Amazon return pallets: the money maker you don’t know about

What do you think happens when customers return items to Amazon? Whether they're broken, not as advertised, or simply unwanted, they don't go back on the virtual shelves. Instead, Amazon assembles and sells liquidation pallets of items they've had sent back. These include electronics, toys, clothes, and more.

These Amazon return pallets present a golden opportunity for canny sellers. They cost far less than the items in them would cost if you bought them all as new. If you're in the reselling market, they're a great way to buy at a discount price, build up your stock, and sell them at a profit.

This can sound daunting to people without much experience in the field. To some, it might even sound illegal. However, you can rest easy. It is completely above board to buy Amazon return pallets, sell what's sellable, and make money out of it. Plenty of people and businesses make a living that way.

While legal and widely done, that's not to say it's the right step for everyone. It's also not without risk. You can't guarantee the quality or brand of the items you're getting, only that Amazon customers have turned them down. If you are interested in reselling these goods, however, you can potentially make great money from these pallets and mystery boxes.

Read on to learn more about Amazon return pallets, the pros and cons of buying them, and other tips for making a profit.

How to buy Amazon return pallets

Despite the number of customer returns they deal with per day, you can't buy return pallets directly from Amazon. They instead sell them to wholesalers and other third-party retailers, who make their money shifting this inventory to prospective resellers.

Websites like Pink Liquidation Marketplace, Wholesale Clearance, Liquidation.com, and many more allow you to purchase either smaller job lots or full-on return pallets. The cheapest pallets are usually still over £100. Many go for at least £450, while large lots of high-end electronics can reach £1,000 or more.

You won't always know the exact contents of what you buy, especially if you go for Amazon return pallets. Most retailers let you shop by category, specifying things like consumer electronics, clothing, beauty products, home improvement, and more.

Some merchants will let you buy even more specific lots, down to buying several dozen of a specific product. However, these still come with risks and often cost more than a more generalised, random pallet UK customers can pick up.

What you get in an Amazon return pallet

As mentioned above, Amazon return pallets cover almost anything that might get returned to Amazon. When you think about how diverse that online marketplace is, you can only imagine the mix of products on sale.

Some of the most common items in liquidation pallets include clothing, beauty products, homeware, and electronic appliances. There's immense variety within each category as well. Clothing might cover baby shoes to cocktail dresses. Electronics can go from TVs to car battery chargers to meat thermometers.

One thing is consistent between all Amazon return pallet items. They are all returned items. They are not fresh off the shelves, straight out of the factory. They have all been delivered to customers and sent back.

As a result, even if you know what sort of items you're getting, you can't be sure of their quality. Some might be in mint condition, as good as new. Others might be perfectly fine themselves but in damaged packaging. Still others will almost certainly be cosmetically damaged, missing components, or outright nonfunctional.

The contents and status of items in return pallets vary wildly. If you're hoping to get specific items in a specific state, whether to own or resell, there are far better ways. If you feel confident handling a more diverse pool of items, however, they can make for a great opportunity.

How to save and make money with Amazon return pallets

Whatever you get in an Amazon return pallet, you buy it for far below retail price. Given the variable state of the goods and the inability to sell them new, Amazon isn't interested in making as much profit as possible from them.

Amazon return pallets are expensive, there's no doubt. You might well pay hundreds of pounds for one. However, you can find Amazon return pallets in the UK worth ten times their asking price.

Apart from the benefits of reselling Amazon return pallets, there’s nothing to stop you from keeping anything you find that you want. Whether it's an expensive item of clothing, a new laptop, or a smart home gadget, you can pick it up for a fraction of the price and get plenty else besides.

Selling the items you get is essential to make a profit, however. All you need is a pallet of items that are in sellable condition, and then to find buyers for them. With the cost of an Amazon return pallet so far below the combined items' retail price, you can sell items individually at a generous second-hand discount and still make a profit.

This does not come without risk. Profit is never guaranteed when reselling anything, including Amazon return pallets. You might get a pallet of poor-quality items. You might struggle to shift them, even if they're in good shape. You might just not get items worth enough in the pallet to cover the upfront cost and time investment.

It pays to be careful and weigh up your chances of making money.

Are Amazon return pallets worth selling?

Profit isn't a sure thing when you sell Amazon return pallets, either for individuals or reseller businesses. At the same time, neither is a loss. Like any investment you hope to benefit from, it comes with both upsides and downsides.

Tips for selling return pallets

Return pallets aren't guaranteed profit, or even that easy a money-maker to bust into. However, they're far from a lost cause. If you're willing to put the investment, time, and skills into it, it has a chance of becoming a lucrative side gig.

Sell different goods in different markets

Return pallets aren't always a straightforward turnaround. You can't just take everything you find in them and list it back on Amazon. Different online marketplaces serve different customers. Items in mint or good condition might do well selling on Amazon, but not everything will.

Items in slightly damaged or used condition are much more likely to sell on eBay, where buyers are more used to second-hand goods and their quirks. You can also sell items for parts on eBay, Gumtree, or Facebook Marketplace. For specific goods or parts, you might want to advertise on specialist forums.

Make sure the things you're selling are allowed on your market of choice. For instance, reselling multiple of the same item on Vinted might see your account investigated or banned.

You can even shift items in person at car boot sales or similar markets. This is another area where people often expect to buy slightly battered things.

Be clear with what buyers are getting

Items in Amazon return pallets come in all shapes and sizes. People who shop at resellers are well aware of this. No seller, be they a business or individual, wants to fall afoul of laws about misrepresenting their goods. However, being honest about the condition likely won't harm your chances of selling.

If something is genuinely brand-new, advertise it as such. If you've repaired it so it functions perfectly, mention that in the listing. If it's scruffy, damaged, or missing parts, mention that. That's not necessarily a dealbreaker for the sorts of people who buy resold goods. This is doubly true for low-budget buyers.

More importantly, be specific. Mention what works about what you're selling. Mention where any damage is, what pieces are missing, or what's cosmetically wrong with it. Telling the buyer exactly what they're getting is a good way to build up a good reputation and goodwill. Even being vague risks buyers giving you a wide berth.

Keep in mind how important star ratings are on any merchant website. Even one poor review from somebody disappointed by the condition of an item can harm your profits. Be honest and thorough when selling items from resale pallets to avoid this.

Learn the market you're selling in

If you're the sort to enjoy buying and reselling pallets, you likely know the sort of goods you're buying quite well. However, you can always learn more. With the sheer variety you can get your hands on, it's worth knowing exactly what you're dealing with.

Some return pallets contain rare or particularly in-demand items that are expensive to buy anywhere else. If you're an expert in what your likely customers are looking for, you know to pay these items special attention and push them hard in your selling.

Start small

Amazon return pallets are unlike any other product or side hustle. They're their own world of reselling, one that takes some getting used to. As with any venture that requires upfront investment, it's wise to start small and see how you go.

You might be able to make much more profit with a vast pallet of returned electronics than you can with a more modest choice, but it comes with risks. You might become overwhelmed by the sorting and repairing, fail to shift it all and lose money or space storing it, or even struggle to keep up with sales if you do very well.

There's a chance you develop a gift for reselling Amazon return pallet items. If you do, there's no harm in scaling up and slowly buying bigger and bigger pallets to get more for your spend.

If return pallets have too many downsides, try end-of-the-line or surplus pallets. These are more expensive and require similar skills in reselling them. However, you’re far less likely to get broken or damaged items in them.

Some very pallet-able sales

If you're looking for a side gig that lets you flex some practical skills, brush up on your salesmanship, and even get your hands on a few quality items yourself, you could do worse than Amazon return pallets.

There's no denying the inherent risk involved, but that shouldn't put you off. If you think you have the consistency, skills, and determination to pull off reselling, give it a shot.

It's one of those side hustles that can grow into something more with time. As you get better at reselling and try out larger and larger pallets, it could even turn into a full-time business. So why not test your entrepreneurial side and match some unwanted items with their perfect owners?