Wow... I found Mountain Warehouse items up to 67% cheaper on its main site vs its eBay store

I started working at MSE late last year, and in December I was asked to update the coverage of our online outlets page. Simply put, I needed to make sure the outlets still existed and check the prices of items and compare them against other sites. Seems simple enough, right? Well, it was until I found myself on Mountain Warehouse's eBay shop.

On its eBay store, I spotted a bright red jacket for £213 (£170 with a coupon code), which as a Mountain Warehouse customer, I thought was a bit steep. This is when I decided to search for the jacket on the official Mountain Warehouse website. I was shocked to find the same jacket for £100 on its main site, making it a whopping 70% more expensive on eBay.

Other retailers with eBay stores that feature on our outlets page didn't have the same unusual pricing, which is why I knew I had to delve into the Mountain Warehouse sites in a bit more detail.

Unlike other retailers, Mountain Warehouse doesn't call its eBay shop an 'outlet'. It doesn't make any bold claims to have the cheapest prices or say items sold on its eBay page are the best-value. However, I do believe some consumers might assume the prices of items on its eBay page to be among the cheapest around. This is why it's always good to check, just like I did.

What else did I find?

At first, I thought the price might've been a glitch. Because the red jacket was one of the more expensive items, I decided to compare the price of one of the cheaper items on the eBay site, a pair of unicorn kids' earmuffs. Not only were they cheap, but they were so distinct it was easy to make sure it was the same item. The earmuffs were sold for £6 on the main site versus £14 on eBay, 133% more expensive.

This is where my stint as a sleuth truly began. Did someone say move aside Sherlock?

Unicorn earmuffs on eBay:

Unicorn earmuffs on Mountain Warehouse:

What did I do then?

I cross-examined the prices of 26 other items on Mountain Warehouse's eBay store compared to its main site, picking a mixture of products at random, including specialist coats, wetsuits, sleeping bags, ski pants, insoles, packing cubes and hats.

I took a handful of the highest-priced items, some of the lowest-priced, and some that were roughly in the middle to create a small but representative sample of the 2,000 products it sells on eBay. I know my sample size is limited, I am just one person after all, I simply wanted to warn MSE readers to always double check prices before making a purchase, even when buying from an eBay shop. I know this should be second nature to most. If it's not, here's why it should be...

• Of the 28 items I compared on Thursday 11 December, 20 were cheaper on the main Mountain Warehouse website, five were the same price, and only three were cheaper on eBay. When I checked prices again on Wednesday 14 January, 14 items were still cheaper on the main site, 11 were the same price and three were still cheaper on eBay.

• That means 71% of the items I checked in December were more expensive on eBay compared to the main Mountain Warehouse site, while 18% were the same, and 11% were cheaper. When I checked prices again in January, 50% were still more expensive on eBay, 39% were the same, and 11% were cheaper.

• The price differences were huge... including a beanie hat sold for £4 on the main website versus £12 on eBay – a whopping 200% more expensive.

You can see the full pricing discrepancy table below.

Mountain Warehouse Ultra Jura men's jacket for £170 with a coupon code (£213 without) on eBay:

The identical jacket on sale for £100 on the Mountain Warehouse main site:

^{Both prices checked on Thursday 11 December}

When I compared prices again roughly one month later on Wednesday 14 January, and after emailing Mountain Warehouse to query the reason for the odd pricing, the cost of several items on the eBay store had dropped somewhat. For example, the £170 jacket above was now £112 – still £13 more expensive than on the retailer's main website, even after the price drop.

A few items were cheaper on the eBay store, but of the 28 items I checked, it was only three – just 11%.

Why is this price discrepancy happening?

Items that are cheaper on the Mountain Warehouse website compared to its eBay page range from specialist jackets and sleeping bags to hats and insoles, with no obvious rhyme or reason as to why certain items are cheaper on its own site.

I tried contacting Mountain Warehouse multiple times to ask why pricing between the two sites was so inconsistent and why its eBay customers were being charged significantly more for the same products in many cases.

Disappointingly, Mountain Warehouse hasn't got back to me even though I emailed, phoned and messaged them on various social media platforms (I know it's giving needy girlfriend).

Because I haven't heard back from the retailer, I can't say why the prices are different. However, it's worth noting that while eBay charges fees (not to private sellers, but this still applies to retailers/businesses), these are highly unlikely to account for an up to 200% price hike.

All I can say is to make sure you don't overpay, and here's how...

How to make sure you don't overpay

My look into the price difference between the eBay store and the retailer's own website reinforces one of MSE's key money mantras, to always compare prices for things you want to buy.

Don't assume eBay will be cheapest for any retailer – check its main site too, and use comparisons sites such as Google Shopping or PriceSpy to check prices elsewhere, especially if it's a brand such as Mountain Warehouse that is also sold at other retailers.

If you're not fussed about brand-new, then second-hand selling sites such as Vinted can be worth a look too – see our Vinted buying guide. In the past, I've bought high-quality hiking and snowboarding gear second-hand and come away with a good bargain.

What about delivery costs and return rights?

Delivery charges and the company's returns and refund policy on both eBay and the retailer's website were broadly similar, with the eBay store coming off cheaper here.

Have you seen similar price discrepancies elsewhere? Let us know!

We checked several other retailer eBay stores including Currys, Shark, Ninja, and Dyson, and we didn't spot the same unusual pricing. A couple of items at Dyson were 1p cheaper at its main website, but for other items we checked, the eBay stores gave decent savings.

If you have spotted a retailer's eBay store or outlet selling items more expensive than its main site, please email the MSE Deals team to let us know.

The full price comparison breakdown

Below is a table of the 28 items I compared, checking the prices in December and January – of course, prices may have changed since then. The items which don't state a month were the same price on both occasions.