Editor’s Note:
This Music Magpie review looks at a UK-based service where you can make money by trading in old games, books, CDs and more. However, don’t worry if you’re in the US instead, as this is all still relevant to you!
Decluttr is the American version of the same service. As such, you can treat this Music Magpie Review as a Decluttr review too.
As the mother of two (now young adult) boys, my home is filled with a large quantity of books, DVDs, and computer games from every console you could think of!
With these cluttering up every storage space in the house and Christmas just around the corner, it seemed like a good time to see if some of this “junk” was actually worth anything.
With the ubiquity of sites such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, holding onto physical copies of boxed sets etc. is only really appealing for collectors, so it seemed like a good time for a clear out. Also, with my sons regularly updating their phones and consoles, there were plenty of items that were discarded and no longer required around the house.
With that in mind, I decided to put together a detailed Music Magpie review.
What is Music Magpie?
is a website that allows you to trade in items such as CDs, video games, DVDs and electronics for cash payments. It’s the UK version of Decluttr, which works in the same way. Music Magpie is one of an increasing number of businesses working in a sector Wikipedia describes as “recommerce.”
Using Music Magpie
You can access Music Magpie via website or app. Both are clear and easy to navigate.
Using the Music Magpie app is definitely the way to go; The camera feature allows you to scan the bar code on your items rather than type the details in, making the process of looking up the value of your excess possessions far quicker.
Sign up is quick and easy and you can be ready to scan your items in just a couple of minutes,
You scan the barcode on your item (or tap the number in), and the app tells you how much your item is worth (or at least how much Music Magpie will pay you for it!) If you wish, you can carry on doing this and it will then tell you the total that Music Magpie (or Decluttr) will offer for all your items.
As well as games, books and DVDs, you can sell lots of your redundant tech items too. While you almost certainly won’t get quite as much as you would selling it on sites such as eBay or on Facebook Marketplace, this method does remove the risk of a purchaser making unfair complaints and trying to return things. This is quite often a problem.
Pleasingly, I found out while producing my Music Magpie review that the service is happy to accept phones without chargers, boxes and other accessories.
Selling an iPhone on Music Magpie
The first thing I wanted to sell was an old iPhone that had been gathering dust in the drawer.
A quick look at advanced search on eBay showed I would get around £60 ($77) for it. This was not a huge amount, but certainly enough for it to come in handy for Christmas.
Music Magpie offered me a little over £40 ($52). However, it was free to send it to them, and I had no risk of a dodgy buyer. In addition, there were no postage, eBay or PayPal fees to think about.
Sending my phone to in was easy. If you have access to a printer, you can print off all the paperwork you need and post straight away. Alternatively, you can request a postage pack from them. This takes a few extra days.
Once posted, I received an email confirming receipt the following day, and the cash was in my bank account the day after that. Here in the UK, you can either take your parcel to your local Post Office or pick up point, or arrange a collection all for free. (The exact arrangements for Decluttr in the US may differ slightly).
Selling Small Items on Music Magpie
With one successful transaction under my belt, I moved on to the dreaded pile of books, games and DVDs.
This was a little more time consuming. As I’d downloaded the app, all I had to do was hold the phone over the bar code on each item. The app immediately tells you the price Music Magpie will pay.
However, they are not interested in everything you want to sell. Around half of my pile was rejected. However, from a pile of about a dozen books, a few DVDs and a handful of games, I was offered a little over £40 ($51).
I was surprised that some of the items I thought were worth selling were rejected. Or, in other cases I was only offered pennies for them. For this reason, I removed several of the games from the pile – having been told by my sons I could get a much better price elsewhere (more on this below).
I also found myself removing some of the books from the pile. These were items that I had lovingly kept in the best condition. I felt I just couldn’t let them go for the few pennies that were being offered.
Music Magpie Review: Practicalities
- In order to use Music Magpie, you need to send in items “worth” a minimum of £5.
- For Decluttr in the US, the minimum is $5, consisting of at least ten media items or one gadget.
- Once you are registered with Music Magpie or Decluttr you tend to receive regular offers from them in your email inbox. These offer extra money for your items, for example 10% more for tech trade-ins. These promotions seem to pop up most weeks, so it might be worth hanging on a few days to get the best deal.
Once you have scanned all your items you simply need to box them up and use the labels you have printed or requested.
Music Magpie / Decluttr Review Conclusion
Music Magpie’s website is easy to navigate, and includes with a comprehensive FAQ section. If you still need answers there are contact phone and email options, so you feel well supported using this platform.
This is a fast and efficient way of raising some cash, and with a quick turnaround you don’t have to wait very long to see it in your bank. Payments are made either by bank transfer, PayPal or cheque.
However, in most cases you can get more money for your items by selling them using other means. A good example of this is the Pokemon Black game shown in the screenshot earlier in the article. I was offered £2.99 ($3.84) for this, but a quick search on eBay revealed it typically fetches around £16.50 ($21.18) on eBay.
With that in mind, it makes sense to decide what your priorities are. If you’re after quick cash and minimum hassle, Music Magpie is worth a look. However, you must be aware that you will almost certainly make more money offloading clutter using methods that involve more effort, time and hassle.
Music Magpie is legit (as is Decluttr). The company has good recycling credentials, and even pays out a little extra to students. (If you’re a student, you’ll find more online money making ideas here). If you’re happy with what you can get for your items, Music Magpie is well worth a look. But if you want to realise their maximum value, I have to conclude my Music Magpie review by saying there are probably better places to do so.
Find Music Magpie here and Decluttr here.Â
For other ways to clear your clutter for cash, check out these articles:
- Making money with eBay.
- Selling items locally with Facebook Marketplace.
- Selling second hand books (and other items) on Amazon.
A mother of four and a grandmother to five more, it’s little surprise home working opportunities are often on Rosalyn’s agenda. Here she reviews opportunities and interviews people with their own successful ventures. She’s also the founder’s sister, but it doesn’t earn her any special privileges!