Whatnot Recaps 2024, Shares Hot Trends Heading Into 2025
Whatnot recaps 2024 growth, shares hot trends and how livestream shopping is bringing communities together as we head into 2025.
Liz Goodno
Imagine a marketplace where every purchase feels like a celebration, every seller is a storyteller, and every product comes with a narrative that deepens its meaning.
Welcome to Whatnot in 2024—where your shows have transformed commerce into something more meaningful: a vibrant tapestry of entertainment, connection, and storytelling woven together in real-time.
As Whatnot’s global community grows, buyers aren’t just browsing—they’re immersing themselves. On average, they spend 80 minutes daily watching livestreams and make 10x more transactions than users of other peer-to-peer marketplaces.
In 2024, this engagement reached unprecedented heights: live shows sparked over 1 billion chat interactions between buyers and sellers, and more than 10 million giveaways celebrated buyers across the platform.
This isn’t just about transactions—it’s about relationships, trust, and shared experiences.
The report goes on to explore top trends and stand out categories for the year - and it was pleasantly surprising to see a wide variety of items attracting users to the platform.
Sports Memorabilia and Trading Cards
Whatnot says 2024 is the year women athletes broke the glass display case, with WNBA-related shows surging by +1,500% this year.
- Caitlin Clark demand soared by +2,400%, reflecting her meteoric rise as a transcendent women’s basketball star.
- WNBA searches increased by +870% year-over-year, highlighting a powerful new force in the collector market.
- WNBA autographed cards demand doubled, as collectors snapped up the signatures of the league’s emerging icons.
Premium Plants
Surprisingly, Whatnot is seeing growing interest in the high value, premium plant market with search volume increasing for exotic plant varieties and necessary tools of the trade.
- Grow light searches grew +65% since last year, reflecting a commitment to nurturing rare and delicate plants.
- Plant care tool interest rose +55% this year, as collectors invest in premium care equipment.
- Moss pole searches climbed +50% in recent weeks, demonstrating the community's dedication to perfecting their setups.
Fashion
In performance and athletic wear, Whatnot says Halara, Nike, and Carhartt rein supreme while inclusive sizing and adaptive, accessible designs are popular in other clothing categories and style trends tend toward sustainability and nostalgia.
- Vintage clothing queries jumped by +55%, as shoppers rediscovered secondhand treasures.
- Men’s retro styles climbed by +35%, blending past aesthetics with modern sensibilities.
- Designer vintage demand grew by +65%, confirming the allure of timeless, eco-conscious finds.
Sneakers
Eco-consciousness is also shaping consumer choices and new standards in sneaker design according to Whatnot and collectors are increasing looking beyond brands to view shoes as "storytelling platforms where nostalgia, innovation, and cultural synergy shape desire" with high-profile collaborations fueling demand:
- Travis Scott collaborations soared by +200% in search volume during key product drops.
- A Ma Manière, known for meaningful Nike and Jordan collabs, fueled a +150% increase in recent searches.
- Collabs featuring celebrity endorsements climbed +110%, revealing the power of star-driven narratives.
Coins & Numismatics
Amidst what Whatnot calls a gold and silver Renaissance, collector interest spans across eras and around the globe with error and commemorative coins and fractional pieces all gaining popularity
- Greek and Roman coins queries increased by +85%, as these classical-era currencies resonate with those fascinated by ancient empires.
- World coins, issued by various nations, soared by over +500%, with collectors embracing cross-cultural histories and global design diversity.
- Error coins, prized for their minting mishaps, soared by +85%, underscoring the appeal of accidental scarcity.
- Commemorative coin programs, including U.S. Mint releases honoring events like the Apollo 11 mission, doubled, broadening thematic variety.
- Fractional gold pieces, such as 1/10 oz American Gold Eagles, climbed by +60%, offering accessible yet premium-grade additions to collectors’ portfolios.
Collectible Card Games & Toys
Whatnot says the market for collectible card games and toys is maturing with grading and authentication playing an important role in determining investment value of these assets.
- Graded Pokémon cards searches rose +255%, reflecting a strong move toward investment-grade TCG assets
- Star Wars and Marvel TCG searches each experienced triple-digit growth—over +300%—as collectors embraced iconic narratives transformed into coveted collectibles.
- Limited-edition LEGO sets grew by +150% in searches, recognized for their investment potential.
- Specialized minifigure series, such as those tied to Harry Potter and DC Super Heroes, soared +130%, as collectors chase character-driven exclusives and rare variants.
And to close out the year in review, Whatnot is providing customizable templates for sellers to use on social media to showcase their channels and stats.
Whether you’re new to selling or a seasoned pro, highlight your 2024 achievements with our ready-to-use Instagram and Instagram Story templates– just add your stats, photos, and personal milestones—then share them to inspire your community.
You can also create a short video message to thank your supporters, letting them know their encouragement fueled your success—and that the journey ahead is one you’ll continue together.
And don’t forget to use #2024andwhatnot and tag @whatnot in your posts for a chance to be featured on our official page.
2024 also marks Whatnot's 5 year anniversary capped off with over $2 Billion in GMV and an impressive pace of new feature launches and platform improvements over the last few months.
Liz Morton
Have you seen growth in these categories or others on Whatnot this year? What would you like to see the platform focus on in 2025? Let us know in the comments below!
