eBay Categories List with category IDs
Find the eBay category ID and its parent for common items below, then see how leaf categories, item specifics and the separate tree per eBay site work.
Quick answers: which category does it belong to?
| Item | Category path | Standard | ID |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smartphone | Cell Phones & Accessories > Cell Phones & Smartphones | eBay category | 9355 |
| Laptop | Computers/Tablets & Networking > Laptops & Netbooks | eBay category | 175672 |
| Headphones | Cell Phones & Accessories > Portable Audio & Headphones | eBay category | 15052 |
| Smartwatch | Cell Phones & Accessories > Smart Watches | eBay category | 178893 |
| Game console | Video Games & Consoles > Video Game Consoles | eBay category | 139971 |
| Digital camera | Cameras & Photo > Digital Cameras | eBay category | 31388 |
| Lipstick | Makeup > Lip Makeup | eBay category | 172027 |
| Women's shoes | Women > Women's Shoes | eBay category | 3034 |
| Garden furniture | Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living > Patio & Garden Furniture | eBay category | 25863 |
| Blender or toaster | Kitchen, Dining & Bar > Small Kitchen Appliances | eBay category | 20667 |
Source: eBay.com All Categories page, retrieved 2026-10-11
What is eBay?
eBay files every listing in one of its own categories, each with a numeric category ID. Cell Phones & Smartphones is 9355, Laptops & Netbooks is 175672 and Women's Shoes is 3034. The public All Categories page on eBay.com alone links to more than 1,100 category IDs, and the full tree below them is much larger. The category decides where your listing shows up when buyers browse, which item specifics eBay asks for, and which listing rules apply.
Each eBay site has its own category tree. Many IDs are shared: 9355 is Cell Phones & Smartphones on eBay.com and Handys & Smartphones on eBay.de. But names and placement differ. Portable Audio & Headphones (15052) sits under Cell Phones & Accessories on eBay.com and under TV, Video & Audio on eBay.de. Always check a category on the site you list on instead of copying a path from another site.
eBay does not publish a mapping from its categories to Google's product taxonomy, so there is no official crosswalk to lean on. Treat the eBay category as its own field: map your internal categories to eBay IDs once, store the ID per category, and check it again when eBay announces category changes.
At a Glance
- Maintained by
- eBay Inc.
- Year Founded
- 1995
- Official Website
- Official Website
- Open Standard
- No
eBay Category Hierarchy
A slice of eBay.com's category tree, with each category ID in brackets.
Cell Phones & Accessories (15032)
Computers/Tablets & Networking (58058)
Video Games & Consoles (1249)
Cameras & Photo (625)
Home & Garden (11700)
Women (260010)
Men (260012)
Makeup (31786)
How eBay is Structured
The key rules and principles behind how this taxonomy organizes products
- 1
Numeric category IDs
Every eBay category has a numeric ID that you send with a listing. The number says nothing about the position in the tree: 9355 (Cell Phones & Smartphones) sits under 15032 (Cell Phones & Accessories), and 3034 (Women's Shoes) under 260010 (Women). Copy the ID from eBay itself, never from its length or neighbours.
9355: Cell Phones & Accessories > Cell Phones & Smartphones175672: Computers/Tablets & Networking > Laptops & Netbooks139971: Video Games & Consoles > Video Game Consoles - 2
List in a leaf category
A listing goes into a leaf category: a category with no subcategories below it. A top-level ID such as 15032 is a place to browse, not a place to list. Drill down until eBay offers no further subcategory, and use that ID.
- 3
Item specifics depend on the category
Each category has its own item specifics: the name and value pairs buyers filter on, such as brand, size or color. eBay marks some of them required for a category and recommends others. Because they differ per category, set the category first and then fill the specifics eBay shows for it. eBay's Taxonomy API returns them per category ID for bulk work.
- 4
One tree per eBay site
eBay.com, eBay.de and the other sites each run their own tree. Many IDs are the same across sites, but names and parents can differ. On eBay.de, Tablets & eBook-Reader (171485) is listed under Bücher & Zeitschriften, while eBay.com lists Tablets & eReaders under Computers/Tablets & Networking. Keep the eBay category per site if you sell on more than one.
9355 on eBay.com: Cell Phones & Smartphones9355 on eBay.de: Handys & Smartphones
eBay Use Cases by Industry
Industries and scenarios where this taxonomy standard is most commonly used
Consumer electronics
Phones, laptops, consoles and cameras each have their own eBay category, such as 9355, 175672, 139971 and 31388. Picking the right leaf brings up the item specifics buyers filter on, such as storage capacity or model.
Fashion
Clothing and shoes are split by department first: Women (260010), Men (260012) and Kids. Women's Shoes (3034) and Men's Shoes (93427) are separate branches, so a unisex product needs a deliberate choice.
Home and garden
Furniture (3197), Kitchen, Dining & Bar (20625) and Bedding (20444) sit under Home & Garden (11700). Garden furniture has its own branch: Patio & Garden Furniture (25863) under Yard, Garden & Outdoor Living.
Selling on several eBay sites
A seller on eBay.com and eBay.de keeps one category per site. Many IDs match, but check the parent and the name on each site before a bulk upload.
Pros and Cons of eBay
- Numeric IDs that eBay shows on its own category pages
- Many IDs are shared between eBay sites
- The category brings the right item specifics with it
- eBay's Taxonomy API returns the tree and item specifics per site
- No published mapping to Google's product taxonomy
- Names and parents differ per eBay site
- You can only list in a leaf, so top-level IDs don't work for listings
- eBay changes categories over time, so stored IDs need a check
How to Implement eBay
A step-by-step guide to adding this taxonomy standard to your product catalog
01
Pick the site you list on
Start from the category tree of the eBay site you sell on, such as eBay.com or eBay.de. Names and parents differ per site, so one tree per site keeps your mapping honest.
02
Map your categories to leaf categories
For each category in your own tree, browse to the deepest eBay category that fits and note its numeric ID. Map the category once, so every product in it gets the same eBay ID.
03
Store the eBay ID next to your category
Keep the eBay category ID as a field on your own category or product data, per site. Then a bulk upload reads the ID instead of someone picking a category by hand.
04
Fill the item specifics
Look up the item specifics eBay shows for each category you use. Fill the required ones first, then the recommended ones buyers filter on.
05
Recheck when eBay changes categories
eBay announces category changes to sellers. When one touches a category you use, update the stored ID before your next bulk upload.
Keep your eBay category IDs with the rest of your product data
WISEPIM has no eBay connector. You can keep the eBay category ID as an attribute on your categories or products, fill item specifics as attributes, and export everything with an export template for eBay's bulk upload.
- Store the eBay category ID per category or product
- Keep item specifics as attributes with your other product data
- Export your catalog with a reusable export template
- Manage the same products for your webshop and other channels
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about eBay
Explore Other Taxonomy Standards
Keep exploring
Hand-picked next steps to go deeper.
- Inventory all product sources
- Define your attribute schema
- Normalize brand names
- Add alt-text to every primary image
The taxonomy audit checklist
Eight concrete steps to get your taxonomy in order, from depth/width audit to inherited attributes and a version-tagging strategy for safe rollbacks.
- Audit your current tree: depth, width, orphan rate
- Benchmark against a public standard
- Tag each release so rollback stays an option
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