ThredUp’s 14th Annual Resale Report Reveals New Era of Structural Competition and AI-Driven Discovery

Global Secondhand Market Projected to Reach $393 Billion by 2030, Growing 2X Faster Than Overall Apparel Retail.

U.S. Resale Outpaces Broader Retail 4X as Market Braces for $23.3 Billion in Incremental Value.

Gen Z and Millennials Set to Drive More Than 70% of Market Growth Through 2030.

OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ThredUp (Nasdaq: TDUP, LTSE: TDUP) today released its 14th annual Resale Report. Conducted by GlobalData, the study reveals a global secondhand market that has become a $393 billion powerhouse, representing roughly 10% of total apparel spend.

“Resale is no longer just growing, it’s taking direct market share,” said James Reinhart, ThredUp Cofounder and CEO. “In 2025, the U.S. secondhand market grew nearly 4X faster than the broader retail clothing market. The next phase of this market will be defined by who can best unlock supply and use AI to connect that inventory with the next generation of shoppers.”

"The global secondhand market is entering a more competitive, structurally complex phase. We expect the U.S. market alone to reach $78.8 billion by 2030,” said Neil Saunders, GlobalData’s Managing Director and Retail Analyst. “With Gen Z and Millennials driving the vast majority of this value, the infrastructure for discovery must evolve into the social feeds where these consumers live.”

Inside the 2026 Resale Report

Derived from market modeling, a survey of 3,268 U.S. consumers, and insights from 50 top fashion brands, the report highlights several key shifts:

• Secondhand Outpaces New Clothing 2-to-1: Resale isn't just a trend; it's taking over the closet. Over the next five years, the global secondhand market is projected to grow twice as fast as the rest of the fashion industry combined.

• Shopping Moves to Social Feeds: Marketplace apps are no longer the only destination. Nearly 50% of shoppers now discover their next secondhand find through social media, creators, and influencer feeds rather than traditional search.

• Gen Z and Millennials to Drive 70% of Market Growth: Younger generations are the undisputed heavyweights of the resale economy. Through 2030, 71% of all market growth will come from Gen Z and Millennials, with new shoppers making up the vast majority of this new spending.

• AI Makes Buying Used as Easy as Buying New: AI is the engine helping scale resale by improving search and discovery. By automating everything from pricing to verifying authenticity, technology is removing the old headaches of secondhand and making it as fast and efficient as buying brand new.

• Supply is the New Constraint: With rapidly growing demand, the industry is now racing to find enough stock. To unlock an additional $23.3 billion in U.S. market value, the focus must shift to making the act of selling just as easy as clicking "buy."

To see the full 2026 Resale Report and additional data, visit thredup.com/resale.

About the 2026 Resale Report

ThredUp’s annual Resale Report contains research and data from GlobalData, a third-party retail analytics firm. GlobalData’s assessment of the secondhand market is determined through consumer surveys, retailer tracking, official public data, data sharing, store observation, and secondary sources. These inputs are used by analysts to model and calculate market sizes, channel sizes, and market shares. Further, for the purpose of this report, GlobalData conducted a January-February 2026 survey of 3,268 U.S. adults over 18, asking specific questions about their behaviors and preferences for secondhand. GlobalData also surveyed the top 50 U.S. fashion retailers and brands from January-February 2026 to gather their opinions on resale. In addition, ThredUp’s Resale Report also leverages data from internal ThredUp customer and brand performance data.

About ThredUp

ThredUp is transforming resale with technology and a mission to inspire the world to think secondhand first. By making it easy to buy and sell secondhand, ThredUp has become one of the world's largest online resale platforms for apparel, shoes and accessories. Sellers enjoy ThredUp because we make it easy to clean out their closets and unlock value for themselves or for the charity of their choice while doing good for the planet. Buyers enjoy shopping value, premium and luxury brands all in one place, at up to 90% off estimated retail price. Our proprietary operating platform is the foundation for our managed marketplace and consists of distributed processing infrastructure, proprietary software and systems and data science expertise. With ThredUp’s Resale-as-a-Service, some of the world's leading brands and retailers are leveraging our platform to deliver customizable, scalable resale experiences to their customers. ThredUp has processed over 200 million unique secondhand items from 60,000 brands across 100 categories. By extending the life cycle of clothing, ThredUp is changing the way consumers shop and ushering in a more sustainable future for the fashion industry.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts. The words "believe," "may," "will," "estimate," "continue," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," "predict" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Except as required by law, ThredUp has no obligation to update any of these forward-looking statements to conform these statements to actual results or revised expectations.