Selling your car privately, to a dealer or to an online buyer — what's the difference?

You've decided to sell your car. The next question is how. There are basically three routes in the UK — selling it privately to another individual, part-exchanging with a dealer, or using an online buyer like Carmora. Each has trade-offs. Here's an honest comparison.

Selling privately

You list the car on Auto Trader, Facebook Marketplace or eBay, take a stack of photos, deal with the calls, the no-shows, the time-wasters, and eventually meet a buyer in person who probably wants a cash discount on the day.

Pros

• Highest possible price. Eliminating the middleman means you keep the trade margin.
• You control the timeline.

Cons

• Slow. Average time on Auto Trader for a privately listed used car is around 4–8 weeks.
• Hassle. Phone calls at 9pm, viewings that don't happen, test drives, ID checks, fraud risk on the payment.
• Safety. Dealing with strangers, often in cash. Bank transfer scams (someone showing you a fake transfer notification on their phone) are increasingly common.
• You're liable if the car has an undisclosed fault — even one you didn't know about.

Part-exchanging at a dealer

You drive to a dealership, they value the car (typically aggressively low), and the difference comes off the price of whatever you're buying from them.

Pros

• Convenient — done in one trip.
• No advertising, no viewings, no admin.

Cons

• Lower price. Dealers need margin and assume they'll have to recondition the car. Typical part-ex offers are 15–25% below private sale value.
• Tied to buying another car from the same dealer.
• The discount on the new car often hides the actual figure — what looks like a generous part-ex is sometimes offset by a less-generous discount on the car you're buying.

Online buyers (like Carmora)

You enter your registration on the buyer's website, get a quote, and if you accept, they collect and pay.

Pros

• Fast. Quote within 24 hours, money same-day via BACS.
• No hassle. No listings, no viewings, no strangers in your driveway.
• Safer. No cash, no risk of payment fraud.
• Free collection at your address.
• Outstanding finance settled directly with the lender (with Carmora).

Cons

• Usually pays less than a successful private sale (but more than a dealer part-ex).
• Many online buyers charge admin fees, transfer fees, or low-value collection fees — read the small print. (Carmora charges none.)
• Some buyers downgrade the quote on the day for trivial reasons.

What we do differently

Most "we buy any car" services value cars with an algorithm — you enter the reg, a computer spits out a number that's deliberately low so they can mark it down further when you arrive at their forecourt. We don't do that. Every Carmora valuation is done by a real person looking at the actual market right now, and the quote is the price we pay (subject to the car being as described). No fees. No deductions. Same-day BACS.

So which should you choose?

If you have time and patience, and you're comfortable dealing with strangers and verifying payments, a private sale will usually net you the most money.

If you want it done today and you're already buying a car from a specific dealer, a part-ex is the easiest route, but you'll lose value.

If you want it done this week with no hassle and no risk, an online buyer like Carmora is the middle ground — better price than a dealer, faster than a private sale, and no fees with us. Get your free valuation here.