The 10 Best Alternatives to Craigslist

Reviewed by Ebony HowardFact checked by Regine ParrishReviewed by Ebony HowardFact checked by Regine Parrish

While Craigslist, the e-commerce site, is still an option, it is easy to find alternatives for anything you might want to buy or sell. Whether it’s finding a job or a new roommate, there are potentially safer and easier-to-navigate online alternatives to Craigslist.

Key Takeaways

• While Craigslist remains one of the biggest online classifieds sites, there are many Craigslist alternatives.
• eBay functions as both an auctions and a classified site.
• Care.com specializes in providing people with home-based help, from babysitters to housekeepers.
• Due to scammers hitting Craigslist, specialized housing sites like Apartments.com, Zillow, and Trulia are often safer alternatives for finding a rental or home to buy.
• Meta, formerly Facebook, has become a significant classifieds player with its Facebook Marketplace.

For all its capabilities, Craigslist comes with a few notable drawbacks. For one, the site’s sheer size works against users at times. Sellers in popular categories, such as real estate and automotive, complain that within 15 minutes of their posts going live, they are already relegated to the second page, having been supplanted by dozens of more recent ads from competitors.

Craigslist has also long been a magnet for scam artists. Unscrupulous sellers often post fraudulent ads that look like great deals, but they intend to extract and exploit financial information from naive and unsuspecting buyers.

While Craigslist’s simplicity remains popular among users, the site has some features that could stand to be updated. In addition, the interface hasn’t changed much since its inception. In 2019, the company added a basic app, but its no-frills design is extremely similar to the website.

We’ve rounded up 10 alternatives to Craigslist to help you buy, sell, and hunt for all the things you might need or want.

1. eBay

The largest buy/sell site in the world launched under the name Kijiji in 2005 in Canada. The site launched in the U.S. in 2007 and was rebranded as eBay Classifieds in 2010.

Users can create Classified Ads, which are searchable listings from eBay’s homepage. Categories range from travel to funerals.

This alternative offers buyers several advantages over Craigslist. First, its sort function is far more advanced and easier to use. A buyer can sort items within a category by price, distance, or how recently the post was made with a few clicks.

Notably, eBay Classifieds also provide sellers with a few benefits Craigslist lacks. A Craigslist ad in most categories disappears from the site as early as seven days.

On eBay Classifieds, ads stay live for 30 days. While an ad’s general visibility steadily decreases over that period, it still shows up in more targeted queries long after it is posted, thanks to the site’s advanced sort and search functions.

eBay is easy to use, and the site provides helpful seller and buyer information like ratings and positive feedback to help you navigate away from potential scams.

2. Facebook Marketplace

Facebook has enabled many of its users to buy and sell products more quickly and with more convenience and security than Craigslist. There are two options: Facebook Marketplace and Facebook Buy and Sell Groups. To sell something on Facebook, a user can post a status update with a picture of the item, a brief description, and the price. The user can request his friends to share the post with their friend lists.

News reports have featured cases of robberies and violence stemming from botched Craigslist transactions. Using a social media site to sell an item may provide a security layer and peace of mind not available on some classified sites.

3. Poshmark

Whether it’s selling used clothing and accessories or buying them because it is an environmentally conscious and affordable way to update your wardrobe, Poshmark is a one-stop e-commerce shop. You can sell or purchase items for pets, kids, adults, and your home. Think of it as an online consignment shop with hundreds of brand-name items.

It’s easy to list your items for sale by uploading an image onto the app with its sale price. The company provides its sellers with a pre-addressed, free label to use when you send the product to the buyer. You can have the box picked up for free or drop it off at a USPS mailbox.

Unlike simply listing an item on Craigslist, you pay Poshmark a fee: $2.95 for anything under $15, or 20% of your total sale price of an item above $15. Its platform makes it easy to buy or sell a wide variety of fashion and home-related products.

Important

If you are looking for a date or a companion, you won’t find it on Craigslist. The company discontinued its personal ads in 2018.

4. Apartments.com

If you are looking for an apartment online, this site has a lot to offer, including a tool that allows you to search specific neighborhoods. There are millions of listings. The website has a wealth of online tools, like 3D interactive tours of apartments to information on market trends, neighborhood schools, and other useful information for potential renters.

The site says that it has found homes for 50 million renters. It also boasts that 95 million visitors per month access its network of housing websites.

If you want to rent your apartment out, the site can help you lease it online, whether you are an individual property owner or the owner of multiple apartment buildings.

Craigslist has many rentals. Landlords or people searching for roommates can post their available apartment or room on the site. Still, Apartments.com’s online tools (and perhaps peace of mind) make it a strong alternative.

5. Indeed.com

From freelance work to full-time opportunities, nearly every kind of job is listed on Indeed.com.

This alternative to Craigslist’s job postings section is a full-scale job-hunting website. You can post your resume and ask to be matched with potential employers. The app enables you to job hunt on the go. Indeed offers many tools to help you with your job hunt, including reviews of companies, an online career guide, plus a search tool that lets you track down salaries.

Indeed claims to receive 350 million unique visitors per month. An estimated 3.5 million employers across 60 countries use the site.

6. Match.com

Craigslist discontinued its personal ads in 2018. The number of dating apps has soared in the last decade, from Bumble to Tinder. Online dating has become the norm.

In 2022, Match.com earned PC Magazine’s vote as the best dating app for long-term relationships. It has remained popular since its founding in 1995, in part due to its positive user ratings. The monthly cost may be worth it if you are looking for a relationship rather than a quick rendezvous.

7. Zillow

You can buy, rent, or sell a home on Zillow, plus find valuable tools and tips for house hunting, finding a mortgage lender or real estate agent. The browsing feature on Zillow allows you to search multiple listings in your desired town, city, or state ranked by price, lot size, number of rooms, and other settings.

Zillow can help you find a real estate agent to show you the home, and some listings offer a virtual 3D tour. This alternative to house hunting on Craigslist, which sometimes offers limited information, offers the tools and expert advice needed for such a transaction.

Etsy.com is a great alternative to Craigslist for browsing and buying vintage and antique items without having to leave your home to attend a garage or yard sale in-person.

8. Carvana

Buying a used car online may be a bit of a gamble, but Carvana provides a 360-degree view of cars online (all accident-free vehicles) and will deliver your ride right to your home. You can purchase one of Carvana’s cars by financing it, trade-in your car as a down payment, or pay for it outright with cash.

The company also offers a seven-day test to own and a 100-day warranty. According to its website, 80% of customers choose to finance their purchase with Carvana, but you can also use a third-party lender. Carvana allows you to search their inventory with filters for make and model, features, price, fuel efficiency, and more to help you narrow down the best car for you.

You can also sell or trade your car on Carvana by sharing details about the vehicle. Potential sellers will receive a firm offer after their application is reviewed, and a representative from the company will come to your house, review the car, and hand you a check or a trade-in car.

9. Care.com

An alternative to Craigslist for finding a babysitter or other care provider is Care.com. Founded in 2007, Care.com provides a platform for caregivers and families seeking help. Care.com offers connections for those in need of child care, elder care, special needs care, pet care, housekeeping, and tutors, complete with background checks.

Those working in caregiving fields can use Care.com to access jobs, as well as tools that can help them job hunt and find colleagues within an online community. Families can search for local caregivers by signing up for a basic (free) or premium account with Care.com.

Warning

Scammers exist everywhere, but they’re primarily online. When shopping on sites like Facebook Marketplace, never pay for something in advance, and do not meet a seller anywhere you do not feel comfortable.

10. Etsy

When e-commerce marketplace Etsy opened its virtual doors in 2005, it was embraced as an online community for crafters, hobbyists, and artists. Fans of vintage items and heirlooms found bargains as well on Etsy. The site has expanded into a sprawling marketplace. Etsy is where you can buy and sell original, handmade home goods, toys, clothing, vintage items (items must be 20 years or older), and antiques, plus original artwork and materials for crafting your own projects.

Sellers can list their wares for 20 cents per listing and are hit with 6.5% of the price per listing plus shipping, personalization, and gift wrapping costs as a transaction fee for using the Etsy.com platform. Shoppers can use the e-commerce site’s easy-to-navigate search options and check-out tools like Etsy’s Editors’ Picks. The marketplace is used by millions of entrepreneurs and shoppers worldwide.

Are There Local Classified Websites Similar to Craigslist?

Numerous local classified websites, such as Gumtree, Oodle, and Backpage, mirror Craigslist’s format. These platforms cater to specific regions, facilitating localized transactions and community connections.

Are There Specific Platforms for Job Listings Besides Craigslist?

Indeed, LinkedIn, and Glassdoor among the leading websites that provide extensive job search functionalities.

Can I Find Services Similar to Craigslist’s Gigs Section?

TaskRabbit and Gigwalk are popular alternatives for finding short-term jobs or freelance gigs. These platforms connect individuals with specific skills to those seeking assistance, creating a diverse marketplace for various services.

What Are the Alternatives to Craigslist for Dating?

Tinder, Bumble, Match.com and OkCupid are popular dating apps / sites.

Do People Still Use Craigslist?

Absolutely. You can search your local area on Craigslist and find used furniture, cars, rentals, and even jobs. However, because so many Craigslist alternatives exist, it is arguably no longer the one-stop shopping powerhouse it was when it debuted in 1995.

The Bottom Line

Craigslist is an online marketplace contender, but there are many online alternatives to consider. And if you want to go beyond e-commerce, consignment stores and garage sales continue to be popular places to sell your stuff.

The job boards on Craigslist may not be able to compete with LinkedIn and Indeed. Gigs can be found online on sites like Fiverr and TaskRabbit. In the mid-90s, Craigslist might have been the go-to for finding a rental or a home to buy, but now there’s Trulia, Apartments.com, Zillow, and other sites.

It’s possible that Craigslist’s old-school e-commerce experience may be more useful for finding local home goods (e.g. used furniture) than a new roommate, babysitter, or job.

Read the original article on Investopedia.