My Yandex Market Nightmare: How Selling Became a Financial Risk

I've been selling on Yandex since February 2025, and let me tell you, it's been a wild ride. Each month, my profit margin gets smaller and smaller, and the fees for boosting sales are huge. Plus, Yandex takes a big cut for logistics. But that's not even the half of it.

So, I track each sale in my Excel report, but every time, the numbers don't add up. It's only when the final report is generated, after the payment has been made, that everything falls into place – more or less. I've had to get used to this irregularity, but it's still frustrating.

When I first started selling here, I wrote to support a lot. They respond quickly, but sometimes it takes me a while to figure out what they're saying. Still, they're pretty great – if you can ask questions, they might give you a more straightforward answer. I've learned to appreciate their help, even if it's not always crystal clear.

So, when the final report is generated, I see that most of the numbers match up with my file, except for the Yandex points. I'm still trying to get my head around how they're calculated, because the report shows one number, but the actual number is different. And then there are the surprises in the final report – like the huge amount for returns that doesn't match up with my own report. I didn't think that the boost sales fee would be deducted, even if it's a return. And why does the boost sales fee go through the roof on returns? Maybe I just got unlucky.

Here's the situation: I sold an item in April, and the payment came in May. What I see in the report is that I'm in the red – yes, you read that right – I sold my item and I'm still owed money by the market for my own sale. What's going on here? It's like they're taking a cut from me, even after I've sold my product.

But wait, it gets better. The buyer paid for my item using their Yandex Plus points. That's right – they used points earned from connecting their services to buy my product. I get that Yandex Plus charges points for connecting their services, but let the client use those points for your services, not for buying my product. It's just not fair.

I sunk a ton of time and money into creating my product, not to mention the hours spent taking photos and videos for the market. And what did I get out of it? Nothing. I ended up owing money because of a customer who bought my item after earning points through your Yandex Plus program!

My message to Yandex is clear: this is not a good value for money. I'm not just talking about the fees; I'm talking about the emotional toll of dealing with a system that seems designed to take advantage of sellers like me. It's a complete waste of time, effort, emotions, and money.

Here's a breakdown of my experience:

I sold an item in April, but the payment came in May.The final report showed that I was in the red, meaning I was still owed money by the market for my own sale.The buyer paid for my item using Yandex Plus points, which I didn't think was possible.I ended up owing money because of the customer's use of Yandex Plus points.I've lost all desire to sell on Yandex. I asked customer support for advice on how to protect myself from buyers like this, and they told me to simply disable points for this customer. But let me tell you, that's not a solution. Yandex already charges an arm and a leg for their services, and if I disable points, I'll just end up losing money. It's a complete waste of time, effort, emotions, and money.

This is where the emotional part comes in – and I'm still waiting for an answer. I've tried to find similar cases online, but came up empty-handed. If anyone has any similar experiences, please do share in the comments below.

P.S. I've attached some images to this review to illustrate my point.

Yandex Market's response:

Yandex Market's responseHere's my follow-up message and Yandex Market's response:

How is this even possible? I'm just sitting here, feeling ripped off. It's infuriating and heartbreaking. I put in the effort, spent my time and energy, and someone just takes advantage of me like that.

I've attached some more images to this review to illustrate my point.

This is where the emotional part comes in – and I'm still waiting for an answer.

P.S. I initially searched online for similar cases, but came up empty-handed, which is why I decided to share my story here.