Selling
Selling Stamps: Auction vs Dealer
The two main ways to sell stamps are at auction or to a dealer, and the better choice depends on what you have. A dealer offers a quicker, more certain sale with no seller's commission, which suits modest to mid-value material and individual quality items. An auction can achieve more for genuinely rare or high-value stamps, where competition between bidders drives the price up, but it is slower, charges commission, and carries no guarantee of a sale. An honest dealer will tell you which route serves you better.
At a glance
The two main ways to sell
Most people with stamps to sell choose between two routes: selling to a dealer, or selling at auction. There is a third option, selling privately yourself online, which can work but takes time, knowledge and effort, and carries its own risks. For most sellers, the real decision is auction or dealer.
Neither is better in every case. The right choice depends entirely on what you have, so here is how they compare, honestly.
How the two routes compare
| Selling to a dealer | Selling at auction | |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | Quick, often more or less immediate | Slow, typically weeks to months |
| Certainty | Certain, you have a firm offer | Uncertain, an item may not sell |
| Cost to you | No seller's commission | Seller's commission, and sometimes fees |
| Price ceiling | A fair offer based on resale value | Potentially higher for rare items, as bidders compete |
| Best for | Modest to mid material, quality singles | Genuinely rare or high-value items |
| Effort | Minimal | Lotting, waiting, and auction terms |
| When it shines | Convenience, speed and certainty | Strong demand drives the bidding up |
When a dealer is the better choice
For most collections, which are modest to mid in value, and for individual quality stamps, selling to a dealer is often the better route. You receive a fair offer, pay no commission, and the sale is quick and certain, with no waiting and no fees taken off the top. It is the simplest path when you want the matter dealt with promptly and without fuss.
For our part, we buy individual quality stamps, better Great Britain and Commonwealth material, and sometimes whole collections.
When auction is the better choice
For the rare and valuable
Where competition lifts the price
For genuinely rare or high-value stamps, an auction can achieve more than a dealer can offer, because competing bidders can push the price above any single buyer's figure. When an item is special enough to attract that competition, the wait and the fees can be well worth it.
This is precisely the situation in which we will point you towards auction rather than buy from you, because it would serve you better.
Understanding what auction really costs
The hammer price is not what you receive
Auction estimates can look attractive, so it helps to understand what you actually receive, which is rarely the headline figure.
An auction house charges the seller a commission, a percentage of the price the lot fetches, and sometimes adds further charges such as lotting, photography or unsold-lot fees. Buyers, meanwhile, pay a premium on top of their winning bid, which naturally tempers what they are willing to bid in the first place. So the hammer price is not what reaches you: commission comes off it. When you weigh an auction estimate against a dealer's offer, it is the figure after all costs that matters.
Our honest approach
We would rather send you to auction than make a sale we should not.Daniel Ardley, Blackheath Stamps
We look at what you have and advise the route that genuinely serves you. Where your material suits it, we will make you a fair offer. Where an auction would get you more, whether because an item is rare and valuable, or simply because competition would beat our offer, we will tell you so plainly. The right approach varies with the material, and we would always rather lose a sale than oversell.
The starting point is an honest valuation, which is free. See how to get your stamps valued.
How to decide
- Start with an honest valuation, so you know what you actually have.
- For modest to mid material, or quality singles, a dealer is usually simplest and best.
- For genuinely rare or high-value items, consider auction, where competition can lift the price.
- Remember that a collection can be split, with the few special items going to auction and the rest sold to a dealer. A mixed approach is often the most sensible of all.
Get a free valuation and we will advise you honestly on the best route for what you have.
Frequently asked questions
It depends on what you have. A dealer is usually better for modest to mid-value material and quality singles, offering speed and certainty with no commission. Auction can achieve more for genuinely rare or high-value items.
For the best material, auction may achieve more because bidders compete. For modest to mid material, a dealer is often better once auction fees are taken into account. We will tell you honestly which applies to you.
A seller's commission, which is a percentage of the price the lot fetches, plus sometimes further fees. The hammer price is not what you receive, as commission is deducted from it.
Individual quality stamps, better Great Britain and Commonwealth material, and sometimes whole collections. Where auction would serve you better, we will say so.
Begin with an honest valuation. We will advise the best route for your material, which may be a sale to us, an auction, or a mix of the two.
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Founder and stamp dealerLast updated June 2026