Shopping at thrift stores is trendy. What are the best, worst cities to thrift?

USA Today

30-01-2025

Shopping at thrift stores is trendy. What are the best, worst cities to thrift?
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Travis Lermusiaux has been shopping at thrift stores since before it was a trendy thing to do.
Lermusiaux, 33, began thrifting when he was a young teenager.
"A lot of my clothes were thrifted throughout my lifetime all the way up until now," said Lermusiaux.
He thrifts for two main reasons: as a musician and guitar technician, Lermusiaux said his fashion style wasn't always what was available in regular stores. He has always had a particular love for 80s and 90s music and so what appealed to him vs his "peers wasn't really the same thing."
Additionally, coming from a family with a lower income, "it was the easiest option to ... thrift to find what I liked," Lermusiaux said.
Lermusiaux is far from alone. Thrifting has become the rage, across age groups, whether it's the thrill of the hunt or a desire to put less waste into the environment.
Thrifting is trendy now
Thrifting and the perception of thrifting has changed in recent years, said Marc Mezzacca, founder and thrifting expert at CouponFollow, which released a study of thrift shoppers.
"Social media and increased eco-consciousness have been huge linchpins in the growing popularity of thrifting," Mezzacca told USA TODAY. "Thrifting is now touted as a means of sustainable fashion and offering exclusive, one-of-a-kind finds that cannot be achieved with fast fashion. It has also raised the cultural bar to make thrifting a default not only for budgeting but also for being a vehicle for personal expression and ethical consumerism."
CouponFollow has noticed some differences in the last two years since it last surveyed thrift shoppers. In 2022, 85% of thrifters said they did so to save money, 42% said to save the environment and 40% said to find discounted high-end brands. This year, 88% of thrifters still said they were motivated by savings, but the second highest reason people thrifted was to find unique clothing (41%) and third was finding "treasure" for 35%, who liked finding things they liked, despite them being discarded by others.
The average annual savings reported by 1,000 thrifters who were surveyed, was $2,071 in 2024 compared to $1,760 in 2022.
Thrifters who are in the Gen Z generation said they saved on average $289 a month while Millennials said they saved $160, Gen Xers said $134 and Baby Boomers $41, according to the survey.
Why is it trendy to thrift now?
The younger generation has pushed thrifting for sustainability and "has just simply made thrift shopping a means of expression," said Mezzacca.
Lermusiaux agrees that thrifting is more accepted.
In years past, "a lot of people didn't just throw it out there that they thrifted all their clothes," he said. "It definitely was a little bit more frowned upon when I was an early teenager in high school.
"But now I would say it's close to the exact opposite," Lermusiaux said. "There's different reasons for everyone, whether it's to make money or to save money...the culture of it is definitely much more accepting of someone who says 'Oh, I thrifted this whole outfit.' In fact, I think it's impressive to a lot of people when they say that."
Lermusiaux goes to thrift stores anywhere from once a week to a few times a month. He can afford to buy new clothes now that he's older and works full-time, but prefers thrifting. Sometimes fashion trends change so much that Lermusiaux said he doesn't feel bad if he spent $7 on a pair of baggy jeans that may go out of style soon versus paying full retail price.
Lermusiaux has thrifted furniture and other goods, too, but mainly thrifts for clothes. There's a few things he won't buy that have been worn before however: "I don't do underwear or socks," he said. Lermusiaux also won't thrift white T-shirts since most aren't crisp white since they're used.
Finding unique fashions and saving money are still Lermusiaux's main reasons for thrifting, but now that he thrifts with his fiancee, he appreciates that she loves being able to recycle and upcycle clothes to help the environment instead of always buying new clothes.
Prices are going up at thrift stores, shoppers say
But the increased popularity of used goods may have a downside. Thrifters are reporting that prices at thrift stores are going up.
Seventy one percent of thrifters in the survey said they've noticed an increase in prices in the past year – something that wasn't expressed in the 2022 study – and 50% feel that thrift stores are becoming too expensive.
"The heightened trendiness of thrifting has impacted prices," said Mezzacca. Demand has risen "and thrift store are responding and raising prices, particularly on high-end or vintage items."
The thrift resale market, where individuals are selling on third-party platforms such as Depop and Poshmark, "has also created a general assumption that thrifted items are highly valuable, and this has driven competition and prices up," he said.
"Though this is indicative of the cultural shift to value secondhand items, it also causes issues for consumers who have shopped at thrift stores for affordability for so long," Mezzacca said.
Lermusiaux said he's noticed prices have gone up, too. He said he's not sure if it's inflation or because thrifting has become more popular, though thinks it is both. "Back in the day, I could find a pair of shoes for five bucks that were amazing and that same shoe would be $30 on the shelf" today, he said.
Lermusiaux said he's not bothered by the uptick of resellers of thrifted goods – and even follows several on social media and likes that they are helping to change the thrifting culture.
"But there is that downside where you do feel like the secret's out a little bit," he said of the benefits of thrifting.
Spot a treasure? How do I get the best out of thrifting? Expert tips to find treasures with a big payoff.
What are the best cities to shop at thrift stores?
CouponFollow used a mix of Yelp data on thrift, vintage and consignment stores, as well as flea markets in major U.S. cities, to determine the best and worst cities for thrifting. The criteria included the number or types of stores and Yelp rankings by affordability and popularity.
New York City and Newark, New Jersey, were the best cities for thrifting while Long Beach and Irvine, California had the most affordable thrift stores. Los Angeles ranked number one in the 2022 study, but came in third this time.
Here are the top 10 cities for thrifting:
New York Newark, New Jersey Los Angeles Long Beach, California Oakland, California Arlington, Texas Irvine, California Jersey City, New Jersey San Bernardino, California Chicago
What are the worst cities for thrifting?
Here are the bottom 10 cities, according to the latest CouponFollow survey:
100. Laredo, Texas
99. Lubbock, Texas
98. Anchorage, Alaska
97. Corpus Christi, Texas
96. Wichita, Kansas
95. Memphis, Tennessee
94. Madison, Wisconsin
93. Scottsdale, Arizona
92. Bakersfield, California
91. El Paso, Texas
But if you don't live in a "top" thrifting city, that doesn't mean you can't find great thrift deals, said Mezzacca.
"Smaller cities or ones that didn't crack the top 10 might still have amazing little secrets or specialty thrift stores that cater to very specific tastes.," he said. "These rankings serve just a snapshot of the vastness of thrift shopping as a whole, though; there's always hope for great finds anywhere, especially in unexplored places."
Betty Lin-Fisher is a consumer reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [e-mail] or follow her on X, Facebook or Instagram @blinfisher. Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which will include consumer news on Fridays, here.