All guidesUpdated 5 minute read
To reconcile eBay, compare what you earned in a period (sales and postage, minus refunds, fees, advertising and labels) with what eBay paid into your bank. The two rarely match exactly, and the job is to explain the gap order by order, not to make it disappear.
Why a payout is not your sales
eBay collects the buyer's money, takes its fees, takes the cost of labels you bought through eBay, takes back refunds, and pays you what is left. So a payout is a net figure, and it covers the days eBay chose, not a calendar month.
The comparison
Now add up the payouts that eBay sent to your bank in the same month. The difference between the two is the gap to explain.
| Item sales | £4,120.00 |
|---|---|
| Postage charged to buyers | £310.00 |
| Refunds | -£184.00 |
| Fees and advertising | -£602.00 |
| Postage labels | -£395.00 |
| Earned in the month | £3,249.00 |
Steps
- Fix the period: one calendar month, by the date of each transaction.
- Add up what you earned, as above.
- Add up the payouts received in that month.
- List the money that was earned but not yet paid out at the end of the month.
- List payouts received this month for sales of the month before.
- Whatever is left after those two lists is a real difference. Find the orders behind it.
The usual reasons for a gap
- Timing: a sale on the last days of the month is paid out in the next one.
- Funds on hold, for a new account or a case that is open.
- A refund given after the payout for that order was already sent.
- A fee credit or a label adjustment that arrives later.
- Sales in another currency, converted at a rate you did not record.
Then close the month
When the gap is explained, close the month and keep the figures. A late refund then appears as an adjustment in the month it happened, and the closed month still says what it said when you checked it.
How Sellcount does this for you
Sellcount does this comparison for every month: what you earned, what was paid out, what is still pending, and a list of the orders that do not add up, each with its reason. A month can be locked once it is checked.