Secondhand fashion giant Depop is being sued in a U.S. court over hidden fees. 

A woman in California alleges many Depop users may be unaware of the digital platform's mandatory checkout fees.

She’s calling for better transparency, and an undisclosed sum in compensatory damages.

Thousands of Depop's 56.3 million registered users in the U.S. and the UK could potentially sign on to the lawsuit – what’s known as a class action. 

Founded by Simon Beckerman in 2011, Depop began as a marketplace for readers of PIG (an independent culture magazine) to buy items featured in its pages.

Now, it’s a global marketplace and pre-loved fashion app.

As of December 2025, Depop had more than 10 million active buyers and sellers. Almost 90% of Depop buyers are under the age of 34.

In January 2025, California-based Depop user Linsey Dinh was browsing the platform and found an item listed at $US17 ($AU24).

She decided to buy it based on that price. But when she got to the checkout, an extra $1.55 "Marketplace fee" appeared that hadn't been mentioned anywhere while she was browsing.

She paid it, but looked into the charge and determined it could be illegal under California law.

Dinh then filed legal action against Depop in a California court in February.

Depop has been accused of misleading customers via its lack of transparency over mandatory fees.

Court documents allege Depop “individually advertises the price of each item for sale on its website. However, [its] advertised prices fail to include a mandatory fee ultimately charged at checkout.”

The plaintiff (Dinh) claims the fees amount to what’s known as “drip pricing” and “junk fee” practices, which are illegal in California.

The state introduced the “Honest Pricing Law” on 1 July 2024. Under the legislation, mandatory fees must be included in a product’s advertised price. The only exceptions are government-imposed taxes and shipping costs.

In Dinh’s case, this means the $17 item she bought on Depop should have been advertised as an $18.55 item.

Depop's Marketplace fee is used to cover buyer protection and customer support costs.

Dinh’s lawyers acknowledge these expenses as legitimate, but claim the fee should be built into the listed price from the start.

The complaint argues that by waiting until checkout to reveal the fee, Depop exploits the fact that shoppers are already invested in their selections and unlikely to start their search over.

“A shopper may have put so much time into the shopping process that by the time additional fees or charges are disclosed they have already made up their minds to make a purchase,” the complaint notes, citing consumer behaviour research.

Dinh is suing under four separate California laws, seeking refunds of all fees paid, damages, and a court order forcing Depop to change its practices permanently.

The complaint includes screenshots showing that at the time of Dinh's January 2025 purchase, Depop's product pages showed prices with no additional disclosure such as an asterisk or fine print.

By the time the lawsuit was being prepared, a small "i" icon had quietly appeared next to prices.

When clicked, it explains the Marketplace fee is already included in the displayed total.

The lawsuit suggests Depop quietly updated its terms in an attempt to rectify unlawful practices.

The timing of the lawsuit comes amid the planned sale of Depop.

Etsy acquired the platform from Simon Beckerman for $US1.6 billion in 2021. This year, it agreed to sell Depop for approximately $1.2 billion. The deal is expected to close by the middle of the year.

Depop's response to the complaint is due by 27 April, but by the time administrative court processes are completed, Depop will most likely be under new ownership.

As a result, eBay will likely inherit both the platform and the lawsuit, but it’s not yet clear how liable it could be for the past conduct of its platform Depop.

eBay already displays fee-inclusive pricing on its UK platform following a similar buyer protection fee rollout there.

The case is in its earliest stages. Depop has not yet filed a response, but we can expect arguments over whether its updated website disclosures are now sufficient, and whether California's laws apply to users outside the state.

For now, Dinh and her lawyers are asking the court to certify the case as a class action. This step would open the lawsuit up to other Depop buyers who paid the hidden fee.

A ruling could take up to three years, but cases like this frequently settle before that point. In this instance it means Depop would have to make a compelling enough offer to Dinh for her to withdraw the planned class action.

However, as with many settlements, it likely would not include any admission of wrongdoing by Depop.

Under the Australian Consumer Law, businesses must display “taxes, duties and all unavoidable or pre-selected extra fees” in an item’s total advertised price.

Importantly, Depop’s Marketplace fee (the one at the centre of the U.S. lawsuit) only applies to buyers in the UK and U.S, not Australia.

While Aussie Depop users may be in the clear, the ACCC warns ‘drip pricing’ practices are particularly prevalent across the world of online shopping.

“When a price is advertised at the beginning of an online purchase, but then extra fees and charges are gradually added… Consumers [end up] paying more than they initially intended to,” the competition watchdog notes.

So how can you avoid getting caught out by misleading fees online?

The ACCC says if you think you’re being charged unfairly, shop around to find a better deal from a competitor, and “be prepared to back out of the transaction” if it doesn’t feel right and/or the costs don’t add up.

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