How to List an NFT for Sale, Step by Step
To list an NFT for sale, you connect your wallet to a marketplace, approve the collection (if required), choose a listing type - fixed price or auction - set your terms, and sign a message to confirm. No transaction fee is paid at the moment of listing; the cost comes when the sale completes. The exact steps differ slightly between marketplaces, but the underlying mechanism is the same.
Prepare your wallet and NFT
Before you list, make sure the NFT you want to sell is in a wallet the marketplace supports. Most major platforms work with self-custody wallets (such as MetaMask, WalletConnect, or Phantom). If your NFT is in a custodial wallet provided by an exchange, you cannot list it directly on a marketplace - you would need to transfer it to a self-custody wallet first.
Check that the wallet has enough of its native token (ETH on Ethereum, SOL on Solana, MATIC on Polygon) to cover any required approval gas fees. The gas cost to approve a collection is typically small, but it is real. If your wallet balance is too low, the transaction will fail. Our article on Insufficient Funds for Gas NFT Error How to Solve It covers what to do in that case.
Choose a Marketplace
Not all marketplaces support every blockchain. Pick one that lists NFTs on the chain your NFT is on. While you should compare fee structures for yourself, our article NFT Marketplace Fees Explained What You Actually Pay explains how marketplace and creator royalty fees are typically split. Some platforms also require that the collection you want to sell from is verified; see Collection Not Verified NFT Marketplace Warning Explained for why that matters.
Step 1: connect your wallet
Click the “Connect Wallet” button on the marketplace. Select your wallet provider from the list. Your wallet will prompt you to approve the connection. This step does not cost gas - it is a read-only approval that lets the marketplace see your NFT holdings.
Step 2: Navigate to Your NFT and Choose “List” or “Sell”
Find the NFT you want to sell in your profile or portfolio section. Click on it to open the item page. Look for a button labeled “List for Sale,” “Sell,” or “List Item.” Click it. The marketplace will now show you a listing form.
Step 3: Approve the Collection (If Needed)
The first time you list an NFT from a given collection on a marketplace, you must approve that collection. This is a standard token approval transaction. You will see a prompt in your wallet to sign an approval that lets the marketplace’s smart contract move NFTs from that collection on your behalf. This step requires gas. The cost depends on network congestion.
Once approved, you do not need to approve the same collection again on that marketplace - unless the marketplace changes its contract address or you revoke the approval.
Step 4: set your listing type
You typically choose between two options:
- Fixed price: You name a specific price in the marketplace’s currency (ETH, SOL, etc.). The buyer pays that amount exactly.
- Auction: You set a starting bid, a reserve price, and an auction duration. Buyers place bids, and the highest bidder wins when time expires. For a breakdown of auction models, see NFT Auction Models English Dutch and Timed Reserve Explained.
Some marketplaces also support “offer” listings, where buyers can propose a price and you accept. That is not a standard listing - you are effectively waiting for an offer.
Step 5: Set the Price and Duration (If Auction)
- Fixed price: Enter the price. The marketplace will show you the total the buyer pays (price + fees) and what you receive (price minus marketplace fee and creator royalty). Creator royalty is set by the collection’s smart contract and is not adjustable.
- Auction: Set your starting price (often as low as 0.00 to attract bids), a reserve price you are willing to accept (optional on some platforms), and the auction length (commonly 24 hours to 7 days).
Step 6: Pick a Listing Duration (Fixed Price)
For fixed-price listings, you can often choose how long the listing stays active - for example, 1 day, 7 days, 30 days, or indefinite (“until cancelled”). If you do not sell within the duration, the listing expires automatically. Your NFT does not leave your wallet until the sale happens.
Step 7: Sign the Listing Message
After filling in all fields, click “Complete Listing” or “Submit.” Your wallet will prompt you to sign a message - not send a transaction. This is a gasless operation. The marketplace uses the signed message as proof that you authorized the sale at those terms. If a buyer matches your price or wins your auction, the marketplace submits that signature to the smart contract to execute the transfer. Our article Gasless NFT Listings How Signed Messages Save You ETH explains this mechanism in detail.
Once signed, your NFT appears on the marketplace as listed. It remains in your wallet but cannot be transferred elsewhere until the listing is either cancelled or fulfilled.
Step 8: Monitor the Listing
You do not need to do anything else. The marketplace handles matching buyers and executing sales. If you want to cancel the listing before it sells, you can. Cancelling on most platforms is also gasless (another signed message), but on some older marketplaces it requires a transaction with gas.
What happens when it sells
When a buyer purchases your NFT (either at your fixed price or by winning an auction), the marketplace smart contract transfers the NFT from your wallet to the buyer’s and sends the payment minus fees to your wallet. The buyer pays gas for that transaction, not you. You only see the proceeds appear in your wallet - minus the marketplace percentage and creator royalty. Check the NFT Marketplace Fees Explained What You Actually Pay article for typical fee ranges.
Common issues to watch for
- Listing fails because you did not approve the collection: Go back to Step 3. The marketplace UI should show you a pending approval.
- Listing fails because of insufficient native token for gas: Add enough ETH (or equivalent) to your wallet and try approving again.
- Listing disappears or shows as “pending”: Some marketplaces require a short processing time. Wait a few minutes and refresh.
- You get a “collection not verified” warning: The marketplace may not allow selling that NFT until the collection is verified. See that article for workarounds.
That is the process. Listings are relatively cheap to create because most of the work is off-chain. The real costs come in approvals and cancellations, if you need them.
Not financial advice. whateverape.xyz publishes market data and general information about digital assets. Crypto assets are volatile and you can lose everything you put in. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold, and we make no price predictions.
Prices are sourced from third parties and may be delayed or wrong. Verify anything you intend to act on against a primary source.