Are you planning to sell on a German marketplace? Marketplaces have become an integral part of the e-commerce industry. Marketplaces make it easy to generate (extra) revenue, without having to pay marketing costs upfront. Instead, you pay a commission per sale, which means you run little risk and are guaranteed sales.
Knowing the best German marketplaces to sell online is essential if you want to expand your online business. Germany is the largest e-commerce market in Europe, with over 80 million consumers who order online more than almost anyone else on the continent and it is right next door.
To decide which marketplace to enter, you need to be clear about the specific characteristics of each marketplace. You also need to know the rules that must be followed, as well as the responsibilities and rights. They do not all apply the same rules: each marketplace or group of marketplaces applies its own model.
The biggest marketplace in the Netherlands is bol.com read here how selling on bol.com works. But what about marketplaces in Germany?
What are the benefits of selling on a German marketplace?
Selling on the best German marketplaces can offer many benefits to digital entrepreneurs, so much so that many have joined this tool. Shall we look at some of them?
Greater visibility
Unlike e-commerce, where you have to work hard on your promotion, working on a marketplace allows customers to reach you in several ways. Some German marketplaces welcome more than 30 million visitors per month.
This makes it easier to see the business potential of these sites for users and sellers. Even those who are just starting out have endless opportunities to do business and achieve success with their sales.
Increase in sales
With this number of users, it is much easier for a business to increase sales revenue and achieve higher conversion rates. Users visit these sites daily for competitive prices and good business opportunities. As an entrepreneur, you get a huge and constantly growing audience for a quality product sold at a fair and competitive price.
Legitimacy
One of the important issues surrounding online shopping is the safety of the store where the product is located. If you are new to the market, you may lose sales because some visitors do not yet trust your brand. German consumers in particular are hesitant to buy from an unknown foreign webshop. That is why it is beneficial to have the legitimacy of a large company on a marketplace reviews, buyer protection and brand recognition included.
Cost-benefit ratio
Of course, you have to pay costs to make your sales, but these can certainly be worth it, considering the number of customers you will attract per month. You pay a commission per sale, nothing upfront. No sale, no cost. That also makes a German marketplace the cheapest way to test whether your products resonate with German customers before you invest in a localized store.
SEO
Entrepreneurs who work with online stores know the challenge of starting an e-commerce business and struggling to reach the first places in the SERPs of search engines. An initial job in Search Engine Optimization (SEO), translation into German or optimization for search engines requires a lot of effort and dedication from entrepreneurs looking for organic traffic.
A marketplace listing skips that wait: the platform’s authority does the ranking for you. Meanwhile, your own store can grow its organic traffic in the background our guide on the best WooCommerce plugins covers the SEO tools to get that going.
Niche reach
As you will see in our list of the best German online marketplaces, many are active in specific market segments. This is an advantage for those offering niche products; after all, it is possible to connect with your target audience faster and more efficiently.
Best marketplace Germany for WooCommerce
With so many benefits and sales sites available for those who want to work with this business model, it is necessary to know the best German online market and do research to understand which one is most suitable for each type of business.
After all, the functions and obligations may differ per marketplace. We have compiled a list of the 5 best German online marketplaces. Check them out!
1. Amazon
Amazon is perhaps the best-known webshop and marketplace in the world. If not because of the Amazon brand, then thanks to its much-discussed founder and owner Jeff Bezos.
We cannot ignore the fact that Amazon has worked hard in recent years to build the empire it is today. Despite being founded in the United States, the company quickly spread its wings to Europe. Amazon is therefore one of the largest webshops and marketplaces in Germany.
Figures Amazon.de
The figures of Amazon.de are insane. 79% of Germans start their search on Amazon, 52% of every euro spent is spent on Amazon and finally, Amazon.de realizes a revenue of approximately €54 billion per year.
In other words, expanding to Germany means in any case selling on Amazon.de, the German marketplace. Do keep in mind: it is also the most saturated German marketplace, with fierce price competition and strict seller requirements. That is why many sellers start on a less crowded German marketplace first — and add Amazon.de once their German revenue justifies it.
Connect Amazon.de with WooCommerce
Woosa develops WooCommerce marketplace plugins that connect your webshop directly to marketplaces — check the current overview to see which connections are available for your store.
2. Kaufland
We know Kaufland as a physical department store in Germany. In 2020, Kaufland took over the webshop and German marketplace real.de. Real.de was the largest local webshop and marketplace in Germany.
Figures Kaufland.de
Kaufland.de has more than 8,000 sellers on its platform and approximately 32 million visitors per month. That is why selling on Kaufland.de is a real must-have if you plan to expand to Germany.
There is another advantage many sellers overlook: Kaufland does not stop at the German border. The marketplace also operates in Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Austria five countries, one integration. And because Kaufland counts thousands of sellers instead of the hundreds of thousands on Amazon.de, it is far less saturated. For many sellers, this makes Kaufland the smartest starting point in Germany.
Connect Kaufland.de with WooCommerce
You can easily publish products on the Kaufland marketplace from your WooCommerce webshop with the Woosa plugin. The Kaufland WooCommerce plugin is completely free: publish products from WooCommerce, sync stock and prices automatically every 30 minutes, and receive orders straight into your own dashboard.
3. eBay
eBay is a constantly growing platform and can be a viable solution for online sales. In Germany, eBay is an established name with millions of active buyers long past its second-hand auction image, and now a mature sales channel for professional sellers with fixed prices.
Getting started is not complicated: you have to decide whether to register as a business or as a private individual and upload your products accordingly by selecting a fixed price or placing them at auction.
We advise you to always include descriptive photos of the product, as these immediately catch the eye of the interested buyer. In addition, as a seller, you should strive to have an excellent review page that shows customers how good and reliable you are.
The big advantage of eBay: it does not stop at the German border. The same connection gives you reach across Europe and beyond.
Connect eBay with WooCommerce
The eBay WooCommerce plugin by Woosa is completely free. Publish products in one click from your WooCommerce product overview and keep stock synced automatically in both directions — a sale on eBay.de never leads to overselling in your own shop.
4. Zalando (zDirect)
Zalando is originally a German marketplace and webshop. Since 2021, they have also added marketplace functionality to their webshop.
Zalando sells products in the fashion category. They offer 2 variants of their marketplace: Connected Retail and zDirect.
Connected Retail by Zalando
Connected Retail is for boutiques that do not sell their own brand, but the brand of others. For example, a boutique that sells Nike or Adidas products.
The disadvantage of Connected Retail is that it is fully designed for the webshop combined with physical stores. Zalando wants to simplify the shipping process and make it climate-friendly with Connected Retail and therefore forces shipments from certain physical locations.
Do you not have a physical store? In that case, you cannot participate in Connected Retail.
zDirect by Zalando
Unlike Connected Retail, zDirect is specifically for online webshops. However, you can only participate if you have your own brand. So you cannot sell other brands on the Zalando marketplace.
The disadvantage of zDirect is that the Zalando platform is not yet fully accustomed to facilitating a marketplace. Therefore, the user experience leaves much to be desired.
Figures Zalando
Still, Zalando’s figures do not lie. If you are in fashion, you should seriously consider Zalando. Zalando reaches tens of millions of active customers across Europe.
Connect Zalando zDirect with WooCommerce
Thanks to the WooCommerce plugin from Woosa, you can easily connect Zalando zDirect with WooCommerce. However, keep in mind that you still have to add the products with content manually in the Zalando zDirect platform. Unfortunately, Zalando does not yet have an automatic solution for this.
5. OTTO
Otto is Germany’s second-largest online shopping destination and claims to be the largest online retailer of fashion and lifestyle products. Initially, it started as an offline brand, but now 90% of products are sold online and it also has a marketplace, where it sells goods and allows sales by third parties (accredited sellers).
The company has 9 million active customers and reaches 45% of all German households. OTTO represents, after Amazon, the most important e-commerce opportunity in Germany for external sellers on the marketplace. The entry requirements are stricter than Kaufland’s or eBay’s, but competition is more limited as a result.
How to start selling on a German marketplace from WooCommerce
You do not need a German webshop, German hosting or a German business entity to start. Here is the checklist:
- Pick your starting marketplace.
For most sellers: Kaufland (less competition, five countries) or eBay (widest reach). Amazon.de can always come later. - Get your webshop in order first.
A well-configured WooCommerce store is the foundation our guide on the best WooCommerce plugins covers everything your store needs. - Get your EAN codes in order.
German marketplaces identify products by their EAN (barcode number). Store them in WooCommerce the Woosa plugins pick them up automatically from a custom field, attribute or SKU. - Translate your product data properly.
German titles and descriptions are mandatory and determine your visibility on the marketplace. Machine translations lead to rejected listings and poor rankings invest in proper translation. - Check the VAT rules.
Cross-border sales within the EU fall under the One Stop Shop scheme (OSS). Talk to your accountant before going live. - Connect your plugin and start with your bestsellers.
Publish your best-selling products first, measure what the German market picks up, and expand from there.
Want to know how marketplace plugins work in detail from stock sync to preventing overselling? Read our complete guide on free WooCommerce marketplace plugins.
Conclusion
Amazon.de and Kaufland.de are the best German marketplaces to sell online if you want to gain a foothold in Germany. For many sellers, Kaufland is the smartest start: less competition, one free plugin, five countries. Zalando is only interesting if you sell your own brand related to the fashion category, and OTTO is a strong addition for home, fashion and lifestyle brands that meet the entry requirements.
The Kaufland and eBay plugins by Woosa are completely free no license fees, no monthly costs. Download them here and your products can be live on a German marketplace this week.
You should also consider several things before you start selling in Germany. Read here exactly what to consider when expanding to Germany with your webshop.
FAQ
What is the best German marketplace to sell on?
Amazon.de is the biggest, but also the most saturated. For many sellers, Kaufland is the smartest start: less competition, 32 million visitors per month and one free WooCommerce connection for five countries (Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Austria). eBay.de is the best choice if you want reach beyond Germany with the same connection.
Is there a German version of Marktplaats?
Yes, Kleinanzeigen (formerly eBay Kleinanzeigen) is Germany’s classifieds platform, mainly for private sellers and second-hand goods. If you sell new products as a business, Amazon.de, Kaufland, eBay.de, OTTO and Zalando are the German marketplaces to be on.
What is Kaufland?
Kaufland is a German supermarket and hypermarket chain that acquired the marketplace real.de in 2020. Kaufland.de has since become one of Germany’s fastest-growing online marketplaces, with more than 8,000 sellers and over 32 million visitors per month.
Can I sell on a German marketplace from my existing webshop?
Yes. You do not need a German business or a German webshop. With a free Woosa plugin you publish products directly from WooCommerce to Kaufland or eBay stock and orders sync automatically. Do invest in proper German translations and check the VAT rules (OSS).
What does selling on a German marketplace cost?
Marketplaces charge a commission per sale, usually a percentage of the selling price that varies per platform and category. There are no upfront costs. The Woosa WooCommerce plugins for Kaufland and eBay are completely free.
Which German marketplace is best for fashion?
Zalando (zDirect) if you sell your own fashion brand, and OTTO for fashion and lifestyle products from accredited sellers. Selling other brands without a physical store? Then Kaufland and eBay.de are the more accessible fashion channels.er platform and category. There are no upfront costs. The Woosa WooCommerce plugins for Kaufland and eBay are completely free.