Vinted Shipping Guide UK: Every Carrier, Every Price, and What I Got Wrong

Postage is the part of selling that trips people up more than anything else. Get it right and it's completely invisible - the parcel arrives, the buyer is happy, funds are released. Get it wrong and you're dealing with lost parcels, weight disputes, repackaging, and anxious buyers sending you messages every 12 hours.

I've made most of the mistakes. Let me walk you through everything so you don't have to repeat them.

How Vinted Shipping Works (The Basics)

When you list an item on Vinted, you choose from two shipping options:

1. Vinted's integrated shipping - prepaid labels using Vinted's carrier partners. The buyer pays the postage cost at checkout as part of their total. You receive a QR code or label, drop the parcel at the relevant collection point, and you're done.

2. Custom shipping - you arrange your own postage and charge accordingly. Less common, more effort, but sometimes useful for bulky or unusual items that don't fit standard carrier size bands.

For the overwhelming majority of sales, integrated shipping is the right choice. It's tracked, prepaid, buyer-funded, and there's a dispute resolution process if something goes wrong. You don't pay a penny for postage - it's entirely covered by what the buyer pays at checkout.

The buyer sees the postage options when they purchase. You select which carriers you want to offer when you list the item (based on its size and weight category). The buyer chooses from those options and pays for it alongside the item.

Your sale proceeds are entirely separate from postage costs. If you list a dress at £22 and the buyer chooses Evri at £3.12, you receive £22 and the buyer pays £22 + £3.12 + buyer protection fee.

The Postage Mistake That Cost Me a Sale

Early on, I learned an expensive lesson about getting size and weight categories right.

I'd listed a heavy winter coat - a good quality puffer, fully listed as a size medium women's. I selected the "medium parcel" option thinking it looked about right. The buyer purchased it, I packaged it up (reasonably flat, vacuum-pack bag), and dropped it at Evri.

Two days later the parcel was returned to me. The actual weight exceeded the limit for the category I'd selected. The tracking showed "item returned - weight exceeded."

I had to contact the buyer, apologise, cancel the transaction, and relist the item with the correct (heavier, more expensive) parcel category. The buyer understandably didn't repurchase - they'd already found something else. I lost the sale, wasted the vacuum bag and packaging materials, and wasted an afternoon sorting it out.

Since then I've weighed everything before listing. I keep a simple kitchen scale next to my packing table. You'd be amazed how heavy a padded coat is once bagged - easily 1.5–2kg, which takes it out of standard parcel territory on most carriers.

Weigh your item before you list. It takes 30 seconds and saves enormous headaches.

Check exact postage prices: Use the Vinted postage costs calculator to find the cheapest carrier for your item's weight and size before you list it. Especially important for heavier items.

Every Vinted UK Carrier: Prices and When to Use Them

InPost - from £1.99

InPost operates a locker network - you drop your parcel in a locker at a supermarket, garage, or convenience store, and the buyer collects from a locker near them. Fully automated, no queuing, completely tracked.

From £1.99 for small parcels (locker-to-locker). This is the cheapest option on the entire platform for small items.

Best for: Folded clothing, small accessories, anything that fits in a shoebox. If your item fits in a 360mm × 640mm × 190mm locker compartment, InPost is almost always the cheapest option.

Limitations: Both you and the buyer need to be near InPost lockers. They're now in most major supermarkets, petrol stations, and convenience stores - coverage is good but not universal. If your buyer is rural, they might not have a locker nearby.

I use InPost for probably 40% of my shipments. For a folded jumper or a pair of jeans, £1.99 is unbeatable.

Yodel - from £1.99 inc VAT

Yodel offers drop-off at Yodel collection points (typically convenience stores and newsagents). Priced from £1.99 including VAT for smaller items.

Best for: Items that need drop-off at a local shop rather than a locker. Pricing is competitive with InPost for small items.

Honest assessment: Yodel's reliability reputation is mixed - more lost or delayed parcels than some other carriers based on my experience and community feedback. That said, when Vinted integrated shipping is used, any losses are covered by the carrier's process, so the risk to you as a seller is limited.

Relay - from £1.99

Relay is Vinted's own in-house collection point network, using shops and local pick-up points. Priced from £1.99 for small items.

Best for: Drop-off convenience where a local Relay point is nearby. Similar use case to Yodel's shop drop-off network.

Evri - from £2.62

Evri (formerly Hermes) is the most widely used carrier on Vinted. Drop-off at Evri ParcelShops, which are in most supermarkets, newsagents, and convenience stores. Very widespread coverage.

From £2.62 for small parcels. Goes up based on weight and size.

Best for: Most standard clothing items, particularly when the buyer might not be near an InPost locker. Evri's coverage is arguably the widest of any carrier on the platform. The buyer doesn't need to go to a locker - delivery is to their door.

I use Evri for most mid-sized shipments. The app drop-off process is quick - scan the QR code, label printed at the ParcelShop, done.

Note: Evri has had an historically patchy reputation for lost or damaged parcels. The integrated Vinted tracking does help with accountability, and losses on integrated shipments are covered. In practice, the vast majority of my Evri shipments have arrived without issue, but for higher-value or fragile items I tend to use Royal Mail.

Royal Mail - from £4.25

The most expensive option on Vinted, but the most trusted by buyers (and sellers) for important items.

From £4.25 for small parcels via the Vinted-integrated Royal Mail label. Tracked delivery, high reliability, and the delivery network everyone knows.

Best for:

• Higher-value items (£40+) where you want maximum confidence in delivery
• Fragile items - Royal Mail handles packages more carefully than parcel carriers
• Buyers who have specified a preference for Royal Mail
• Any item where a lost parcel dispute would be stressful

If I'm sending a £90 vintage jacket, I'm not shipping it via a £1.99 locker option. The extra £2–3 for Royal Mail is insurance against headaches, and buyers appreciate the reliability.

DPD - from £2.99

DPD is a premium courier with precise 1-hour delivery windows and strong tracking. Available as a Vinted carrier from £2.99 for smaller items.

Best for: Buyers who want convenience (DPD's tracking and delivery notifications are excellent), and for slightly larger items where the price is competitive.

DHL - from £2.79

DHL is strong for heavier and larger items and competes on price at the heavier end of the weight range. From £2.79 for smaller parcels.

Best for: Heavier items where DHL's pricing comes in more competitively than alternatives. Also good for international shipments if you're selling cross-border.

Which Carrier Should You Choose?

Here's my actual decision process:

Item small and light (under 1kg, fits in a shoebox): InPost at £1.99 if the buyer's near a locker, otherwise Evri.

Item medium weight (1–2kg, standard clothing): Evri at the relevant weight band. Good value, good coverage.

Item high value (over £40) or fragile: Royal Mail, every time. The extra cost is worth the peace of mind.

Heavy items (over 5kg): DHL or DPD - check which comes in cheaper for the specific weight on the calculator.

Buyer in a rural area: Royal Mail or Evri. InPost lockers aren't always accessible in less populated areas.

Packing Tips to Avoid Damage and Disputes

Good packing isn't about excessive materials - it's about getting the item to the buyer in the same condition as photographed. These are the practices that have served me well:

Use poly mailers for most clothing. Lightweight, waterproof, cheap per unit. A 35x45cm poly mailer handles most folded clothing items. Much lighter than cardboard boxes, which matters for weight categories.

Layer fragile items properly. Bags with hardware, shoes with embellishments, anything that can scratch or chip - wrap in tissue or bubble wrap first. A small amount of packaging material prevents a big headache.

Seal everything completely. I use a strip of parcel tape across the seal of every poly mailer even if it has a self-seal strip. One burst seam in transit means a damaged item, a dispute, and a refund.

Fold clothing flat and neatly. A crumpled item stuffed into a bag looks worse on arrival than the same item neatly folded. It also reduces the perceived care with which the package was handled. Buyers notice.

Write the tracking number down before handing over. The QR code gives you proof of drop-off, but if the tracking ever gets queried, having the number noted separately means you can check it independently.

Don't overpack for weight. Extra cardboard, multiple poly bags, excessive bubble wrap - it all adds weight that can push you into a higher postage band. Use appropriate materials, not excessive ones.

What Happens If a Parcel Goes Missing?

If you shipped via Vinted's integrated carriers and the tracking goes cold, here's the process:

1. Wait until the expected delivery window has passed (usually a day or two buffer beyond the estimated date)
2. Contact Vinted support through the app - open the transaction, flag the issue
3. Vinted will initiate a trace with the carrier
4. If the parcel is confirmed lost, Vinted and/or the carrier will process a compensation claim

As a seller using integrated shipping, you are generally protected from loss - you've done your part by handing over the parcel and having proof of drop-off (your QR scan receipt). Keep that receipt.

The most common cause of "lost" parcels on Vinted is delivery to the wrong address or a "left safe" that the buyer can't find. The tracking data usually explains what happened, and most cases are resolved within a week.

I've had one lost parcel in hundreds of shipments using Vinted's integrated carriers. It was resolved within 10 days with a full refund to the buyer and no loss to me as the seller.

A Note on "Custom" Postage

Some sellers offer custom postage - they arrange their own shipping and charge the buyer separately, rather than using Vinted's integrated labels. This is allowed, but it comes with less protection. If something goes wrong with a custom-postage shipment, Vinted's dispute resolution is more limited because the carrier is outside their system.

For most sellers, there's no reason to use custom postage. Vinted's integrated carriers cover nearly every size and weight of typical Vinted items, the prices are reasonable, and the protection is real. Custom postage makes sense only for unusual items (very heavy, oversized, or fragile art) where no carrier on the integrated network suits the job.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who pays for postage on Vinted - buyer or seller? The buyer pays for postage through Vinted's integrated shipping. The cost is added to their checkout total alongside the item price and buyer protection fee. As a seller, you receive only your listed item price - postage is completely separate.

What is the cheapest postage option on Vinted UK? InPost locker-to-locker is the cheapest at £1.99 for small parcels. Yodel and Relay are also available from £1.99 for small items.

Do I need a printer to send parcels on Vinted? No. Evri, InPost, and most other carriers support QR code drop-off - you show the code on your phone and the ParcelShop prints the label for you. No printer required.

What should I do if my parcel is returned? The most common reason is incorrect size or weight category selected at listing. Recheck your item's dimensions and weight, cancel the original transaction with the buyer, and relist with the correct postage category selected.

Is Evri reliable for Vinted parcels? Generally yes, but Evri has a variable reputation. For lower-value items, the price and coverage make it a sensible choice. For higher-value items, consider Royal Mail for greater reliability and peace of mind.

Can I use my own packaging materials? Yes. As long as the item is securely packaged and within the carrier's size and weight limits, you can use any suitable packaging. Plain poly mailers are the most cost-effective option for most clothing.

What if the buyer says the item arrived damaged? If the item was packed properly and the damage occurred in transit, document everything - keep photos of your packing and the carrier's tracking. Vinted's support team handles transit damage claims. If the item was misrepresented or poorly packed by you, that's a different conversation and you may be expected to issue a refund.