Programs · Flipit · How it works

From the shelfto sold.

What actually happens between the photo you take in the aisle and the listing that sells on eBay. No magic, six steps, all of them explained.

1
Scan

One photo identifies the item.

Open Flipit on your phone and tap Scan an item. The camera opens directly; take one clear photo of the front, the label, or whatever shows the brand and model. The photo is shrunk on your phone before upload so it's fast on store wifi, and it's stored privately in your account.

An AI vision model reads the photo and returns a precise identification: brand, model, category and condition, plus a short eBay search query built from the identifiers it found, such as the model number rather than the marketing name. That query is what drives the next step, and you can see it on every result.

Full analysis vs. scan. A scan is one photo and a price check, and costs a third of a credit. A full analysis, used when you're ready to sell, takes up to eight photos and also writes the listing. That's one credit.
2
Comps

Real eBay prices, filtered hard.

Flipit asks eBay's own API for listings that match the search query and the item's condition, new or used. Then it cleans the results, because raw eBay searches are full of noise:

  • Accessories and parts are dropped. A phone case, a charger, a "for parts" unit or an empty box is not a comp for the item itself, unless the item you scanned is one of those.
  • Titles must actually contain the item. Every word of a short query, at least half of a long one, matched as whole words. "iPhone 12" doesn't match a 2012 calendar.
  • Outliers don't move the number. Low, mid and high are the 25th, 50th and 75th percentiles of what's left. One delusional $900 listing doesn't drag the estimate up.

Where eBay provides sold prices for a category, Flipit uses the last 90 days of actual sales and tells you how many it found. Where it doesn't, Flipit falls back to current asking prices and labels the result as such, because an asking price is a hope, not a sale. If fewer than three usable comps exist, Flipit says so and shows the AI's own estimate instead of pretending.

The comps it used are listed under every result with a link to each eBay listing, so you can check its work.

3
Verdict

Buy, Maybe, or Skip, with the math.

Type the tag price. Flipit takes the mid comp, subtracts eBay's final-value fee and the per-order charge, subtracts what you'd pay, and shows you the net profit and the return on your money. Then it gives a one-word verdict:

  • Buy only when the estimate rests on real sold data, the margin clears fees with room to spare, and enough units sold recently to expect yours will too.
  • Maybe when the margin is there but the evidence is thinner: asking prices instead of sales, or only a couple of recent sales.
  • Skip when the numbers don't clear fees and your cost.

Every verdict lists its reasons in plain words. You're the one holding the item; Flipit is the second opinion that never gets excited.

Fees. The estimate uses eBay's standard final value fee for most categories plus the fixed per-order fee. Shipping isn't included, because you know your shipping and Flipit doesn't.
4
Listing writer

Bought it? The listing writes itself.

Tap List it on a scan, or start a new listing with up to eight photos. Flipit produces the whole thing:

  • An 80-character title that fits eBay's limit and leads with the words buyers search for
  • A description in two or three paragraphs: what it is, what's included, condition
  • Category, brand, condition, tags, and a price set from the comps rather than from thin air

Everything is editable before you save. The AI writes the first draft; you know the item.

5
Publish

One click to eBay. A copy button for the rest.

eBay: connect your seller account once from Settings. This uses eBay's own sign-in page, so Flipit never sees your password, and you can disconnect any time. After that, Publish to eBay creates a fixed-price listing with your photos, title, description and price, using the shipping, payment and return policies already on your eBay account. If eBay requires item specifics Flipit had to guess, it tells you which ones to check.

Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist don't allow apps to post for you. Flipit gives you a ready-to-paste pack, opens the site, and lets you mark the listing posted so your tracking stays honest.

Publishing to eBay is a Pro feature. Everything else works on the free plan.

6
Track

Sold on eBay? Flipit already knows.

When a listing sells on eBay, Flipit marks it sold with the real sale price the next time you open your listings. Ending a listing in Flipit ends it on eBay too, so an item can't sell twice. Sales you make elsewhere take one tap to record.

Analytics shows profit, sell-through and monthly totals, and everything exports to CSV for your spreadsheet or your accountant.

Credits

What costs a credit, and what doesn't.

Flipit does paid AI work and pulls live marketplace data, so the things that cost us money cost you a credit. Everything else is free on every plan.

ActionCost
Quick scan in the store⅓ credit
Full analysis with listing1 credit
Saving, editing, tracking, marking soldFree
Publishing to eBay, sold syncFree on Pro and Business
Analytics and CSV exportFree
PlanCreditsPrice
Free5, for life$0
Pro150 a month$19 a month or $190 a year
Business600 a month$49 a month or $490 a year
Top-up pack25, never expire$5, any plan

A failed analysis is refunded automatically. Your plan's credits are used first, then top-ups.

Questions about the mechanics

The fine print, in English

Does it work in stores with bad signal?

It needs a connection to identify the item and fetch comps; the photo is shrunk first so a weak signal usually suffices. No signal, no scan, though the photo is kept so you can retry outside.

Can I trust the AI identification?

It's right most of the time on branded items with visible model numbers, and it's the weakest on generic unbranded goods. That's why the search query and the comps are always shown: if it named the wrong thing, you'll see it in ten seconds and can ignore the verdict.

Why do I sometimes see asking prices instead of sold?

eBay releases sold-price data per category and per app. Where Flipit has it, you get sold prices. Where it doesn't, you get asking prices, labeled as such, and the verdict can never be better than Maybe.

Do I need an eBay store?

No. Any eBay seller account with business policies set up will do. eBay walks you through policies the first time you list anything.

Is there an app to download?

Flipit runs in your phone's browser. Add it to your home screen from the browser menu and it opens full-screen like an app. An Android app is planned.

Try it

Five free analyses. No card.

Scan the next thing you're unsure about. If Flipit saves you from one bad buy, it has paid for a year of Pro.

Start free