Consignment for Card Dealers: A Complete Setup Guide

Consignment is one of the highest-leverage moves a card shop or active dealer can make, you get inventory to sell without buying it, the consignor gets reach they don't have on their own, everyone takes a cut of the sale. The hard part is keeping the math honest when 200 cards are out across 12 consignors and the splits aren't all the same. This guide walks through how consignment actually works in the card world, how to set up agreements, and how to track owed amounts without losing sleep.

What consignment means in cards specifically

Consignment is when someone else owns the inventory but you sell it. You list it, ship it, handle returns, take the platform-fee hit, and split the net proceeds with the owner per a pre-agreed percentage. The card-world flavor has a few specifics:

• Often graded slabs. Consigned cards are usually higher-value PSA / BGS slabs the owner doesn't want to mess with on their own eBay account.
• Single seller account. Everything sells under your eBay / Whatnot / shop account, the consignor isn't the seller of record.
• Platform fees come out before the split. Industry standard is: gross sale − platform fees − shipping cost = net, then split per agreed %.
• Inventory ownership doesn't transfer until sale. If a card doesn't sell, it goes back to the consignor (or stays on the floor depending on the agreement). It's not your inventory for tax/COGS purposes.

Common split structures

The market range for card consignment splits as of 2026, from most common to least:

• 80 / 20 (consignor / dealer). Standard for high-value modern slabs from trusted consignors. The dealer's 20% covers listing time, eBay fees on top of that, and shipping labor.
• 70 / 30. Common for vintage cards or larger lots that take more setup. Also typical for first-time consignors who haven't built a track record with you yet.
• 50 / 50. Heavy-lift consignments, bulk lots that need sorting, raw cards that need grading evaluation, low-AUV cards where the dealer is doing the work to make them sellable.
• Sliding scale. Some shops use a price-based split: e.g., 85/15 above $500, 75/25 between $100-$500, 50/50 under $100. Captures the fact that small-value cards take the same amount of work as big ones.

SCN's consignment tracking handles flat splits per consignor. Sliding scales can be modeled by creating separate consignor records per price band, clunky but works. Native sliding-scale support is on the backlog.

What to track per consignor

At minimum:

• Identity. Name, email, phone, payout preference (PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, check, store credit).
• Split percentage. The default % they get on net proceeds. Some consignors negotiate different splits per card; track that per item if so.
• Agreement date + version. When you signed the agreement and which version. Matters when terms change.
• Card inventory assigned to them. Which specific cards from your inventory are theirs. SCN models this as an inventory flag, so the card lives in your main inventory list but is tagged with the consignor.
• Sales history. Every card that's sold from their consigned inventory, gross sale, platform fees, shipping cost, net, and their portion.
• Owed amount. Their cumulative share minus what's been paid out. Updates in real time as sales happen.
• Payout history. Date, amount, method, reference (PayPal transaction ID, check number).

The consignment agreement, what should be in writing

Don't skip the written agreement. The card world has more goodwill than most resale categories but disputes happen and you want clear terms. Minimum content:

• Items consigned. An itemized list with description, condition, declared value. SCN can generate this from the cards you assign.
• Split percentage. Default and any per-card exceptions.
• What "net" means. Specifically: gross sale − platform fees − shipping costs − any third-party authentication fees. Get this exact before the first sale.
• Pricing authority. Who sets the listing price, you, the consignor, or jointly. Some consignors set floors; some let you decide entirely.
• Listing duration. How long you'll keep a card listed before either de-listing, re-pricing, or returning to the consignor.
• Return policy. What happens if a buyer returns a card after sale, does the consignor refund their share, do you eat it, or is it pro-rata?
• Loss / damage. Who's liable if a card gets damaged in your custody before sale, or lost in shipping.
• Payout schedule. When you settle up, monthly, after each sale, at a dollar threshold ("when their balance hits $500"), or on request.
• Term + termination. How long the agreement runs and how either party can end it.

SCN doesn't generate the agreement for you, that's a CPA / lawyer thing, but it tracks the parts that matter day-to-day (splits, items, sales, owed amounts, payouts).

How owed amounts get calculated correctly

The standard formula when a consigned card sells:

Gross sale          $250.00
− Platform fees     − $32.50  (eBay FVF + promoted listing)
− Shipping cost     − $4.65   (label cost, not what buyer paid)
= Net to split        $212.85

Consignor share     × 80%
= Consignor's cut     $170.28

Your cut: $250 − $32.50 − $4.65 − $170.28 = $42.57

Two common pitfalls:

• Forgetting promoted-listing fees. If your eBay store uses Promoted Listings, that fee comes off net too. Most spreadsheets miss this and overpay consignors.
• Splitting buyer-paid shipping. If the buyer paid $5 shipping and your label cost $4.65, the $0.35 difference is sometimes split per the agreement and sometimes kept by the dealer as labor. Specify in writing.

SCN pulls the actual platform fees per sale from the eBay Finances API, so the consignor split is calculated on the real net, not an estimate. As cards sell, the consignor's owed amount updates automatically, you can pull up any consignor and see exactly what's owed right now.

Payout statements that don't take an hour to build

When it's time to pay a consignor, they want to see what they're being paid for. Industry standard payout statements include:

• Sale-by-sale breakdown: card, sale date, sale price, fees, shipping, net, their %.
• Period totals: total gross, total fees, total their share.
• Cumulative running balance (helpful when you settle quarterly or longer).
• Previously paid amounts referenced (so they can match against their bank).
• Payout method + reference number once it's sent.

SCN's Consignors tab generates this on demand, pick a consignor, pick a date range, get a clean statement you can email or print. The math is automatic; you're just confirming the period and clicking send.

How SCN compares to spreadsheets and other tools

• Spreadsheet. Works for 1-2 consignors. Breaks at 5+ because you're hand-entering platform fees per sale, which guarantees errors and undisputed losses.
• Generic consignment software (Liberty, Ricochet, etc.). Built for clothing/antique consignment shops. Often doesn't model eBay platform fees correctly, doesn't track grading-card-specific identifiers (cert numbers, pre-grade comps), and has no integration with cards-specific tools.
• SCN. Live splits, real fees from eBay Finances API, consignor-flagged inventory that lives next to your own cards, payout statements on demand. Dealer tier supports unlimited consignors.
• Slabfy Shop ($149/mo). Has consignment depth too; bigger price point fits if you're operating at brick-and-mortar shop scale.

Frequently asked questions

Are consigned cards my inventory for tax purposes?

No. Consigned cards are owned by the consignor until they sell. They don't count toward your beginning or ending inventory on Schedule C. When a consigned card sells, your portion of the net (after paying the consignor) is your revenue; their portion is theirs to report.

Do I have to send 1099s to my consignors?

Depends on volume and how your relationship is structured. If a consignor receives more than $600 in payouts from you in a calendar year, you may need to issue a 1099-NEC. Talk to a CPA, because this is a real area where the wrong answer leads to penalties.

Can I set different splits for different cards from the same consignor?

In SCN, yes, with a per-card override on the standard split. Useful when a consignor brings in a mix of high-AUV slabs (80/20) and bulk raw (50/50) under one agreement.

What if a consignor wants store credit instead of cash?

Tracked the same way. The owed amount accumulates. Mark a payout with method = "Store Credit" and reference what they used it for. SCN doesn't currently process store credit as a balance the consignor can spend in the app; you'd manage that side externally.

What about consignment for cards I want to grade first?

Common scenario: consignor brings raw cards, you grade them, then sell as slabs. Two questions to handle in writing: (1) who fronts the grading fee, and (2) who owns the slab if the card grades surprisingly low (e.g., consignor wanted 10, came back 8, and sometimes a consignor wants the slab back rather than sell at the lower grade). SCN's grading workflow plus the consignment flag let you model both flows; the agreement clarity is on you.

Related: Sports Card Dealer Software: The Complete 2026 Buyer's Guide for the broader category. Card Dealer Accounting for tax + P&L specifics including how consignment shows up on Schedule C. The FAQ covers workflow questions. Questions? Email support@sportscardnetwork.ai.