When eBay fees and profit figures become final
New sales arrive within minutes, eBay's fees follow from its finance data, and refunds or credits can change a sale later. Here is the timing in ProfitClerk.
A new sale usually appears in ProfitClerk within 15 minutes of the buyer paying. Its eBay fees follow once eBay posts them to its finance data, often soon after, sometimes later. A sale's figures can still change afterwards whenever eBay records something new for it, such as a refund or a fee credit. The cost confidence tags tell you which sales are still waiting.
The timeline of a sale
- The sale comes in. ProfitClerk checks eBay every 15 minutes. The new order line arrives with what the buyer paid and the postage charged, and is matched to your stock, which fixes its item cost there and then.
- eBay's fees arrive. They come from eBay's finance data, not from a rate card. Until they are in, the order's fees are tagged Missing ("Waiting for eBay's finance data") and its profit is too high.
- The label cost arrives, if you bought the label on eBay. Until then the label cost is assumed to equal the postage charged and is tagged Estimated.
- Later changes: refunds, fee credits, voided labels, Promoted Listings fees and corrections arrive as new transactions and the order is recalculated.
When the fees and the label are in, and the sale has an item cost, its costs are all Confirmed.
How ProfitClerk keeps figures up to date
- Every 15 minutes: new and changed orders, plus every new finance transaction from the last few days. Only orders with something new are recalculated.
- Every night: a re-read of the last 30 days, for transactions eBay dates in the past.
- Sales with no fees after a while: looked up one by one 2, 4 and 7 days after the sale.
- Payouts: when eBay pays you out, the transactions in the payout are read too, so anything missed is filled in at the latest then.
You do not need to do anything for this to happen.
What can change a sale later
| What happens on eBay | What changes in ProfitClerk |
|---|---|
| You refund the buyer, fully or partly | A Refunded to buyer line, and the status becomes partial refund or refunded |
| eBay credits fees back | Total eBay fees goes down |
| The order is cancelled | Recorded as refunded; see cancelled orders |
| A Promoted Listings General fee is charged | A Promoted listing (ad) fee line is added |
| You void an eBay label | The label cost is recalculated |
| eBay labels bought in bulk are shared out | The order's label share is worked out; see bulk eBay Labels |
What does not change by itself: the item cost (frozen at the time of sale), and any label, packaging or item cost you typed or imported. eBay's data never overwrites a cost you entered.
Update one order now
If you know something changed on eBay and want to see it at once:
- Open the order.
- Under eBay finance entries, click Refresh finance entries.
ProfitClerk reads that order from eBay and recalculates its fees, refunds and eBay label cost. In the app, open the sale and tap Refresh from eBay. Only owners and managers can do this.
When can I treat a period as final?
- Fees: once no order in the period shows eBay fees: Missing. Use the Confidence filter on Orders, or the Cost confidence card on Overview, which lists "eBay fees not in yet on … orders".
- Refunds and returns: these can come weeks after a sale, so a recent period can still move. Check the period again before you send figures to an accountant.
- Your own costs: add any missing item costs and real label costs. See sales with no item cost.
Questions people ask
How often does ProfitClerk check eBay?
Every 15 minutes, for new and changed orders and for new finance transactions. A deeper check of the last 30 days runs every night.
Why do my eBay fees show as zero on a sale from today?
eBay's finance data for the sale has not arrived yet, so the fees are Missing and the profit is overstated for now. They are filled in automatically when eBay posts them.
Can the profit of an old sale still change?
Yes, when eBay records something new for it: a refund, a fee credit, a voided label or a correction. The item cost you paid never changes by itself.
Is there a way to update one order now?
Yes. Open the order and press Refresh finance entries (Refresh from eBay in the app). It reads that order from eBay and recalculates it straight away.
Do Promoted Listings fees appear on the sale straight away?
Not always. The Promoted Listings General fee is matched to its order from eBay's ad charges, which can arrive a little after the sale. Cost-per-click and offsite ad charges belong to no single order.
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