The Best Sneaker App
The 7 Best Apps for Buying Sneakers
That demoralising feeling of taking an L may feel the same, but the ways you can take them have certainly evolved over the past few years. The art of the line-up isn’t dead just yet, but the emergence of the e-commerce juggernaut has certainly made it a less attractive option when planning your next prized eaker marketplace apps are now among the most popular options for buying sneakers, both new and used. And while the online shift has also brought fresh challenges – most notably those pesky bots – the convenience of copping on your smartphone sure beats the hell out of lining up overnight in the like the sneakersphere, the app market can appear a little saturated and daunting for those new to game. Lucky for you, we’ve got some expertise in the field. Here are the five best apps for buying sneakers., StockXStockX have stamped themselves as the go-to platform for sneakerheads searching for secondary market cops. Specialising in sneakers, StockX also deals in the latest streetwear, accessories, and even portantly, peace of mind is assured, with the team’s ‘specialists’ authenticating all goods traded via the its name suggests, the platform functions as a stock market where sellers place asking prices and buyers place bids. When a bid and asking price meet, a transaction is put through instantly – easy as pie! The ask/bid structure has also led to StockX becoming a first point of call for checking average resale prices, all of which are tracked on the app’s economics – this is sneakernomics. BUMPBUMP is an up-and-coming marketplace for all kinds of hyped sneakers and streetwear. With hefty clout in Europe, the platform already has close to two million registered app is unique in that it encourages community engagement and social sharing. The interactive approach has led to the app becoming most popular among the Gen Z sneakerheads out there, with the average user age quoted as 15 years old. Unfortunately, the lack of authentication process can result in the occasional fugazi cop – an issue the BUMP team are continually looking to improve. That said, the app’s community always has your back, calling out shifty sellers and potential fakes. And if something phony does slip through the cracks, you’ve always got PayPal protection to fall back on. GOATGOAT live up to their namesake by offering arguably the biggest and best sneaker marketplace to its users, with over 125, 000 pairs of sneakers up for of the OGs when it comes to the secondary market, GOAT pride themselves on a simple user experience and product authenticity. A free-of-charge verification service is included with every pair sold, allowing you to cop without can buy sneakers at sellers’ nominated rates, or leave a bid and hope to get lucky. Once you’ve scored your pair, it’ll be sent to a GOAT verification centre for an authenticity check before being shipped out to your address. This process can result in longer delivery times, but waiting a couple of days longer sure beats receiving a pair of counterfeit ‘Red Octobers’ in the xifyKixify call themselves the ‘world’s largest sneaker marketplace’, and they’ve shifted focus from their desktop platform to their app in recent a commission-based sale framework, sellers from all over the world use Kixify to flip sought-after drops. The inventory is huge, but be sure to do your due diligence when it comes to combat scammers, Kixify have introduced ‘Select’, which guarantees your kicks are legit – similar to initiatives from StockX and GOAT. Products purchased from Select are acquired directly from the platform’s inventory, with an in-house team making sure the product checks out first hand. NTWRKOffering perhaps the most unique shopping experience of the bunch, NTWRK makes use of watchable shows featuring the biggest sneaker and streetwear brands. Products drop exclusively via ‘episodes’, with limited edition and rare sneakers often appearing among the app’s inventory. The NTWRK Drawings aspect of the app also allows you to enter raffles for the more coveted items. A coming together of entertainment and retail, NTWRK has brought on plenty star power to level-up their content, with the likes of Billie Eilish, Juice WRLD, DJ Khaled, Odell Beckham Jr, Eddie Huang, Blake Griffin, Alexander Wang, Jonah Hill, Gary Vee, A$AP Ferg, Wu-Tang Clan, and Doja Cat among some of the special pdate Copdate are a relative newcomer to the sneaker app landscape, rising to prominence in 2020 off the back of the Nike SB renaissance. Retailers can use Copdate as a platform to roll out the latest sneakers releases, with skate shops making use of the app for many of the latest Dunk drops, most notably the 4/20 ‘Reverse Skunk’. Essentially, Copdate aims to take away the crowds, lines, and hassle of the hyped sneaker drops, allowing the stores to deliver releases straight to the smartphones of hypefiends worldwide. Expect more shops to adapt the Copdate approach in the future., Nike SNKRSWhen it comes to app-based retail experiences, Nike continues to lead the way with SNKRS. The app gives users exclusive access to the latest launches, with plenty of product storytelling to can also sign up for raffles, and all transactions are done seamlessly in the super-chic app combat bots and improve user interaction, SNKRS have introduced a number of innovative ways to cop, most notably through augmented reality. The AR approach means you may need to leave the comfort of your home to cop a sought-after release, but it’s a small trade off to avoid paying you’re a US-based sneakerhead and you haven’t installed it already – just do it.
The best apps for buying sneakers | Engadget
I can’t even remember how many times I’ve had to get in line at a FootLocker to buy the latest pair of Air Jordans. But that was years ago, long before websites and apps became the main way I shop for sneakers. Nowadays, if I do end up at a FootLocker, it’s because I won a raffle through its app and just have to go pick up a pair of shoes — no waiting on long lines necessary. With the rise of smartphones and the internet as a whole, retailers along with brands like Nike and Adidas have turned to technology to sell sneakers, especially limited-edition ones that have the potential to cause physical fights. If I want a pair of Jordans in 2019, I just use Nike’s SNKRS app, and I don’t have to worry about someone jumping me for them as I leave a store.
While sites and apps have made sneaker shopping safer, this digital shift has presented an entirely new challenge for companies: bots, automated computer scripts that can buy items faster than a human can. Bots, which are mostly used by resellers looking to profit off highly coveted shoes are now what people blame every time they can’t get the sneakers they want. To address that problem, Nike and Adidas have started using augmented reality to launch shoes, but that’s only an experiment at this point and it’s still too early to know if it’ll help with the cat-and-mouse game against bots.
Naturally, those limited-edition sneakers (that bots may or may not be buying) often end up on third-party marketplaces such as StockX, GOAT, SneakerCon or eBay. And while many pairs are sold for more than their original retail price, you could also find some below market cost on these services. It just depends on how hyped the shoes you’re looking for are. It wasn’t long ago that eBay was basically the only site sneakerheads could turn to if they missed out on a particular shoe, but today there are so many options on the internet.
Let’s take a look at the best of them.
StockX
StockX was founded in 2015 as a sneaker-reselling platform, but now it offers anything from streetwear to luxury watches and handbags. The service, which you can use on the web or iOS and Android apps, prides itself on its authentication system. Because if you’re going to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on kicks, the last thing you want is for them to be fake. StockX has humans who inspect every shoe it sells before they’re sent to buyers, minimizing the chances of you getting ripped off — that’s usually a big concern when buying goods from strangers on the internet.
The way StockX works is simple: A seller posts a shoe and interested buyers can either bid on it or pay a fixed price to purchase it immediately, which saves you from getting into a bidding war with other users. If you’re in the US, you’ll pay $13. 95 for shipping, or between $30 and $40 if you live in Canada or other parts of the world. Once you buy an item, the seller sends it to StockX for authentication and, if it passes, it’ll be on its way to you within a couple of days.
If the shoes, bag or garment you bought happen to be a counterfeit, StockX ships them back to the seller and you get your money back. The downside is that the entire process can take up to two weeks, from the moment you pay for your shoes to when you actually get them. That said, StockX has said it is working to speed up the process, that way customers don’t have to wait so long before they can start rocking their new wears.
GOAT
GOAT is similar to StockX. You can use it on the web, iOS and Android, as well. The main difference between the two is that on GOAT you can buy used sneakers, where as StockX only sells pairs that are brand-new. But the service works the same as StockX: You can bid on shoes or buy them instantly, and GOAT will also authenticate them before they’re shipped to you. GOAT says that it will typically take seven to 10 business days for orders to be completed, though in my experience it’s sometimes faster. And unlike StockX, GOAT has a feature called “Instant Ship, ” which includes pairs that it has already authenticated and can be shipped right after you place an order.
On top of whatever amount you pay for the shoes, GOAT charges a $10 shipping fee if you’re in the US or between $30 and $40 to send them internationally. What I like the most about GOAT is that its app does a great job at keeping you updated on the status of your purchase. The “Order Progress” lets you see when the seller has confirmed your order, when your shoes have been shipped to GOAT for authentication and when they’ve been verified, all the way to when they’ve been shipped to you.
StockX offers a similar order progress feature, but it’s not as detailed as GOAT’s, which goes as far as to let you know when the seller is packing your shoes and when they’ve been delivered to its warehouse. It’s a nice touch that sneakerheads will appreciate.
Sneaker Con
Sneaker Con is mostly known for its shoe conventions around the world, but in 2018 the company launched an app designed to compete with StockX and GOAT. Available on the web, iOS and Android, Sneaker Con offers both brand-new and worn kicks, similar to its rival GOAT. But where Sneaker Con stands out is with its authentication system, which is slightly different and more tech-forward than StockX’s and GOAT’s. Whenever you buy a pair of sneakers from the app, they’ll come with a physical tag that features NFC.
These “Legit” tags, as Sneaker Con calls them, come loaded with information about the pair you’re getting, like model name, size and condition. To view that, all you have to do is open the Sneaker Con app and tap the authentication tab, where a window will pop up and tell you it’s ready to scan your Legit NFC tag.
As you might expect, Sneaker Con only puts these tags on shoes after it has verified their authenticity. Just as with GOAT and StockX, sellers are required to have their shoes inspected before every transaction, but the difference is that SneakerCon lets them do that at its events or by shipping pairs to its warehouse. The Sneaker Con app only works in the US right now, where buyers have to pay $12 for shipping on any shoe, which is about the same as the other services.
eBay
Of course, you can’t talk about online marketplaces without mentioning eBay. You probably already know how eBay works, but just in case: The main difference between it and apps like StockX, GOAT and Sneaker Con is that here, you’re going to be buying your sneakers directly from an independent seller. Sure, that can make the ordering process quicker than on StockX or GOAT, but it also comes with risks of its own. Unlike with the StockX, GOAT or Sneaker Con apps, eBay doesn’t have an authentication service for sneakers, so you’re going to have to trust that the seller is sending you authentic goods.
To do that, you’ll want to make sure you’re ordering from top-rated sellers. Basically, you just to use your best judgement and not buy anything from, say, an account that has bad reviews or has made barely any sales. Additionally, if you come across a pair that’s ridiculously cheaper on eBay than on StockX, GOAT or SneakerCon, that should be a red flag. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
eBay told Engadget that “less than a fraction of a percentage point” of all items listed on the site have been identified as counterfeit. The company also said it has preventive tools to spot potential fakes, and that its Verified Rights Owner program (VeRO) ensures that brands can report listings that may be questionable. On top of that, eBay does have its Money Back Guarantee, which protects you from potential scams. So if you get a pair that doesn’t appear to be authentic or if it never arrives in the first place, you can report it to eBay immediately and (hopefully) get your money back.
GOAT’s authentication service.
Ultimately, choosing between any of these services comes down to whether you want to buy new or used. StockX, GOAT and Sneaker Con all have reliable authentication systems in place, and although the shipping process could take a little long, I’d rather have piece of mind that my shoes legit. And while eBay claims there aren’t many fakes on its site, until it gets an authentication system like these other apps, I’ll always be worried about buying pairs from its independent sellers.
Whether you want to go with StockX, GOAT, Sneaker Con or eBay, one thing is for sure: It’s never been easier to buy sneakers on the internet. The sneaker-reselling app boom is so real that even traditional retailers are noticing. Why do you think FootLocker recently invested $100 million in GOAT? These apps must be doing something right.
Images: JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP/Getty Images (Nike Air Max 1/StockX); GOAT (Adidas Yeezy Boost 350 V2); Sneaker Con (Sneaker Con app); Nike (Blazer Mid Off-White “Queen”) All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
These Are the Most-Faked Sneakers on StockX – Highsnobiety
SneakersThese Are the Fake Sneakers StockX Authenticators Catch the MostStockX has been around for five years this week. To celebrate, the resale platform has put together another one of its “Big Facts” infographics. This specific iteration tells the story of the changes the marketplace and its supply and demand have undergone since 2016. Most interestingly, StockX has unveiled the most popular counterfeit sneakers its authenticators encountered — both in 2016 and 2016, the most attempted fakes were of the adidas YEEZY Boost 350 V2 “Beluga, ” Nike Air Jordan 1 “Banned, ” and the Nike Air Jordan 11 “Space Jam” — all three relatively widely available sneakers and (with the exception of the YEEZY) non-collaborative. Last year, however, the most attempted counterfeit sneakers were the Off-White™ x Nike Air Jordan 1 “Chicago, ” Off-White™ x Nike Air Jordan 4 “Sail, ” and the Travis Scott x Nike Air Jordan 1 High — all three are collaborations and extremely limited. “When we look at the most attempted fakes in 2016 vs. 2020, one of the most notable shifts we see is in the types of sneakers on the lists, ” says StockX’s chief economist Jesse Einhorn. “In 2016, all three sneakers ranked among the top five best-selling sneakers on StockX. By contrast, when looking at the three most attempted fakes in 2020, not one of the sneakers ranked among our top 50 best-sellers. Instead, these were some of the most limited releases of the year, and were artist and designer collaborations. ”StockX did not share exactly how many fakes are caught by its team of authenticators, but Einhorn shared that StockX sees “far fewer fakes than we once did, which is a direct result of our rigorous authentication process. The fact that we sit in the middle of the transaction serves as a deterrent for those looking to pass counterfeits. ”Five years ago, StockX had a single authentication center with four dedicated authenticators. In 2020 that number had risen to 10 authentication centers and drop-off locations and around 300 growth alone has improved StockX’s authentication process, which the platform claims has a 99. 95 percent success rate for sneakers. The 0. 05 percent of sneakers that pass the initial authentication process but is later determined to be an error are not necessarily all fake. “A sneaker may not meet our authentication standard for a number of reasons, ” explains Einhorn. “It could be that it has been worn, is the wrong size, a fake, a damaged box, or a product with missing accessories or a manufacturer defect. ”In addition to giving its users rare insight into its authentication process, StockX shared other interesting, data-backed trends in its Big Facts infographic. These include the rise and fall of Boost cushioning versus Max Air, the best-selling Air Jordan 1s over the past five years, and YEEZY’s declining average resale value. Check it out here.
Frequently Asked Questions about the best sneaker app
What app is better than StockX?
GOAT. GOAT is similar to StockX. You can use it on the web, iOS and Android, as well. The main difference between the two is that on GOAT you can buy used sneakers, where as StockX only sells pairs that are brand-new.Apr 10, 2019
Does StockX sell fake?
StockX did not share exactly how many fakes are caught by its team of authenticators, but Einhorn shared that StockX sees “far fewer fakes than we once did, which is a direct result of our rigorous authentication process. … Five years ago, StockX had a single authentication center with four dedicated authenticators.Feb 10, 2021
Is the sneakers app legit?
The SNKRS app currently has a 4.8 rating with 608,000 reviews, a steady increase from the 423,000 reviews it had last April, according to our data. The pandemic has been good for sneaker resellers.Mar 3, 2021
