Category: Upway

Summer is prime cycling season for most of us, but maybe you’re looking at your current bike and thinking it’s time for something new? Or you’ve got an old bike collecting dust in your garage that you never ride anymore and you would like to do something with it other than just donate it to a charity?

Parting ways with an old bike is a hard decision to make but a fact of life we all eventually face. That’s especially true when a new bike with updated frame materials, improved componentry, disc brakes, and other elements is catching your eye. But what can you do with your old bike short of donating to a charity? There are a lot more options available than you think.

First Things First: Determine Why You Want to Sell Your Current Bike

There are many reasons why you may want to upgrade from your current road bike. Maybe you’re riding a bike from the 1980s, 1990s, or even the early 2000s, and you’ve found that the cost and time needed to keep that bike running and maintained have become a headache.

Your bike may also have an aluminum or chromoly frame and you’ve found you want a more up-to-date carbon speedster with disc brakes, carbon wheels, electronic shifting, etc. Your bike may have been a hot commodity when you purchased it 40 years ago but now it is considered outdated or vintage.

If you are a dedicated cyclist and a new bike is within your financial means, I completely understand why you might desire something new. The other thing to keep in mind is that you may have outgrown your current bike, physically, and you want a bike that will suit your needs and allow you to perform better as a road cyclist. These are all legitimate reasons to want to upgrade to a new bike.

How to Find Out How Much Your Current Bike is Worth

Your current bike is in good shape, no crashes, no scratches in the frame, the components are used but not worn out, etc. You believe your bike should sell for a good price. You have an asking price in mind, but you don’t want to start too high or too low. How can you find out what your bike is really worth?

If you’re in close proximity to a bike shop, you could bring in your bike and ask someone there, preferably a mechanic, to give you a rough estimate of what your bike might be worth. They can also tell you how you should price it. But if that option isn’t available to you, you can hop on the internet and visit BicycleBlueBook.com.

The website, of course, takes its name from the value system that is associated with cars, the Kelley Blue Book. BicycleBlueBook.com operates in much the same way by giving you, the seller, a fair market value based on various data, specifically the overall condition of your bike. On the site, you have the option to sell, buy, or trade in your bike toward a new bike, if you haven’t acquired one yet.

The nice thing about BicycleBlueBook.com is that the company will sell your bike for you once appraised for its current value. Bike sales are how the company makes money, and the company supplies a graph on its website to illustrate how much better it is to sell your bike through them versus Facebook, Craigslist, or eBay. The company states it can reach 250,000 potential buyers, so that’s pretty convincing.

Other Ways to Sell Your Bike

E-bikes have been around since the 1990s, but over time, they have been improved, particularly in battery technology and overall capabilities. Maybe you have an old e-bike you no longer use, or you want to trade it in for something newer? That’s what Upway specializes in. The company buys and sells every type of E-bike imaginable. They also buy and sell non-electric bikes, but it seems the company has currently suspended that service.

If you want to sell your e-bike, you fill out a form and in 48 hours, Upway will make you an offer. If you accept it, the company will cover your shipment of the bike to them. Once they receive it, you are paid. But maybe you don’t want to deal with an Internet-based company for the sale of your bike. What are your options?

There aren’t a lot, unfortunately. You could place a flyer in your local bike shop if they let you do that. Make sure to ask first. The advantage, of course, no shipping fees or commission fees to worry about. If that option isn’t available, then eBay is a good possibility. A lot of people will see your bike, but there are auction costs as well as PayPal fees that are subtracted from the sale of your bike.

Then there is Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist. There may be no sales fees, but you’ll need to figure out how you will be paid and, of course, how you will ship the bike to the buyer. If the buyer is local to you, that solves the shipping problem and you can be paid in person.

Last Thoughts

Selling a bike should be an easy and enjoyable process, not one beset by fees and unknowns. The easiest route is to work with a seller online who will give you what they think is a fair appraisal, a sale price, and may even help you sell it.

But if you want to avoid the costs of selling with these outlets and the hassle of getting your bike shipped, selling it on your own after you’ve determined your price is a good approach. Just know upfront that it may take longer to sell your bike this way, and you may not get the price you originally listed it for on eBay, Facebook Marketplace, or other independent online storefronts.

There is no right answer to how you want to take on the selling of your bike. There are both upsides and downsides to all of them, so I wish you good luck.