A fixed packing station with shelving, a thermal printer and supplies in reach, built for one person shipping up to 100 eBay orders a week.
Built forYou sell toys and collectibles from garage sales, thrift stores and retail clearance on eBay, ship 50 to 100 orders a week and pack every order yourself.
Kit total
$274 to $527
Running cost
$142 to $282 a month
Consumables at 75 orders a week
- Orders a week
- 50–100
- Space
- Spare bedroom
- Budget
- $450
Why this setup
You sell toys and collectibles from garage sales, thrift stores and retail clearance on eBay, ship 50 to 100 orders a week and pack every order yourself.
Past 50 orders a week, finding items and fetching supplies takes longer than packing. This setup puts stock on numbered shelves and every supply within one arm’s reach of the table.
Print the day’s eBay labels in one bulk run straight to the thermal printer, so 4 × 6 inch labels come out in the order you pick.
The kit
Every item, why it’s here and what it typically costs in the US.
MUNBYN thermal label printer
It takes the standard 4 × 6 inch labels that eBay, Poshmark, Mercari and Whatnot all generate, and generic labels work, so the running cost stays low.
Typical price$60 to $100
See on Amazon
110 lb shipping scale with fold-up display
A wrong weight gets you an adjustment charge from the carrier or postage you overpaid. This platform scale takes up to 110 lb, and its backlit display folds up 90 degrees, so you can still read it when a box hangs over the top.
Typical price$18 to $30
See on Amazon6 ft folding table
Packing on the bed or the kitchen table means setting up and clearing off every session. A table that stays up lets you leave your supplies where you need them.
Typical price$45 to $80
See on Amazon5-tier steel shelving, 72 in×2
Floor space runs out first, so build up instead. Number the shelves and give each item an address you can pick from.
Typical price$80 to $180
See on AmazonTape gun dispenser
Once you ship more than a handful of boxes a week, a tape gun saves minutes on every session and stops tape ends sticking to themselves.
Typical price$10 to $20
See on Amazon
ShipStation
Suits you when you ship dozens of packages a day from eBay, Etsy and your own store and want one queue for every order. It connects to USPS, UPS and FedEx, so you compare rates and print labels in one place.
Typical priceCheck current pricing
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Shipping per order
What most orders like these ship by, at today’s published rates. Rates checked October 7, 2026.
USPS Ground Advantage, under 1 lbUsual$6.93 to $8.95
TrackedUp to 1 lbClothing, cards in a mailer and other small items under 1 lb. Tracked, with $100 insurance included.
- USPS Ground Advantage, 1 to 2 lb
$7.61 to $13.42
TrackedUp to 2 lbShoes, jeans and boxed items up to 2 lb, tracked with $100 insurance.
UPS Ground, up to 5 lb$12.00 to $25.00
TrackedUp to 5 lbTracked UPS Ground for boxed items up to 5 lb, for when it costs less than USPS.
About $2,252 to $2,909 a month in shipping at 75 orders a week On most marketplaces the buyer pays shipping; this is the cost when you pay it.
How to lay it out
Where everything goes, so each order moves one way through the room.
- 1
Shelves behind the table
Two shelving units stand behind the table, with every shelf numbered. Put the shelf code in eBay’s custom label field so the sold order shows the location.
- 2
Supplies under the table
Store boxes flat underneath and keep padded envelopes and a bubble wrap roll at the end of the table, so you fetch nothing mid-batch.
- 3
Printer and scale on the right
Keep the printer and scale side by side, so you weigh and label each box as it moves left to right and off the end of the table.
- 4
Batch once a day
Print every label at once in pick order, then walk the shelves once before you pack.
The guide
Each step in the order you'll need it.
The daily pick and pack
Open eBay’s orders page around mid-morning, select the day’s orders and sort them by custom label. Print the packing slips and labels together, then walk the shelves once with a tub and collect every item.
Back at the table, work left to right: item, wrap, box or mailer, tape, weigh, label. Twenty orders take around an hour once you know the routine.
Pack the whole batch in one sitting, before your USPS pickup or drop-off.
Numbered shelves and listing codes
Give every shelf a code such as B3, and type that code into the custom label field of the eBay listing. The code prints on the packing slip, so you walk straight to the right shelf.
Group similar toys by size. Put small figures in labeled tubs on one shelf and boxed sets on the bottom shelf, where they are easier to lift.
Kit for this step
Boxes, envelopes and wrap
Stock two box sizes and padded envelopes for small items. Boxes go flat under the table, envelopes in a tray at the end, bubble wrap on a roll beside the tape gun.
Restock the table at the end of every session, and count tape and labels so you don’t start a batch short. A shopping list on the wall with box sizes and pack counts makes reordering a two-minute job.
Weighing and shipping
Weigh every box after sealing it, because wrap and cardboard add weight, and USPS, UPS and FedEx charge by weight and, for bigger boxes, by size.
Check each carrier’s current dimensional weight rules when you add a new box size. Save your common box sizes as presets in your label tool, which cuts typing for repeat items.
Kit for this step
Collectibles that need extra care
Boxed figures and sealed sets sell on the condition of the box. Wrap the box and nest it in a larger outer box, so a knock dents the outer carton and the inner corners stay sharp.
Photograph high-value items as you pack them. If a buyer claims damage, a dated photo of the packed box helps your case with eBay.
Kit for this step
Past 100 orders a week
You run out of table space first, so add a second table for wrapping and keep weighing and labeling apart. Add shelving next, and buy fanfold labels by the box so you stop reordering mid-week.
Past 150 orders, the next step is a garage with a packing line. The garage setup on this site covers it.
Common mistakes
Each one costs you money or reviews, and each has a fix.
- Leaving the custom label field empty, so every pick means scrolling photos to find where an item lives.
- Weighing the item before packing it and buying a label that is too light for the finished box.
- Packing boxed collectibles in a box that fits exactly, so the corners take the knocks in transit.
- Letting tape, labels or the main box size run out mid-batch because you didn’t count stock after the last session.
- Printing labels one at a time from the eBay app instead of printing the day’s orders in one bulk run.
When to upgrade
If buyers start asking for less plastic, honeycomb paper replaces the bubble wrap without slowing the bench. Past 120, an industrial thermal printer costs more but runs batches faster.
- 120+ Zebra ZD421d
- 100+ Honeycomb paper wrap roll
Questions
Straight answers to what sellers ask about this.
Should I buy labels in eBay or Pirate Ship?
Both pass on discounted USPS and UPS rates, and Pirate Ship charges no fee. eBay labels mark the order shipped and upload tracking automatically; Pirate Ship imports eBay orders once you connect the store. Compare the rate for your common box once and stick with the cheaper route.
How big should a packing table be?
A 6 foot table gives you room for supplies at one end, packing in the middle and the printer and scale at the other. On a shorter table you end up stacking.
Should I batch or pack as orders come in?
Batch once a day. One walk around the shelves with a stack of labels is quicker than a dozen separate trips.
How do I add a shelf code to an eBay listing?
Use the custom label (SKU) field when you list. It stays hidden from buyers and shows up on your orders and packing slips.
Can I ship toys in padded envelopes?
Small, sturdy toys and loose figures travel well in padded envelopes. Anything boxed or fragile needs a box with padding.
How much stock should one shelving unit hold?
Count what fits on one shelf of your unit, in tubs and in boxed sets, and multiply by the shelves. Leave space on each shelf for new stock.
Guides
Step-by-step help for the jobs that come next.
More setups
Updated October 5, 2026
