Switching to EVs to future-proof logistics for Ebay parcels
We Mean Business Coalition
Electrifying the logistics of the world’s biggest preloved marketplace through policy advocacy, supplier engagement and more
Much of eBay’s success depends on the transportation and distribution of the preloved goods sold on its ecommerce site. To cut carbon and dependence on volatile fossil fuels, the world’s largest second-hand marketplace is working with its vast and complex network of logistics partners around the globe to enable a mass switch to electric vehicles (EVs) — and with it, a more resilient and cleaner network.
Second-hand goods have their own environmental impact
With 136 million buyers worldwide and $22.2 billion worth of goods sold in the first three months of 2026 alone, eBay is the world’s largest second-hand marketplace. For the last 30 years, people have been buying and selling used items – like electronic goods, clothing, collectibles and home furnishings – on its site.
Increasingly aware of the carbon footprint of their shopping habits, many people are buying used items because they divert waste from landfills and avoid the heavy resource extraction, water use and greenhouse gas emissions that come with manufacturing something new. At present, the global resale market is expanding nearly three times faster than traditional retail. Currently worth $220 billion, it’s expected to grow by almost 80 percent by 2028.
However, the sector still has an environmental footprint of its own. To maintain the viability of its supply chains in a changing world and help drive the shift to a circular economy, in which materials are kept in use for as long as possible, eBay is addressing these impacts.
By far the largest source of eBay’s carbon emissions is the transportation and distribution of all the goods bought and sold on its site. In fact, they account for 81% of total emissions, which equates to nearly 1.5 million metric tonnes of emissions a year. In line with its Climate Transition Plan, the company aims to cut these emissions by 27.5% by 2030 from a 2019 baseline. A huge percentage of this will come down to transport electrification.
How to electrify third-party transportation and distribution?
The central challenge is that eBay does not own its own warehouses or fleet of trucks and vehicles, but instead partners with a series of logistics companies around the world, in a vast and complex international network of third-party providers.
For example, in the U.S., these partners include FedEx, DHL and UPS. Meanwhile, in the UK, the Royal Mail, Evri, DPD and Yodel are among eBay’s approved logistics businesses. At the same time, the British marketplace offers a Global Shipping Programme, enabling sellers to reach over 100 international markets with ease because mailing company Pitney Bowes handles the international shipping and customs clearance. In Germany, a similar scheme operates under the name eBay SpeedPAK, which is a collaboration with logistics specialists Orange Connex. Meanwhile, in India, Lexship and Shiprocket X are key transportation partners. In other territories, different partners are used.
Accordingly, eBay’s main source of emissions falls within the category of Scope 3, which are those arising from its supply chain. As a result, its biggest decarbonization challenge is beyond its direct control; it’s a matter of cutting other companies’ emissions – caused by things like diesel combustion from trucks and delivery vans, warehouse heating and cooling, and the fossil fuel usage of trains, airplanes and ships.
To complicate matters further, the global parcel delivery system is highly fragmented, with many public and private carriers operating across diverse postal infrastructures and regions.
Engaging suppliers to accelerate the shift to EVs
The electrification and decarbonization of eBay’s distribution networks depends on its ability to influence all its carriers to invest in and adopt cleaner practices and technologies, like EVs. For this reason, it is taking an approach of shared accountability.
Melissa Bauer, eBay’s lead for ESG and sustainability strategy, explained: “We are advancing transportation electrification across our value chain through strategic partnerships, industry collaboration and policy advocacy that help accelerate the transition to lower-emission logistics.”
First up, this three-pronged approach includes working with its distribution partners around the world on a range of projects to accelerate the shift to EVs. For example, in the UK, eBay is collaborating with Evri to support the widespread use of electric vans for deliveries to people’s homes.
More generally, the marketplace has incorporated sustainability requirements into its delivery supplier contracts. They stipulate that carriers should pursue technologies like zero-emission vehicles, sustainable aviation fuels and route optimization to minimize fuel usage. Plus, suppliers have to report their progress back to eBay annually. However, this transparency goes both ways. To help the entire sector standardize emissions calculations and make them all comparable, eBay recently published its methodology.
Piloting new approaches to electrify logistics
Secondly, the global marketplace is also heavily involved in sector collaborations to advance electrification overseen by NGOs. For instance, it is a founding member of the ecommerce post and parcel working group of the nonprofit Smart Freight Center, which focuses on logistics decarbonization.
Plus, in the U.S., it was one of the first companies to sign up for the trucking pilot project of NGO the Center for Green Market Activation. Enabling Texas’s largest deployment of zero-emission electric trucks to date – on a route between the cities of Houston and Dallas – the project is forecast to cut around 60,000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gases per year, improving local air quality and decreasing noise pollution.
Advocacy to advance clean solutions
To drive wider system change, the third part of eBay’s strategy is to advocate for governments to introduce supportive policies. For instance, the company signed nonprofit Ceres’ letter in support of New York’s Clean Deliveries Act, which aims to clean up the air in heavily polluted urban communities by cutting emissions from delivery trucks and mega-warehouses. It also testified to the U.S.’s federal Environmental Protection Agency on the potential economic benefits of California’s Advanced Clean Fleets rule, which mandates that businesses with fleets of vehicles phase in zero-emission cars, vans and trucks.
Furthermore, in both 2025 and 2026, eBay participated in Ceres’ LEAD campaigns that called for the U.S. administration to pursue pragmatic policy solutions to advance a clean energy economy. This included asking for more support to accelerate the adoption of EVs, in part through the faster and wider installation of vehicle charging points. Indeed, eBay’s commitment in this area even extends to its own workforce. At several of its offices, including its headquarters in San Jose, California, it has installed EV charging points for its employees.
Crucially, the company’s support for transport electrification is not just about creating a sustainable future, but central to its approach of managing long-term financial risk and supply chain resilience in a rapidly changing world.
“We recognize that climate change, energy volatility and evolving regulations can impact global commerce, which is why supporting a lower-carbon economy is both an environmental and business priority,” said Bauer.
“By partnering with carriers and industry coalitions to advance electric transportation solutions, we are helping support more resilient and future-ready logistics networks. Electrification can also help reduce exposure to fuel price volatility over time, particularly in freight and last-mile delivery. We believe these efforts help strengthen long-term operational resilience while supporting sustainable growth.”
Collaboration is key to the electrification of complex global supply chains.
In a sector as enormous, complex and fragmented as global transportation and distribution, no single company can enforce the mass electrification of delivery vehicles – no matter how big it is. As with all value chain upgrades, a collective approach is essential, working closely with suppliers, NGOs and governments to drive sector-wide change.
As Bauer summed it up: “Our solutions focus on areas where collaboration can unlock broader system-level impact and help accelerate market adoption of zero-emission freight technologies.”