eBay to Cut About 9% of Its Workforce, Its Second Round of Layoffs This Year

eBay is cutting about 9% of its workforce, the company confirmed Wednesday, Oct. 21. A spokesperson put the number at approximately 1,000 employees. It is the second round of layoffs at the online marketplace this year.

CEO Jamie Iannone laid out the plan in a memo to staff. "Our strategy is working," he wrote. He added that "continuing to capture the significant opportunity ahead requires us to make thoughtful choices about where we focus and invest." Affected employees will be told in the coming days.

The numbers

eBay had roughly 12,300 employees at the end of 2025. Nine percent of that works out to about 1,100 jobs, slightly above the spokesperson's figure of around 1,000. The company has not said which number is more precise.

In February, eBay cut 6% of its staff, about 800 people. Add the two rounds together and eBay is shedding roughly 1,800 jobs in 2026, by the company's own figures. The Next Web notes the company also made cuts in early 2023 and early 2024.

The spokesperson's statement framed the move as a realignment: "As we work to capture the significant opportunity ahead, this step was taken to ensure we continue to operate from a position of strength by aligning our teams and resources with our top strategic priorities." The company also said it will keep hiring in "priority areas aligned with our strategy."

Cutting while the stock climbs

This is not a company in distress. eBay's shares are up nearly 40% this year, against about 12% for the S&P 500. In August, eBay raised its full-year outlook after second-quarter revenue rose 15% to $3.13 billion, and it forecast third-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates.

The growth has come from a deliberate push into authenticated luxury goods, collectibles and refurbished products. Those categories draw enthusiasts willing to pay more for valuable items.

eBay also closed its $1.4 billion purchase of Depop from Etsy on July 30. The resale platform is popular with Gen Z and millennial shoppers, and it gives eBay a younger customer base as Vinted expands in the U.S.

So the layoffs are not a response to falling sales. They are a reallocation, and the company is saying so openly. Management wants fewer people in slower parts of the business and more resources in the faster ones. eBay has also been steadily shrinking headcount over recent years while it ramps up spending on artificial intelligence, according to CNBC.

The company has not said which teams or functions are affected, or how much it expects to save. Shares rose about 1% in early trading Wednesday.

The GameStop backdrop

The cuts come five months after GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen made an unsolicited $56 billion offer for eBay in May. eBay's board rejected it, calling the bid "neither credible nor attractive." Cohen had promised to find $2 billion in cost savings within a year of buying eBay.

No one at eBay has linked the layoffs to that bid, and the company's stated reason is its own strategy. The timing still raises a fair question for shareholders. A company that just turned down a suitor built around cost cutting is now cutting costs itself, while telling investors the strategy is working.

That is the company's position, and the results so far back part of it: revenue is growing and the stock is outperforming the broader market. What the numbers do not show is whether the roughly 1,800 positions cut this year were holding back that growth.

What comes next

eBay reports third-quarter results on Oct. 28. That report will show whether the August forecast holds up. It may also say how much the restructuring will cost and what the company expects to save from it.