vindje.com / Guides / Buying on Marktplaats
Buy things when other people stop needing them: bikes and garden furniture in late autumn and winter, furniture at the end of the month and when students leave in summer, winter gear in spring. Prices on Marktplaats follow demand closely, and the gap between a busy month and a quiet one can be a third of the price.
Most good second-hand furniture comes from people moving. Rental contracts usually end at the end of a month, so the last ten days of each month bring a wave of 'wegens verhuizing' (because of moving) and 'moet weg' listings. Sellers on a deadline accept lower offers, and free listings jump.
Student cities like Utrecht, Groningen, Leiden, Delft, Amsterdam and Nijmegen see a big supply in June and July when students and expats leave, and a demand spike in August and September when the new year arrives. If you can, furnish in early summer and avoid the first weeks of September.
Demand for bikes rises from March, peaks in spring and again in late August with incoming students. From November to February fewer people buy, and listings sit longer. That is when you have the most room to negotiate on city bikes, road bikes and e-bikes.
Cold weather is also a better test. If the lights, gears and battery behave on a wet January evening, they will in May.
The pattern repeats for anything tied to a season. Look for the item in the months nobody wants it.
Baby items follow the child, not the season, so supply is steady. Prams, high chairs and cots get listed when a family is done, often in batches. Prices dip a bit after the summer holidays, when people clear out before school starts. Skip used car seats regardless of timing: you cannot see whether one has been in a crash.
Clothes for babies and toddlers are the easiest bargain of all, often sold as a bag of 20 to 40 pieces per size for 10 to 25 euro. Search 'kledingpakket' plus the size, like 'kledingpakket maat 74'.
When a new phone, console or laptop generation comes out, owners of the previous one upgrade and list their old devices. The weeks after a big launch bring a good supply of the outgoing model. Around Sinterklaas and Christmas, demand for consoles and tablets rises, so buy those in January or February when unwanted gifts and upgrades appear.
Prices for previous generations fall fastest in the first months after a launch, then level out.
On Koningsdag (King's Day, 27 April, or the 26th when the 27th is a Sunday) the whole country turns into a flea market, the vrijmarkt. You will find books, toys, clothes and kitchen items at a euro or two, and sellers drop prices in the afternoon. It is not great for furniture, since nobody wants to carry a wardrobe to the street.
Local rommelmarkten (flea markets) and kringloop stores have their own rhythms. Kringloops restock daily, so regular visits beat any season.
Many listings go online on weekend mornings and Sunday evenings, when people have time to photograph things. Popular items are gone within hours, so a saved search with notifications beats checking once a day. Midweek, the market is quieter and sellers of older listings more willing to talk.
Describe what you want in your own words and vindje.com searches Marktplaats in Dutch, then reads every listing and keeps only the real matches. For example:
Wooden garden table with 4 chairs, sold before winter, under 120 euro, pickup within 20 km of HaarlemSearch Marktplaats like this
Late autumn and winter, from November to February. Demand is low and sellers are more willing to negotiate.
Mostly in June and July, and at the end of each month when rental contracts end.
Yes for small things like books, toys and clothes, which go for a euro or two. It is less useful for furniture.
From September through the winter, when people clear their gardens and balconies before the cold.