 of the best items to flip
Want to know how to get started? Here's the list of the 25 best things to flip for a profit.
1. Chairs or sofas
Furniture is one of the best items to flip. You can sometimes find a chair or sofa with good bones and reupholster it, or just clean it really well. Check Facebook Marketplace, yard sales, and thrift stores for pieces to flip. Sometimes people will even give furniture away if you haul it off for them!
2. Tables
Tables are also some of the easiest items to flip. Make sure to examine the table for any structural problems like legs that are loose. Then polish it up and take good photos to list it.
You could even upcycle tables by painting them or put on a cool resin top and sell it for even more money!
3. Antiques are some of the best items to flip
Antiques can be worth a lot, depending on a few factors like age, condition, and the type of item. You can shop thrift stores or estate sales for unique pieces. Try to get something for a price below its value so you can make a profit.
4. Desks
Another furniture item that is easy to clean up and resell are desks. Desks that are made from good quality materials and are still in decent condition are a big-ticket item and one of the best things to flip.
5. Any type of furniture that is wood, metal, or wicker are the best items to flip
Furniture that is made from one of these materials can sell well. A reason for this is that they’re generally in style and very durable. Similar to tables, these items are easy to restore to make them more desirable.
For instance, you can spray paint old wicker chairs to bring them back to life and charge more money for them. Also, finding creative ways to upcycle these pieces can help you sell them faster.
6. Cars
This one requires a lot of know-how, but it can be profitable. You need to know how to thoroughly check a car to make sure it functions correctly, as well as how to fix it up.
You’ll also need to know about various models and their usual prices to know if you’re getting a deal or not when you initially buy. Cars depreciate in value rather quickly, but you can flip them for profit if you do it right.
7. Regular bicycles
Bicycles are practical and convenient for everyone to have, but many people want to buy one for a low price. You can easily find bikes that need some new paint or a bit of maintenance and resell them.
8. Houses are the best items to flip for the most profit
Flipping a house is somewhat complicated, and there’s a lot involved. But basically, you’ll need to purchase a home for a low price that needs some work.
Then you fix the house and get it in good enough shape to sell for more than you paid for it. There are a lot of rules for this, so take your time. But if you are good at home maintenance and design, this could be a good option.
9. Gym and workout equipment
These are big-ticket items that are perfect for flipping. Just make sure it’s in good condition and up to all safety standards before you resell it. Since some of these items are heavy and bulky, some people may sell them cheap or give them away just to get rid of them faster. This means a bigger profit for you!
10. Old electronics are some of the best items to flip
Things like cell phones, tablets, and other electronics can usually make you some money from reselling. For instance, classic iPods that have high storage capacity, such as those with 120GB- 160GB, are still bringing in quite a chunk of cash!
You can get started by searching your own home or garage for old electronics that got stuffed away. These can be some of the best items to flip for extra cash.
11. Luxury handbags are some of the most lucrative items to flip
Do you know designers and how to spot a real design item from a fake? Then you might have a career in reselling luxury handbags. Sometimes you can score some of these for lower prices in consignment stores or online. Then clean it up like new to resell.
However, keep in mind handbags are not great long-term investments but can be a good item to flip for cash.
12. Name brand clothes
If you can find clothes in good condition that are made by sought-after brands, you could make some cash. Look for items that wear well over time and things made from high-quality materials. At times you can luck out and find name-brand items in thrift shops and at the Goodwill cheap.
Sometimes you can even shop sales at retail stores and resell items for profit on sites such as Poshmark! Check blow-out sales and try to use coupons too for the best deals.
13. Shoes
If you can find good quality shoes from expensive designer brands that are undervalued, buy them and resell them for a profit. Be on the lookout for anything rare or unique. Another option is to buy old shoes and upcycle them into customized pieces and charge big money for them!
For instance, you can bling them out like this beautiful pair of high heels and charge over $100 a pair! If you're artistic, you can even paint designs on them and make more money!
14. Cookware
Dishes, pots and pans, glassware, and coffee mugs - you can probably find many of these at garage sales. After some cleaning and maintenance, you can list them for sale for a bit more than you bought them for.
Keep an eye out for vintage cookware because these items bring in much more money than standard items do.
15. Household appliances
Appliances like microwaves, refrigerators, freezers, washers, and dryers are among the best things to flip. They’re necessities but quite expensive, so sometimes, people are happy to pay for a used model in good condition.
16. Blogs can be one of the best items to flip
Not one of the easiest items to flip, but if you’re willing to invest some time and learn, you can make a good amount of money flipping blogs. Many people don’t even know this is an option.
Sireesha Narumanchi of Crowdwork News interviewed Jenn Leach, who has sold websites for more than $80,000.00!
17. Old board games
This is a fun idea and one of the best items to flip. Old board games probably sound like something that wouldn’t bring in much money, but listen to this: The Selling Family says you can make between $1-$5 for old board game pieces.
18. Books
This is an old stand-by that was more popular years ago. However, you can still make money selling books. You just need to check out what is most popular and start there. Find books in thrift shops and yard sales and sell them on sites such as Amazon.
19. Laptops
You can make some cash-flipping laptops. You’ll need some tech knowledge to do this correctly, though. If you learn how to factory reset them or even figure out how to fix them, you can buy them super cheap and make a big profit.
20. RVs or campers
Flipping RVs and campers take a lot of work and the ability to spot a good deal. But if you have some home repair and maintenance skills, you can apply them to this. Use YouTube for inspiration and advice.
21. ATV’s
Buying an ATV for cheap, fixing it up, and reselling it can be a pretty lucrative deal. Just keep an eye out for anything on sale or undervalued. Check locally on Facebook Marketplace or possibly Craigslist to find them used.
22. Dirt bikes
Similar to other outdoor gear, check out ads in the paper and on sites like eBay for dirt bikes for a reasonable price. Then resell after maintenance. You can learn more about flipping dirt bikes on sites like YouTube.
23. Baby gear - cribs, strollers, etc.
People are always looking for expensive items like these for lower prices. Check out garage sales for things in good condition that you can clean up and resell. Look for high-quality brands such as UPPAbaby, Valco Baby, and Graco to make more per item.
24. Jewelry is one of the best items to flip
Jewelry is by far one of the best things to flip. There are so many different types of jewelry you can buy and sell for profit. For instance, you can find costume jewelry cheap at yard sales and thrift shops and sell it on sites like Etsy.
Sometimes you will find vintage name-brand jewelry and can really make bank. Of course, gold and silver are very profitable too, but they may be harder to find at a low price.
After you find some jewelry, take the time to clean it up and take great photos for reselling. You can even start by decluttering your jewelry box for items to sell!
25. Musical instruments
If you can find guitars, keyboards, drums, or other instruments for sale, see if you can resell them for a profit. It’s a fun hobby and a way to make some cash. Like most things, if you find popular brands such as Fender, Gibson, Yahama, etc., you will earn more for those items.
How much can you make flipping for profit?
This definitely depends on what you're selling, how many items you sell, and what you charge. So there’s not a clear-cut answer for this.
However, an article by Fitnancials claims that you can make between $500-$2500 extra a month flipping items as a beginner. Any way you look at it, that’s plenty of cash to help you do a lot of things financially.
What to do with extra cash
Now that you’ve made some money, what should you do with it? It’s essential to have a plan for any profit that you make. Here are a few ideas on what you can do with your extra cash:
Put extra cash towards a down payment on a house
If you dream of owning a home, use the money you make from flipping items to save up your house down payment. Down payments are a pretty big cost, and most people need to save up thousands.
A good amount is 20% of the home cost, though you can sometimes do 10% or even less. But the more, the better, because it’s less, you’ll need to pay off later.
Use the money for an investment opportunity
If there’s an investment you’d like to get started with, but you need more cash, this could be your big break. Whether it’s real estate or a new company, you can invest using side income so that you can take a bigger risk.
Save some money to buy more items to flip (invest back into your business)
You’ll also need to keep some of your funds for buying more items. At first, a lot of your money may go directly back to your business. Still, over time, you’ll get better at flipping, find out what the easiest items to flip are, and be able to charge competitive rates.
Get started with these best items to flip and make cash fast
Flipping items is something that you can do if you have many things to sell or are great at spotting a deal. It's one of the most profitable side hustles because you can start with the easiest items to flip and move on to bigger items as you earn more money.
It's a great way to make cash fast and it can be turned into a full-time business if you like it that much! So get started today and learn exactly how to build your business with our free course!