Stores That Buy Old Toys
Looking for a way to declutter your home while making a few spare bucks off your old toys? We’re a store that buys vintage and old toys and we are here to help you do just that! For over 20 years, we’ve been buying childhood staples like G.I. Joe, Star Wars, Transformers, He-Man, M.A.S.K., Thundercats, and more action figure brands. Read more to understand the process of selling your toys and how to work with a store that buys toys.
Are You the Original Owner?
If the toys are yours, the process is relatively simple. However, bigger collections generally present some challenges. If you’re not the original owner of your collection (or parts of it), it may include multiple toy lines in which case, we recommend emailing us for specific information on how to proceed.
Prepare Your Toy Collection
Unfortunately, not every toy is valuable. Stores that buy toys are looking for specific action figure brands and models. Prepare your toy collection in advance by organizing your toys by brand. Some brands will be easier to tell (these are usually famous household names). If you own the entire toy collection, this step of the way should be relatively easy.
Estimate How Much Your Toys are Worth
You can’t put a price on childhood, but you can definitely put one on toys. How do you know how much money you can get from a store that buys old toys? The easiest way is to look for comparable items that were recently sold on eBay. Make sure to only look at completed listings, not active ones: anyone can put any price they want on a toy, but this doesn’t mean it will sell. Sold prices are the ones that can give you a solid idea of how much a toy or your toy collection is worth.
Don’t get tempted by the highest sold price, instead think about the discrepancies in pricing. Why do some toys sell for $10 or $20, while others for up to $100? Think critically about the quality of these items: are those who sold for less more heavily played with? Are they missing part, do they come in a box? People like to pay more for things that look good, and this will impact how much money you can get for your toy collection. Keep in mind factors such as the condition of the toy, whether it comes in a box and if the box is sealed, whether the toy is clean or damaged. For an individual, gauging the precise price of a toy can be a bit of a challenge, but this should give you a general idea of what to expect when you go to a store that buys old toys.
Mint Condition and What it Means
The condition, as well as the cleanliness of your toys, will significantly affect their value. Damage caused by bugs, pets, mice and more can drastically decrease their value. Other things that may impact how clean a toy is before you sell it include factors such as storage in a box. Keeping your toys in a box can protect them against damage, but if the box hasn’t been opened in 30 years, chances are they’re covered in dust. Do the toys come from a smoking home? This usually results in discoloration which can affect the value of your toy collection. Exposure to sunlight can do the same as the sunlight breaks down the plastic and can cause discoloration. Even things such as high heat and low humidity can cause problems – the high heat changes the properties of the plastic, which can make it brittle or sticky.
If you’re a toy collector and want to fix fading or yellowing colors, we’ve prepared a short guide on how to take care of your toys.
Stores That Buy Old Toys Introduction
Well, that would be us amongst many others. There are different ways to make some money off your collectible toys. We generally recommend doing your research to find out 1) what your toy or toy collection is worth and 2) which the best option for you is. When making a decision, consider how long you are willing to spend finding the right buyer for your toy collection, as well as how much time you’re willing to spend to actually complete the sale.
Stores That Buy Old Toys Options
We’ve prepared a short list of places and stores that buy old toys along with their advantages and disadvantages:
Online Toy Dealer
- ‘Pros: very fast, you won’t have to do a lot of research or spend time completing the sale. Most purchases are completed within a week and you can do a background check with the Better Business Bureau. There are also no fees – we even pay your shipping
- Cons: you won’t be able to get the full value
Local Auction Service
- Pros: easy, local
- Cons: slow, fees can get high, sales prices cannot be determined in advance. Generally the worst results, unless you have a very large toy collection on your hands or you’ve teamed up with a specialist (which can be difficult on its own)
Pawnshop
- Pros: easy, local
- Cons: you rarely get the full value, usually because the people who go to a pawnshop need the cash right now. Most pawnshops offer low percentages and few are experts in collectible or vintage toys: most will just toss a low number to ensure they’re never at a loss.
Local Toy Dealer
- Pros: fast turnaround time, you won’t have to spend a lot of time doing research, you can also do a background check with the Better Business Bureau. No fees and it’s local, which means easier for you.
- Cons: You won’t be able to get full value, because these toy dealers operate similarly to pawnshops. They offer a very low value to minimize their potential losses.
Online Auctions eBay
- Pros: good prices, thousands of potential customers
- Cons: slow and very time-consuming, very high fees. You never know how the bidding will go so it’s near impossible to predict what price you might get for your toys. Fraud is a serious concern, navigating the platform may prove difficult, and you must accept returns. Every time you do make a sale, you will need to go to the post office, wasting even more time.
Online Swap Pages Facebook and Craigslist
- Pros: a very good customer base, decent prices, easy to use and no fees
- Cons: slow and very time consuming. There are even more serious fraud concerns related to online swap pages and no customer support. There’s a lot of people “window-shopping” that may waste your time. Privacy concerns are a serious issue, and in rural areas you may have even less success.
Wheeljack’s Lab a Store That Buys Old Toys
If this is your first time selling your old toys, the process may look a bit daunting, with all the cleaning, staging, lighting, naming and so on. That’s why we are here to help. By working with a store that buys old toys, you can easily make a few bucks off your collection saving yourself the hassle and the time. If you have a collection or an old box of toys you’re looking to sell, give us a call at 888-946-2895 or send a message. We will take care of the rest!
As one of the leading stores that buy vintage toys in the area, we’ve been buying and selling old toys for over 20 years. We are a family-run business and we’ve been in this area for 3 generations, so it’s safe we are here to stay. We offer reliable communication and transparency, immediate payment, and prepaid shipping to make things easier for you. If the collection warrants, we’ll be happy to even pick up your toy collection. To ensure a quick transaction, we provide toy quotes on the same day.
Do you have old and used toys?
If you have a collection of old and used toys, you can turn those toys into cash. There is no reason to let those old toys collect dust. Contact us today to sell your toy collection.
Our professional, friendly, and expert staff have decades of experience as collectible toy buyers. If you are ready to sell your collection today, fill out the form below or call us at 888-946-2895.
We are excited to give your old toys a new home!
Author: Chris Ingledue
Contact: email
Bio: I’m the founder and owner of Wheeljack’s Lab. My vision has always been to reunite customers with their favorite childhood toys, triggering fond memories, and reigniting their imaginations. Every day I work in the “lab” where it’s Christmas 365 days a year; scouring the internet – like we did the Sears Catalog of yesteryear – for the next great treasure, awaiting the arrival of the postman as if he was Santa Claus himself and helping collectors worldwide with their own versions of Christmas. Every day is an absolute joy!
Stores That Buy Vintage Toys
Below are some sample collections that stores are looking for.
