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When you are ready to sell your home, the top online real estate companies can help meet all your immediate needs. Online real estate companies are great tools for sellers because of their convenience. As a seller, you will be able to find a top agent, market your home’s amenities, provide photos, and give valuable information about your property to a large audience of potential buyers.

What are online real estate companies?

Online real estate companies use the power of the internet to facilitate buying, selling, renting, or trading properties.

There is no doubt that online real estate services dominate the way people look for homes to purchase. In 2021, 95% of buyers used online tools in the search process, and 41% of recent buyers’ first step was to look online for properties, according to a National Association of Realtors (NAR) Report.

Keep reading for an overview of some of the top online real estate companies and the services they provide.

How can home sellers take advantage of services these companies offer?

The real estate market is complex and ever-changing. Like all industries, the internet has had a significant impact on how we conduct real estate transactions. Online real estate companies provide:

access to information for both the buyer and seller
continuous listing of the property online
photos and virtual tours of your property
visibility to a nationwide audience

Overall, top online real estate companies provide massive convenience for buyers and sellers. As the market continues to change, an online real estate company is another tool in your toolbox that will help you conduct your transaction quickly and efficiently.

The following list compiles some of the best online real estate companies for home sellers.

10 of the top online real estate companies

1. HomeLight

Comprehensive network of top agents
Customer dashboard is easy to use
Sellers who use top agents typically sell for more money than average agents
Has expanded services such as providing cash offers and home trade-in options

Recommended top agents don’t typically offer discount commission fees
Full automation can occasionally result in less than ideal agent matches, but options are provided

Pros	Cons
Comprehensive network of top agents Customer dashboard is easy to use Sellers who use top agents typically sell for more money than average agents Has expanded services such as providing cash offers and home trade-in options	Recommended top agents don’t typically offer discount commission fees Full automation can occasionally result in less than ideal agent matches, but options are provided

About HomeLight

HomeLight provides a number of valuable real estate services, the most popular being a 100% free service that matches you with a top-rated local real estate agent. With 28,000 agents in-network, HomeLight commands the most extensive matching service in the United States, making it one of the top online real estate companies.

You can take the hassle out of researching and locating an agent because HomeLight will do it for you. The service is free, fast, and convenient. The comprehensive network of agents provides you with the flexibility and information to make the right choice for your needs.

What does HomeLight offer home sellers?

HomeLight offers home sellers a convenient and reliable way to sell your home faster by matching you with the right agent for your market and circumstances. It takes only two minutes to connect you with a trusted, proven agent that can sell your home faster and for more money.

HomeLight’s transaction data shows the top 5% of agents across the U.S. help clients sell their homes for as much as 10% more than the average real estate agent. Use HomeLight to get data-backed recommendations at no cost to you.

HomeLight offers:

Agent Match: Analyzes millions of home sales, thousands of reviews, and other factors, including a real estate agent’s sale-to-list price ratio and how that maps to local price trends to put more money in your wallet at closing.
HomeLight Simple Sale: Provides you with a convenient, all-cash offer to sell your home on your timeline. All you have to do is answer a few simple questions, and you can receive a no-obligation cash offer on your house in as few as 48 hours. You can sell your house “as is,” with no additional repairs, prep costs, agent commissions, or fees.
HomeLight Trade-In: Removes the stress of buying and selling a home at the same time. HomeLight works with your agent to make an offer on your current home, so you can make an offer on a new home with no lending or home sale contingency. Trade-In allows you to close and move on your timeline.
HomeLight Cash Offer: HomeLight makes an all-cash offer on your behalf for the home you want. This service has real value, especially in a hot market. Cash offers are typically three times more likely to win and can get you a 5% savings, on average, versus offers with a financing contingency. If something unexpected happens during the escrow period and all conditions have been met, HomeLight will still purchase the home on your behalf and resell it to you later for the same price.
HomeLight’s free seller guides with tips and expert advice: Provides you with expert tips, tailored guides, checklists, and other resources for selling your house for any reason. The resources help you navigate the entire process from getting started to closing the deal.

*Some services like Trade-In and Cash Offer are not available in all states

How does HomeLight make its money?

HomeLight makes money through agent matching by charging the network agent a referral fee. Agents pay the company a portion of their commission when the real estate transaction is finalized. This is standard for all agent matching services in the industry.

The referral fee enables HomeLight to offer its matching service to sellers for free.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use HomeLight?

HomeLight does not cost you anything to connect with a top local real estate agent.

Other HomeLight programs, such as Trade-In, may charge service fees.

Other services provided by HomeLight

Home Value Estimator: Provides a real-world home value estimate in as little as two minutes. You answer seven simple questions, and HomeLight pairs your answers with housing market data to provide a ballpark estimate of your home’s value.
Agent Commissions Calculator: Using real estate transaction data from thousands of home sales, this free tool calculates the commission a real
Home Affordability Calculator: Estimates the cost of selling your home and the net proceeds you might earn from the sale.
Best Time to Sell Calculator: Uses housing market data from your area to estimate the best and worst months to sell your home. See the best time to sell your home quickly and for the most money.

All in all, almost everyone uses a real estate agent to make the home selling process more accessible. According to the National Association of Realtors, 90% of sellers were assisted by an agent last year when selling their home. Finding a top real estate agent is the most valuable and crucial step you’re likely to take when you sell your home.

HomeLight’s Agent Match service makes the process of finding a competent and local real estate agent easy. You can find a top agent in your area in less than two minutes and start planning the sale of your home.

2. Redfin

Pros	Cons
Can be good savings for sellers Relatively low risk Modest listing fee	No real savings for buyers Upsell required for concierge service

About Redfin

Redfin is a Seattle-based discount real estate brokerage company. Redfin lists the seller’s home for a modest fee and offers money back for buyers.

One thing to note is that Redfin does not allow FSBO (for sale by owner) listings.

What does Redfin offer home sellers?

Redfin Full Service: This service allows you to list your home for a 1%-1.5% fee (compared with the standard 3% fee). You have access to a full-service agent, premium placement on Redfin, professional photos, and a free 3D walkthrough. (Note that the 1% fee is only available if you also buy a home with Redfin within 365 days of your home sale closing, otherwise you’ll pay 1.5%.)
Redfin Concierge: For a 2%-2.5% listing fee, Redfin partners the seller with a professional who creates a design plan. The professional recommends a plan to ease the sale of your home and connect you with vendors and contractors. There is no upfront cost for staging and renovation, but you pay for the improvements out of the proceeds when you sell the house. (Note that the 2% fee is only available if you also buy a home with Redfin within 365 days of your home sale closing, otherwise you’ll pay 2.5%.)

RedfinNow cash offer: This is Redfin’s iBuyer (instant buyer) platform. You can sell your home directly to Redfin for cash without having to show or repair the house, though you may pay a repair fee. You will get an offer within days and can move out up to 90 days after the sale. The program allows you to buy your next home without a home sale contingency. Redfin charges a convenience fee of 5%-13% for this service.
Redfin Premier: To qualify for this program, you need to have a luxury home. The service provides Redfin Premier clients access to agents with expertise in selling high-end homes. For a 1%-1.5% listing fee, Redfin handles staging, marketing, and, for an additional 1% fee, provides concierge service. (Note that the 1% fee is only available if you also buy a home with Redfin within 365 days of your home sale closing, otherwise you’ll pay 1.5%.)

How does Redfin make its money?

Redfin charges sellers a listing fee of 1%-1.5%. The company may also make money from reselling the homes it has acquired through its iBuying arm called RedfinNow. It buys properties, cleans them up, and then resells them on its websites.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Redfin?

There is a cost for home sellers. To use Redfin, sellers typically pay 1%-1.5% of the home’s value as a listing fee. Sellers may need to pay up to a 2.5% listing fee for additional services.

Other services provided by Redfin

Find an agent: Redfin connects you with a local real estate agent.
Selling Resources: Redfin provides resources and articles about their services and the selling experience. The resources hub includes ways to find an agent, home value analysis, a calculator for sales process and affordability, and local housing market reports.

3. Opendoor

Pros	Cons
Convenient to use Instant cash can be helpful for hurried sellers Offers a trade-up program	Motivated sellers may lose out on cash Limited market availability

About Opendoor

Opendoor is the largest iBuying company in the U.S. It’s in the house-buying business – the company makes cash offers online and relists the home for sale on its website. Opendoor deducts repair costs from the seller’s net proceeds so the seller avoids the typical home preparation expenses. Opendoor says, “We do the work. You think about repairs only once.” It offers a mobile app and financing to make the home selling and buying process more manageable.

What does Opendoor offer home sellers?

Opendoor gets your home’s information, and then you do a video walkthrough of your home. The company makes a cash offer, and if you decide to accept it, they’ll close and pay within days.

Opendoor will also connect you with an agent if you prefer to take a more traditional home selling route.

How does Opendoor make its money?

Opendoor collects a service charge similar to an agent’s commission. Typically, the amount is between 5%-8% but can be as high as 14% in some cases.

The company may also make money from reselling the homes it has acquired through its iBuying efforts.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Opendoor?

If you sell to Opendoor, there is a 5%-14% service charge that Opendoor levies on each sale.

If you list on Opendoor, they generally estimate a 5% service charge, 1% closing costs, and 0%-2% seller concession costs.

Other services provided by Opendoor

Opendoor Complete: This service lets you get an instant cash offer and use that cash toward making an offer on your next home. It enables you to avoid double moves and mortgages.
Builder Trade-up: A service available in select markets allows you to sell your home to Opendoor and then use the cash from your sale toward a new build home. You work with Opendoor to close on the same day for both houses.
Opendoor Help Center: Provides information about Opendoor, sellers guide, buyers guide, and FAQs.

4. Realtor.com

Pros	Cons
Broad reach (2nd only to Zillow) String name recognition Website of NAR	Can receive numerous calls from agents No FSBO option May lock you into an agent

About Realtor.com

Realtor.com is a real estate listing website maintained by the National Association of Realtors. It offers a list of for-sale properties, information, and services to assist with real estate transactions. It is the 2nd most visited real estate listing website in the U.S. The parent real estate company, Move, Inc. (owned by News Corporation), also owns:

Moving.com
Doorsteps
Avail
Listhub

What does Realtor.com offer home sellers?

Along with its vast MLS listings reach and a solid reputation, Realtor.com offers home sellers a seller guide for planning and a Seller’s Marketplace.

Seller Guides: Offers advice about the right time to sell your home, your home’s value, how to sell, and how to prepare your home for sale.
Seller’s Marketplace: This service allows you to sell your home directly to Realtor.com’s partners. You can choose to:
- List with an agent
- Sell for a cash offer
- Use your home equity
- Buy now, sell later
- Sell now, move later
- Sell “as is”

How does Realtor.com make its money?

Realtor.com makes money from sponsored posts and referral fees from agents it matches. If you find a property on the website, you get connected with a representative that takes your information and contacts a Realtor. The Realtor pays the company a referral fee.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Realtor.com?

Realtor.com gets all its listings from the MLS. As a seller, you cannot post or share a listing on Realtor.com. You need to be a real estate agent or professional to use their listing services. If you are dead-set on being a FSBO seller, an MLS company can list your home on the local MLS for a flat fee.

Other services provided by Realtor.com

Track your home value: Use this dashboard to estimate your home’s value compared to homes in your area.
List your home with an agent: You can be matched with an agent or choose an agent from their database.

5. Offerpad

Pros	Cons
Speed and convenience Flexibility	No traditional negotiations No assigned agent to guide you

About Offerpad

Launched in 2015, Offerpad is another major player in the iBuyer industry. The company buys and sells homes in 16 states and is working to expand. Offerpad has a larger transaction presence in the metro areas in the southern U.S.

What does Offerpad offer home sellers?

Offerpad Express: This service allows the seller to skip listing the home. You sell directly to Offerpad after filling out an intake form to request an offer. Then the company reviews the offer and sends an inspector to the home. In most cases, you will receive a cash offer within 24 hours. If you accept the cash offer, the company pays you and closes on your house.

With the service, you avoid showings, pick your closing day, and stay in your current home for up to three days after you close. If you do not accept the cash offer, you can list your home with Offerpad.

Offerpad Flex: This service gives you the benefits of Offerpad Express but allows you to test the open market. You list your home with Offerpad, and they will stage your home for free.

If your home needs repairs and renovations, Offerpad will advance you the money and recoup it when the house sells. You can also use this service to sell your home and buy your next home.

How does Offerpad make its money?

Offerpad charges sellers a service fee that ranges from 6%-10%. In addition, Offerpad may make money from the homes it buys and sells from cash purchases.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Offerpad?

Offerpad charges a service fee to sell the home. Offerpad Express is 5% of the final sale price; Flex is 6% of the final sale price.

If you choose the Flex option for repairs and renovations, you may incur additional expenses. The Flex program allows you to make repairs and renovations with a cash advance from Offerpad. Still, upon the sale of your home, you must pay that advance back.

Other services provided by Offerpad

Offerpad has tips and guides to using their services:

Blog
Seller FAQs
Buyer FAQs
Company FAQs

6. Zillow

Pros	Cons
Most visited real estate website High exposure of your listing Popular Zestimate tool	No cash offer program Zestimate isn’t always accurate

About Zillow

Zillow Group, Inc. is the most visited real estate website in the U.S. Established in 2004, the company launched its website in 2006. The website offers customers full-service options for buying, selling, renting, and financing.

What does Zillow offer home sellers?

Zillow enables you to sell with a real estate agent, a Premier agent, or by yourself:

Sell traditionally with an agent: This feature lets you search for a real estate agent in their directory. Next, you will interview, vet, and select a real estate agent.
Sell your home with a Zillow Premier Agent: First, you have to be in an area with Zillow agents. Local agents offer local market expertise, reduced listing fees, and priority placement on Zillow 3D Home tours in specific locations.
Sell your home yourself: Post a “For Sale By Owner” (FSBO) listing and get free video, unlimited photos, and a listing on both Zillow and its subsidiary site, Trulia. One thing to remember about FSBO is these homes typically sell for less than the selling price. In 2021, FSBO homes sold at a median of $260,000, less than agent-assisted homes at a median of $318,000, according to the 2021 N.A.R. Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.

How does Zillow make its money?

The primary way Zillow makes its money is with the Premier Service for agents. Here’s how it works:

Premier agents pay for advertising with Zillow
The ads increase agents’ profiles to potential buyers
Zillow tracks customers and connects them with paying Premier agents

Another way Zillow tried to make money in the past was with its now-defunct Zillow Offers program. The program would let customers input their home data and receive a cash offer similar to other iBuyer platforms. If the customer accepted the offer, the company would buy the home and sell it in a 90-day window.

In November 2021, after $880 million in losses for the year, Zillow discontinued its Zillow Offers program.

Zillow also makes money by selling ads to landlords, mortgage companies, and other real estate adjacent businesses like contractors, interior designers, and home staging companies.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Zillow?

It’s free to list your home on Zillow. The company makes money from listings in other ways, including getting ad revenue from your listing and partnering you with a Premier agent. You will likely have to pay the Premier agent broker’s fee.

Other services provided by Zillow

Zestimate: This is probably the most well-known service that Zillow provides. Similar to other online tools, the home valuation model analyzes MLS, user-submitted data, home details, location, and market trends to estimate your home’s value.
Zillow Closing: For sellers, Zillow Closing aims to help you close on time with no surprises.
Zillow Research: Zillow purports to provide bias-free data and analysis of the housing market.
Zillow Rentals: This service shows the available rentals in your area.
Zillow Home Loans: A service aimed at homebuyers who need to secure financing.

7. UpNest

Pros	Cons
Free, no obligation Competition between agents can lower fees	Competition between agents and lower rates may disincentivize showings

About UpNest

UpNest is an online real estate website that connects real estate agents with home buyers. To access the connection, real estate agents pay UpNest a referral fee. Using UpNest, you can quickly compare real estate agents’ experience, reviews, and commission rates to select the best agent for your needs.

What does UpNest offer home sellers?

UpNest is a no-obligation and free service. You fill out your preferences for a real estate agent, and within 24 hours, 3-5 real estate agents send you commission rate quotes. Then, you compare those proposals, interview, and hire the best agent for you.

How does UpNest make its money?

UpNest earns money by taking a percentage of the partner agent’s commission. If you get referred to an agent and complete a transaction, the agent receives a commission. As with most agent-finding services, UpNest takes a portion of that commission as a referral fee.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use UpNest?

UpNest’s agent matching is free to use as a seller. However, you’ll still pay the real estate agent’s commission if you are selling. A typical commission is 5%-6% of the final sale price. However, UpNest says it strives to identify agents willing to offer competitive, lower-than-average commission rates.

Other services provided by UpNest

Home Loans: You can use this service to get a free consultation with a home loan specialist, pre-approval for financing, and close on a home without hassle.
Home Estimate: Use this resource to research your home value. Agents use public data, recent sale history, comparable market analysis, local market data, inspections, and buyer preferences to give an approximate assessment of your home’s value.
Tips: Resources for home sellers and homebuyers.

8. Clever

Pros	Cons
Flat-fee of $3,000 or 1% of listing price can save you money Connects you to local agents	Relatively new compared to other services 1% only applies to homes over $350,000

About Clever

Clever is an online national brokerage service that connects agents with customers looking to buy or sell their homes. Unlike other companies, agents do not pay for leads but instead pay a referral fee when the agent successfully helps a customer purchase or sell a home.

What does Clever offer home sellers?

Clever offers home sellers the ability to connect with real estate agents. Here is how Clever works:

You enter information about their property
Clever’s Concierge Team will contact you to identify your ideal agent
Clever negotiates with agents on your behalf
You choose the best agent for you

How does Clever make its money?

Clever makes its money via referral fees paid by agents to the online real estate broker.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Clever?

There is no cost to the seller as Clever’s agent match service is 100% free. Successful home sellers using Clever will need to pay the agent’s flat fee of $3,000 or a reduced fee of 1%, and the buyer’s agent’s 3% fee.

For homes over $150,000, Clever also offers home buyers 0.5% of the purchase price back at closing.

Other services provided by Clever

Clever does not provide additional services. The company is primarily a referral service that connects home sellers with agents in a local market.

9. Movoto

Pros	Cons
AI-driven technology #5 fastest growing real estate website	No immediate savings to sellers

About Movoto

Movoto is a brokerage service that provides information and tools to customers selling their homes. The company has a team of agents who facilitate the home selling process. It is among the fastest-growing home listing websites in the U.S.

What does Movoto offer home sellers?

Movoto provides tools and expert guidance for you to sell your home. First, they offer a free home valuation based on their market analysis. Second, Movoto matches you with an agent who walks you through the selling process.

How does Movoto make its money?

AI-powered real estate firm OJO Labs acquired Movoto in 2020. The acquisition transformed Movoto into a full-service company that provides a team of experienced agents in local markets. The agents can help you in all facets of the homebuying process and charge a standard fee when you sell your home with them.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Movoto?

There is no cost to use Movoto, but you will still need to pay the standard agent’s commission fee.

Other services provided by Movoto

Movoto’s CEO Imitiyaz Haque says the company’s greatest strengths can be found in their fully optimized search site, personalized consumer experience, and their real estate network, which they bring together to form a scaled end-to-end solution.

In other words, the convenience and value that Movoto provides for consumers is their number one service.

10. Trulia

Pros	Cons
Additional MLS reach as a subsidiary of Zillow Shows unique data for buyers and renters	No savings or other online options for sellers

About Trulia

Trulia is a subsidiary of Zillow that uses local data and maps to assist buyers and renters in finding homes. Trulia offers unique data, including commute times, crime statistics, schools, churches, and local businesses. Through Zillow, Trulia provides an opportunity for FSBO sellers to use their service.

What does Trulia offer home sellers?

For the most part, Trulia functions as an additional listing for Zillow. Trulia does not offer much for sellers other than the advice to go to the partner site, Zillow.

How does Trulia make its money?

Trulia makes its money with advertising. As part of the Zillow ecosystem, buyers can see listings from real estate agents. Those real estate agents and property owners pay a tiered subscription fee to Trulia to have their properties advertised on the website.

Is there a cost for home sellers to use Trulia?

Home sellers cannot use Trulia to sell their homes. It is primarily a website for homebuying and rentals.

Other services provided by Trulia

The three services that Trulia delivers are:

Buy: You can view homes for sale, open houses, new homes, recently sold, and the latest listings.
Rent: Check out all rentals, apartments for rent, houses for rent, see the newest listings, or post a rental listing.
Mortgage: Get a mortgage overview, pre-qualified mortgage rates, refinance rates, mortgage calculator, affordability calculator, and a refinance calculator.
Local info: This is a guide to all Trulia neighborhoods.

Frequently asked questions about online real estate companies

What is the most popular real estate website for sellers?

Zillow is the most popular website for sellers. Other websites are gaining in popularity since the company closed down Zillow Offers.

What is the most popular real estate website for buyers?

Zillow has about 36 million visits per month; Trulia is second with 23 million; and Yahoo! Home is third with around 20 million, according to Statista.com.

Are there scams with online real estate companies?

The real estate industry has an enormous market value. By some estimates, the U.S. housing market is $33.6 trillion. With that much money involved, there are scams. Make sure that you know the most common ones to protect yourself. One scam to watch for is a fake deed copy letter sent to new homeowners telling them they only have days to send money to obtain a copy of their deed.

Do sellers save money using discount commission real estate companies?

The answer depends on the company or agent, and your selling objectives. You may save on fees with a discount commission. In some selling situations, you could also miss out on higher proceeds you might have received from the sale by using a proven real estate agent. Our data shows that the top 5% of real estate agents across the U.S. sell homes for as much as 10% more than the average real estate agent. A 10% higher selling price could trump a 1% or 2% commission savings.

Home sellers have more high-tech options than ever: try one today

All in all, each of these top online real estate companies listed has some benefits for sellers. Your specific situation dictates which option is right for you.

Some things to consider:

How quickly do you want or need to sell?
What level of investment are you ready to make?
How much time do you want to devote to the selling process?
Do you need cash now?

After you determine the answer to these questions, you will better understand what company is right for you.

If you are ready to start your home selling journey, find out how much your home might be worth in two minutes with our Home Value Estimator. Once you have a ballpark idea of your home’s worth, see who the top agents are in your area by using our Agent Match platform. These and other HomeLight resources are quick, easy, and 100% obligation-free.

10 of the Top Online Real Estate Companies to Sell Your Home