Auction Values for Birkin Bags Decline Despite Notable Record Sales

Despite two high‑profile Sotheby’s results, overall auction prices for Hermès Birkin handbags are declining, a recent analysis shows. Earlier this month, a Black Box Birkin 40 with palladium hardware that had belonged to Jane Birkin sold for $2.9 million at Sotheby’s, far above its $440,000 high estimate; that transaction followed the July sale of her original Birkin, which realized $10 million.

Bernstein’s Secondhand Pricing Tracker, which measures the resale premium—the ratio of auction sale price to original retail price and weighted by volume—indicates that prices for secondhand Birkin and Kelly bags have eased from pandemic peaks. The tracker reports the average resale premium for Birkins and Kellys fell from 2.2 times in 2022 to 1.4 times in November, and the Birkin Togo 30 now trades at roughly parity with its original retail price, down from 1.7 in 2022 and 1.9 in 2018.

Analysts attribute the softening to inflationary pressures and a cooling labor market that have reduced demand among aspirational luxury buyers, alongside a growing supply of pre‑owned Birkins and an expanding secondary‑market reseller base. “There has been a sobering up from the post‑Covid euphoria,” said Luca Solca, a Bernstein luxury analyst, describing the market’s normalization after the boom.

Nonetheless, most Birkin and Kelly handbags continue to sell above original retail prices, reflecting persistent demand relative to supply and the premium many buyers pay to avoid Hermès’ opaque purchasing process and long waitlists. A Rebag report noted that Hermès led the bag category in 2025, with eight styles selling above their original retail price, and found that Birkin resale values remain about 122% of retail, even as values have flattened over the past two years and lagged retail price increases.

Solca emphasized that falling auction prices do not undermine Hermès’ position in the luxury hierarchy. “What counts is the ranking in the pecking order, in terms of consumer desirability,” he said. “I see Hermès firmly in the top spot.”