• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Tech

eBay tests a speedy shipping membership service in Germany

By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Leena Rao
Leena Rao
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 11, 2015, 10:41 AM ET

eBay is taking a page from Amazon’s playbook today with the debut of a new membership program that allows for free shipping, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Called eBay Plus, the new service is being tested in Germany, and costs around $22 per year. Members will be able to access free, express shipping and free returns on millions of items. In many orders, members of eBay Plus will be able to receive items within two days.

The Journal reports that eBay (EBAY) was testing the program since earlier this year, and thousands of sellers in Germany have already signed up.

eBay has been struggling to meet consumer demands for faster shipping, as Amazon’s membership program, Prime, grows in popularity. Amazon (AMZN) Prime costs $99 per year, and includes free two-day shipping on more than 20 million items in Amazon’s marketplace, same-day delivery on some items, and access to streamed songs, movies, and TV shows.

eBay previously rolled out a local delivery service, eBay Now, which offered same-day delivery of items from local merchants in New York, Chicago, Dallas, and parts of the Bay Area. The company recently shut the service down as it made more sense for items such as diapers or groceries than collectibles and used items that are eBay’s core categories.

Also, since eBay doesn’t carry its inventory in a warehouse like Amazon, it’s challenging to really guarantee faster shipping from the marketplace’s individual sellers, many of whom are selling items out of their homes. With eBay Plus, the company is trying to incentivize sellers to participate in faster shipping times by offering a reduction on listing fees and better product placement in the online marketplace.

Subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the business of technology.

For more on eBay’s future, watch this video:

About the Author
By Leena Rao
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.


Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
'I just don't have a good feeling about this': Top economist Claudia Sahm says the economy quietly shifted and everyone's now looking at the wrong alarm
By Eleanor PringleJanuary 31, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
Ford CEO has 5,000 open mechanic jobs with up to 6-figure salaries from the shortage of manually skilled workers: 'We are in trouble in our country'
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJanuary 31, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
In 2026, many employers are ditching merit-based pay bumps in favor of ‘peanut butter raises’
By Emma BurleighFebruary 2, 2026
24 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Personal Finance
Current price of silver as of Monday, February 2, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerFebruary 2, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Big Tech
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative cut 70 jobs as the Meta CEO’s philanthropy goes all in on mission to 'cure or prevent all disease'
By Sydney LakeFebruary 1, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
Musk’s fantasy for a future where work is optional just got more real: U.K. minister calls for universal basic income to cushion AI-related job losses
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 1, 2026
2 days ago

Latest in Tech

two men smile in front of the camera
CryptoCryptocurrency
Kairos, which is building a cross-platform tool for prediction markets traders, raises $2.5 million from a16z crypto
By Carlos GarciaFebruary 3, 2026
2 hours ago
Cryptostablecoins
Famed startup incubator Y Combinator will let founders receive funds in stablecoins
By Ben WeissFebruary 3, 2026
2 hours ago
davos
CommentaryCareers
While elites debate geopolitics, Americans are rethinking college in the search for economic mobility
By Ed MitzenFebruary 3, 2026
2 hours ago
d'amaro
C-SuiteDisney
Disney names parks chief Josh D’Amaro as next CEO
By Nick LichtenbergFebruary 3, 2026
3 hours ago
musk
AIspace
‘Space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale’: Elon Musk hatches grand plan as he merges SpaceX and xAI
By Bernard Condon, Matt O'Brien and The Associated PressFebruary 3, 2026
3 hours ago
waymo
InnovationAutomation
Google raises another $16 billion for self-driving taxi unit Waymo
By Michael Liedtke and The Associated PressFebruary 3, 2026
3 hours ago