Where Is the Best Place to Sell Power Tools?

For most UK sellers the best place to sell power tools is an online tool-buying service, because these firms quote from a few photos, cover the postage or collect the kit, and pay straight into your bank account. If your tools are branded and in working order you'll get more money from eBay or Facebook Marketplace, but you'll do every part of the job yourself. The deciding factor is usually volume: a single drill is worth listing by hand, while a whole workshop clear-out is worth handing to a buyer. The Einhell 18V drill kit is the sort of complete set that holds its money when you sell it on later, which is worth knowing before you buy the next one.

Where can you sell power tools in the UK?

There isn't one best route, because the right answer depends on what you own and how much time you want to spend on it. A working Makita drill with two batteries and a case will do well on eBay, while a garage full of mixed makes is a five minute job for a tool buyer. Here's how the main options compare.

Selling to a tool-buying service

These businesses exist to take the admin out of selling. You tell them what you have, usually with photos and model numbers, and they come back with a price. If you accept it, you either post the tool using their label or they collect from your address, and the money arrives by bank transfer. Tool Exchange says it pays within 72 hours and buys professional power tools and accessories, naming DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, Bosch, Hitachi, Ryobi and Hilti among the brands it takes. It also states plainly that it doesn't buy supermarket brands or low-end DIY tools, and that policy is common across the sector.

Cash4Tools works in much the same way and says it quotes individually for higher value items, usually those worth more than £30, suggesting that cheaper tools go in as a bulk lot instead. UK Tool Buyer collects from your home, which suits bench grinders, mitre saws and anything heavy that you'd rather not box up and carry. Sell Tools Online advertises free postage and same day payments for branded hand, power and air tools.

The trade-off is price, because a buyer has to make a margin on every tool. You'll get less than a private sale would bring, and you'll be looking at one flat offer rather than a bidding war. What you get in return is a clean finish: no messages at eleven at night, no buyers who never turn up, and no queue at the post office. When you're clearing a whole garage that's a fair exchange.

Selling on eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree

Marketplaces pay the most and cost you the most time. eBay reaches the whole country, which matters for anything specialist, whether that's a cordless planer or a Milwaukee impact wrench, because local demand for those is thin. Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree are where most local cash sales happen, and they suit heavy items such as a mitre saw or a bench grinder that nobody wants to pay postage on. Preloved is another option for local listings, and it's free for private sellers.

Sell tools as a set wherever you can. A bare drill body attracts low offers, because the buyer then has to track down a battery and charger on the same platform. Add two working batteries, the charger and the case and the same drill becomes a usable kit that someone can put straight to work. Bundling raises the price far more than the parts would fetch separately, and it gives you one listing instead of three.

Write a specific listing as well. Include the model number, the voltage, whether the motor is brushed or brushless, how the batteries behave, and exactly what's in the box. If the chuck has play in it or a battery no longer holds charge, say so up front and price accordingly. Tool buyers know these models well, and naming a fault protects you from a return and an argument later.

What buyers look for, and what they refuse

Brand and battery platform drive most of the value. Tools from Makita, Milwaukee, DeWalt, Bosch Professional and Ryobi hold their money because the batteries are still in production, so a buyer can keep using the packs they already own. Our comparison of the best cordless tool brands for contractors covers which platforms are still worth buying into, and that same question decides what your old kit is worth today.

Unbranded 18V drills, supermarket own-brand combi drills and anything with a sealed, non-replaceable battery are the hardest tools to move. Several buying services say outright that they won't accept them, and private buyers avoid them because a pair of replacement batteries can cost more than the tool is worth. If that's what's sitting in your toolbox, don't spend a Saturday photographing it.

Condition decides the rest. A working tool in a scuffed case sells without trouble. A tool that smells of burning, has a seized chuck or needs a new switch is a spares or repair listing, and only a narrow group of buyers wants that. Accessories count for a lot too, so keep the drill bit sets, spare batteries, depth stops and manuals together with the tool you're selling.

How to get a fair price: five things to do first

1. Test it properly before you price it. Run the tool under load, check the chuck grips a bit without slipping, and confirm every battery takes a charge. If a pack won't charge, work through our guide to fixing a power tool battery that won't charge before you write the tool off as faulty.
2. Clean it. Sawdust packed into vents and dried grease around a gearbox make a sound tool look abused. Ten minutes with a brush and a cloth changes the first impression a buyer gets from your photos, and our power tool maintenance checklist covers the areas worth checking.
3. Keep the whole kit together. Chargers, cases, spare batteries and manuals add real value to a listing, and they're the first things people lose. If you're keeping the batteries for new tools, read our notes on cordless drill battery care so the ones you keep stay healthy.
4. Check what the model actually sells for now. Search completed and sold listings for your exact model rather than asking prices, which are often wishful. What you paid in 2019 has no bearing on today's value, and neither does the fact that it's barely been used.
5. Price for the sale you want. A sensible price and a clear description will beat an optimistic price and three weeks of relisting every time, especially on a bulky tool that you want out of the garage.

When it isn't worth selling, and what to buy instead

Some tools are worth more as spares than as a sale. If your drill is unbranded, the battery is fading, or the charger went missing years ago, then the realistic value is close to nothing, and you can easily spend more on a replacement battery than the tool cost in the first place. That's the point where a fresh kit with two batteries and a charger makes better sense than another listing that never sells.

For occasional DIY work, a basic 18V kit is the cheapest way back to a working drill. The Einhell TC-CD 18V cordless drill driver kit arrives complete with batteries and a charger, and the MYLEK 18V 13-piece combi kit adds a set of bits and accessories in the case. If you want the smallest spend possible, the Terratek 18V drill set covers light jobs around the house.

If you'd rather buy once and stay on a platform you can grow into, the sums change. The Makita 18V combi drill with two batteries and a charger and the Bosch UniversalImpact 18V-60 hammer drill both put you on a system with dozens of bare tools behind it, and the Ryobi ONE+ combi drill starter kit is the value option for a garage that will fill up slowly. Our guide to the best cordless drill for home use takes the same comparison further if you're shopping rather than selling.

Power tools mentioned in this guide

• Einhell TC-CD 18V cordless drill driver kit with batteries
• MYLEK 18V cordless drill 13-piece combi kit
• Terratek 18V cordless drill set with accessories
• Makita 18V combi drill with two batteries and charger
• Bosch UniversalImpact 18V-60 hammer drill kit
• Ryobi R18PD3 ONE+ combi drill starter kit

Frequently asked questions

Where is the best place to sell power tools?

For a single branded tool that works, eBay or Facebook Marketplace usually brings the highest price. For a full clear-out, a tool-buying service is quicker and easier, and it saves you the listing, the postage and the haggling. Many sellers use both routes at once, listing the best tools themselves and sending the rest to a buyer.

Do tool buyers accept unbranded or broken tools?

Most buying services want branded power tools that work, and several state that they don't take supermarket brands or low-end DIY tools. Damaged tools are usually refused unless the model is valuable enough to repair, so a private listing marked spares or repair is the better route for those.

How much is my used power tool worth?

Value follows three things: the brand, whether the battery platform is still supported, and whether the tool works. The only honest guide is what the same model has actually sold for recently, so look at completed and sold listings rather than the asking prices that people hope to get.

Is eBay better than Facebook Marketplace for selling tools?

eBay reaches specialist buyers across the whole country, which suits a high value or unusual tool that nobody local wants. Facebook Marketplace is faster for heavy items that get collected in person, and it avoids postage and packing entirely. Plenty of sellers run the same tool in both places and take whichever sells first.

Should I sell batteries separately from the tool?

No, keep them together. A drill with two working batteries and a charger is a usable kit, so it attracts more buyers and a higher price. Splitting the parts leaves you with three listings that are each harder to sell, and the batteries are worth less on their own.

Do I need to PAT test a tool before selling it?

There's no legal requirement to PAT test a tool for a private sale, and most private buyers don't expect it. What does matter is describing the tool honestly, including anything that doesn't work, because a sale that relies on a vague description is the quickest way to end up with a complaint.

The bottom line

Sell the good tools yourself and let a buyer take the rest. A branded drill, saw or grinder that works will bring the most on eBay or Facebook Marketplace, and a tool-buying service is the practical answer when you're clearing a whole workshop or you simply want the money in the bank without the paperwork. If a tool isn't worth selling, put the effort into a replacement instead: a kit that arrives with two batteries and a charger, such as the Einhell 18V drill driver kit or the Makita 18V combi drill with two batteries, will earn its keep in a way that an unsellable drill never will.

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Last reviewed: September 16, 2026 · Evidence-based content · Contains affiliate links