eBay Trending Searches: August 2024

Discover what these eBay trending searches tell us about products selling best on eBay now. Let us take the guesswork out of your eBay SEO and product research. First we’ll show you the Top 20 eBay searches and which of them are most popular with shoppers. Then we’ll analyze the Top 500 keywords to see what eBay shoppers are most interested in buying now.

Reading time: 12 minutes

See what eBay trends were yesterday, or what’s hot on dozens of other marketplaces like Etsy, Amazon, and Google Shopping.

August’s Top 20 eBay searches

1. ps5
2. laptop
3. iphone
4. gaming pc
5. iphone 12
6. pokemon
7. macbook pro
8. ipad
9. rtx 3070
10. iphone 15 pro max
11. nintendo switch
12. rtx 3080
13. macbook
14. gaming laptop
15. xbox series s
16. iphone 13
17. xbox series x
18. monitor
19. 3090
20. steam deck

Warning: Beware of trademarked terms. This list may contain keywords that are trademarked. USPTO Trademark Database

What’s new Month on Month to eBay’s Top 20

We like to start with what we call climbers. These are the Top 20 searches that weren’t on last month’s Top 20 list. We do this because they are the eBay trending searches that have climbed highest the fastest. And while there is always some turnover, how much change varies quite a bit between marketplaces. Etsy’s norm is to have six to nine keywords new Month on Month to its Top 20. Amazon’s average is a bit lower: four to six that weren’t on the previous month’s list.

But eBay is surprisingly different. Its top shopper searches are typically far more stable. Several even keep their identical rank from one month to the next. On eBay’s Top 20 list, a turnover of three or four is usually about it.

Back in April and May, eBay had four climbers each. In June and July, it only had three. But hello: August has a whopping five! So we’ll look at those first. Then we’ll end with our analysis of eBay’s Top 500 to identify which indicate the best purchase intent.

These eBay trending searches climbed highest the fastest in August

Here are the five climbers; we’ve listed them in order with their current rank first.

#5 iphone 12, up from #26

#10 iphone 15 pro max, up from #40

#13 macbook, up from #25

#18 monitor, up from #50

#19 3090, up from #31

On July’s Top 20, four searches retained the identical rank they’d had in June. One, “nintendo switch” kept its fourth-place rank for three months running.

In August, a shakeup! Not only do we have five that are new to the Top 20 Month on Month. We also have more jockeying for place. Only two kept their July ranks in August. And they both are holding onto the top two spots: No. 1 “ps5” and No. 2 “laptop.”

Whereas poor “nintendo switch” lost its grip on fourth place, falling to 11^th. For eBay, that’s big news, lol! So before we take on August’s climbers, let’s take a (last?) peek at nintendo switch.

Nintendo switch

Nintendo Switch is a video game console that was released back in March 2017. And yet look: it still got over 100,000 searches in August 2024.

These are still fantastically popular! As you can see, in 15 months it’s only dipped (barely) below 80,000 searches/mo that once. But we bet you’ve heard the rumors. Hopes that Nintendo would unveil a new console in August.

Instead, Nintendo has confirmed that it will continue to support the Switch with new games through March 2025. And given its popularity, it will live on beyond that date. Especially on eBay where older tech retains popularity longer. (Especially compared with Amazon!)

With that salute, let’s move on the August’s climbers.

Ranking 5^th: iphone 12, up from #26

Wow, yes: this one’s well up! (Well, for an eBay climber, that is. They seldom fall far.)

And it’s another that illustrates how well older tech does on eBay. Because yes, when it comes to iPhones, the 12 is old. Practically ancient! On Amazon, it ranks 226^th.

Got any to sell? Just be sure you know what you’re doing. We hear new eBay sellers can be targeted by fraudsters and wind up losing their item/money. Maybe before you list, search eBay seller forums for posts related to selling phones. Just to avoid the pitfalls.

Ranking 10^th: iphone 15 pro max, up from #40

This one also ranks comparatively low on Amazon now: #206. Time flies, eh? These came out in September 2023. Just for fun, let’s compare its 15-mo search trend histories on eBay (red line) vs. Amazon (black).

On Amazon, “iphone 15 pro max” shot from zero to over 300,000 the month it launched. On eBay, its start was more moderate: just over 80,000 shopper searches. What we found most interesting is that the highest it’s charted on eBay in 15 months is now! It got 102,710 searches in August. Whereas on Amazon, from its peak in Nov. 2023, it’s currently down 57%.

That’s what we mean when we say eBay’s the better platform for selling older tech.

Ranking 13^th: macbook, up from #25

Might this one’s climb Month on Month be due to Back to School shopping?

Dunno: it’s also well up Year on Year over August 2023. It had 89,700 searches back then. Almost exactly 10,000 fewer than this August. And did you notice on our Top 20 list up top? “Macbook pro” ranks seventh; that’s up from 18^th in July. And “macbook” is doing quite well on Amazon too, in both July and August. Of course, July had Prime Day.

Here: let’s see their combined search history alongside the pie chart this time, showing where shoppers are searching most.

Similar rises on the search history for both platforms. Ahead of the 2023 holidays; then a lesser rise in January. Gift cards? Then up again, probably for Back to School.

Turning to the pie chart, the UK has an outsized slice: 21.8%. The US only has 37.5%. Germany’s next with 13.3%.

If you’ve got one you want to sell on eBay, get it up well ahead of October. Searches are already higher now than they were last September. They soared to over a 140,000 searches in October. Maybe you can catch that wave this year.

Ranking 18^th: monitor, up from #50

Another one that could be climbing due to back to school / off to college shopping.

Holy cow, the UK has even more of this pie than the last: 32% to the US’s 29.5%. And Germany’s got 16.7%.

And just cast your eyes upon the beauty of that 15-mo US search history above left! It barely drops below 50,000 searches/mo and that only twice. To a data geek, this is a joy to behold. If you’re looking for a solid product to sell on eBay, this one looks good. At least in terms of consistent search volume.

Its CTR though? Even for eBay, it’s low: a 12-mo average of just 36%. Yikes. And calculated just for August, when it’s in the Top 20? Its click through rate is even worse: 15.9% – but we’ll have more about that in a bit. First let’s do the last of these climbers.

Ranking 19^th: 3090, up from #31

In July, two of eBay’s three climbers were RTX gaming graphics cards. They were the RTX 3070 and the 3080. And this one, the 3090, ranked 31^st. Now it’s back in the Top 20, as it often has been these past 15 months.

Searches for “3090” have only dropped below 50,000 searches a month three times. And for those, not by much. Its 15-mo low was in June 2024 with 34,640; enough to rank 79^th on eBay’s Top 1000. (And “rtx 3090” ranked 54^th.)

So: a very popular product with eBay shoppers, right? Then why the heck is its Average CTR so low? We’ve circled it in red: it’s 37%. On Etsy, that’d be dire.

Yet it is the norm for eBay.

Click-through rates and purchase intent

Are you new to online selling? If so by now you may be wondering why we care so much about CTRs. It’s because shopper clicks and click-through rates are a useful indicator of “purchase intent.” That is, how close an online shopper is to making a purchase (as opposed to one who’s still browsing).

CTRs on both Amazon and eBay are typically much lower than Etsy’s. We data geeks at eRank are still speculating as to why. In researching Amazon’s trend report last month, we found these stats from Amazon:

“Customers complete 28% of Amazon purchases in 3 minutes or less and 50% of purchases in less than 15 minutes.” Toogood, Mickey, “Amazon Selling Stats,” Amazon Selling Partner Blog, Grow Your Business, May 10, 2024

Shoppers who purchase in three minutes or less must arrive already knowing exactly what they want. The specificity of eBay trending searches suggests the same might be true for its platform too. Compared to Etsy’s, maybe more eBay shoppers can tell by just the title and thumbnail whether they’re interested? So eBay buyers don’t need to click many listings before finding what they want to purchase?

Just a theory!

And with that, we’re done with August’s Top 20 climbers. To close, we’ll give you an insider’s look at which eBay trending searches have the highest CTRs now. Let’s see if we can shed some light on whether specificity (how niche they are) plays any part.

eBay trending searches in its Top 500 with 100%+ CTRs

Here to discover what’s selling best on eBay now? Then this is for you! We’ll do a lightning round of eBay’s most popular products that had the highest CTRs in August. We’ve calculated these using just the past month’s data. So these should have the most recent and most promising purchase intent on eBay now.

Note though that some of these shopper searches will be too broad and/or competitive to rank for. So if you’re researching products to sell on eBay, just niche down from these.

Tip: Are you new to eRank? “Niche down” means identifying products you can rank for high enough in search for yours to be found. Here’s how to niche down. Enter a broad keyword (say, “camera,”) in Keyword Tool, then scroll down to the “Keyword Ideas” table. There you’ll find lots of ways to filter and sort your results to reveal opportunities. Here’s a short YouTube video we made to show you how.

Remember, CTRs above 100% are mad rare on eBay. High-ranking eBay shopper searches can even have CTRs in the single digits! For instance in August, “dvd” ranked 78^th with over 40,000 searches. Yet its CTR for August is just 8%. Same for 98^th-ranked “rtx 4060”; its August CTR is also just 8%. Crazy.

Highest CTRs in the Top 500 of eBay’s most popular products in August

In June and July only three searches in their Top 100 lists had CTRs of 100% or more. For August, there are only two! But both have CTRs of 150% for the month, which is as high as we track. They are #51 apple watch, and #60 camera. (By the way, “camera” had a 150% CTR in July too.)

These eBay shopper searches rank between 101-250

Next up is #120 wii u; then two in a row: #138 airpods pro 2, and #139 airpods max. At #190 mm2; it’s another with 150%! Then #214 new 3ds xl; #235 golf; and #239 ebike. And that’s it for the whole Top 250!

Ranking 251-500

First in this group is #253 dualsense edge; then two with 150% CTRs: #256 blade ball, and #284 heels. Next, #285 gtx 1060; and #327 zippo. And at #369 gi joe with a 150% CTR which he always seems to have! (Good for you, Joe.)

Next are #375 sports car; #407 surface pro 7; and #436 new nintendo 3ds xl. And then we have two in a row, both with 150%: #448 chrome hearts, and #449 books. And that’s it until #491 polo. And finishing high: #500 xbox one x, with a CTR of 150%.

Reminder: These CTRs are drawn from their search volume and clicks during August. Which means that regardless of what their 12-mo average CTRs may be, these keywords are hot right now. We hope some prove to be profitable leads for you!

You know we could go on and on…

But we know you’re busy! If you’d like more inspiration, here are our US trend reports for Etsy and Amazon. And of course you’re always welcome to join us in eRank’s private Facebook group. With over 28,000 members from around the world, someone friendly is always around. Got questions or suggestions for us? Our weekly Q&As are live Thursdays on YouTube, where you’ll also find dozens of eRank tutorials, demos and more! And here we are on TikTok, featuring lots of quick how-tos.

RESOURCES: You can see eBay’s Top 100 keywords for the past 30 days, last week or yesterday in eRank’s Trend Buzz. Use Keyword Tool to see 15 months of historical search data to gauge recent trends and spot what’s new. Get related keywords, click data, and compare several platforms at once to learn where shoppers are for what you sell. Together, these tools are the best way to track what’s hot right now with eBay shoppers.