How to List a House on Zillow

Listing your house on Zillow yourself is free. You create an account, claim your home, fill out the for sale by owner (FSBO) listing, and post it. Zillow verifies each listing before it goes live, which can take up to 72 hours.

If you're selling FSBO to keep the listing commission (about $10,000 on a $400,000 home at 2.5%), a free listing has two limits. Zillow shows it in a separate Owner Listings category, and it doesn't go on the multiple listing service (MLS), where buyer's agents search. A flat fee MLS listing ($99 to $500) gets your home in front of those agents. Either way, expect the buyer's agent to ask you to cover their pay.

Below are the current steps to list a house on Zillow for sale or for rent, with screenshots, plus what to do once your listing is live.

How to list a house on Zillow: Step-by-step guide

Before you start, gather your list price, photos, home details, and contact information. Your listing must also meet Zillow's Listings Quality Policy.[1]

1. Sign in or create a Zillow account

Click Sign in at the top right of Zillow's homepage. Choose New account, then sign up with Google, Facebook, Apple, or an email and password, if you don't yet have an account.

2. Claim your home on Zillow

Sign in, select your profile icon, then Your Home. Search for your address and claim it. Claiming gives you access to your owner dashboard, where you can update the home facts and track views.[2] You have to claim the home before you can post it FSBO.

3. Start your FSBO listing

On your home's property page, find List Home and select List Home For Sale By Owner.

No property page for your home? Hover over Sell in Zillow's top menu, select Post For Sale By Owner, enter your address, and select Continue.

4. Set your price and add photos

Enter your list price and upload your photos. You can also add a 3D home tour through My 3D Homes, which opens the Zillow 3D Home app. See what to do after your listing goes live for help picking a price.

5. Complete your home listing details

Fill in the home facts (home type, beds, baths, square feet), write a listing description, set any open house times, and add your contact information. The Additional information section lets you list appliances, flooring, utilities, and other features.

There’s also an “Additional information” section to get granular about your home’s elements.

6. Post your listing

Once you’ve completed and reviewed your home’s listing details, add your phone number and check the box to accept Zillow’s terms. Then click “Post for sale by owner.”

After you post: Verification, edits, and canceling

Zillow reviews every FSBO listing before it goes live, which can take up to 72 hours.[1]

If you need to make edits to your Zillow listing:

1. Click your profile icon at the top right of Zillow's website
2. Select “Your Home”
3. Click to view your home
4. Choose the “Edit Listing” icon to make changes

Your changes won’t appear live immediately because the Zillow team reviews submitted edits.[3]

What if you want to cancel your listing? Instead of selecting “Edit Listing,” click the “More” drop-down menu and choose “Cancel Listing.”

Can I list my house on Zillow without an agent?

Yes. You have two options: post a free FSBO listing directly on Zillow, or pay a flat fee MLS company to put your home on the MLS, which feeds Zillow automatically.

List on the MLS with a flat fee MLS company

A flat fee MLS company is a licensed brokerage that lists your home on the MLS for a one-time fee instead of a commission. You still sell for sale by owner (FSBO). The broker's name goes on the listing because MLS rules require it, but you handle pricing, showings, and negotiations.

Most flat fee MLS listings cost $99 to $500 upfront. Some plans add a percentage at closing in exchange for help with contracts and negotiation. Houzeo, for example, charges $399 with nothing due at closing on its Bronze plan. Its Silver, Gold, and Platinum plans cost $449 to $499 upfront, plus 0.5% to 1.25% at closing, with a $999 minimum.[4] On a $400,000 sale, the Gold plan comes to $4,479.

The MLS matters because it's where buyer's agents look for homes. In NAR's 2025 report, 91% of sellers used an agent, and only 5% sold FSBO.[5] Nearly every home you're competing with is on the MLS.

Check your state's rules first. Some states require a listing broker to provide a minimum level of service, and flat fee companies charge more there or don't operate. See our flat fee MLS guide for picks by state.

List directly on Zillow yourself

Zillow is the most-visited home search site in the country. It averaged 239 million monthly unique users in Q2 2026.[6] Posting there is free, and you can add unlimited photos and video.[7]

A Zillow FSBO listing doesn't reach the MLS, though, and that costs money. Zillow's own research found that homes sold off the MLS in 2023 and 2024 went for 1.5% less than comparable MLS listings, or $4,975. In California, the gap was $30,075.[8] Fewer buyers see the home, so fewer buyers compete for it.

Many FSBO sellers also do very little marketing. NAR found that 40% of FSBO sellers didn't actively market their homes at all.[9] If you list on Zillow only, you're counting on buyers to find you.

Zillow FSBO vs. flat fee MLS vs. an agent: What each one costs

Who pays the buyer's agent when you sell FSBO?

Plan for the buyer's agent to ask you. Zillow's own FSBO page says about 85% of buyers use an agent, and sellers are often expected to cover that agent's commission.[7]

The NAR settlement changed how that works in August 2024. Sellers no longer advertise buyer's agent pay on the MLS, and buyers must sign a written agreement with their agent before touring homes. That agreement states what the agent gets paid. Buyer's agent pay is always negotiable.[11] In practice, the request now shows up inside the buyer's offer.

What's actually changed with rates?

Michael Perna, who leads The Perna Team in Metro Detroit and has sold more than 8,000 homes over 24 years, says the rates haven't moved much:

"The major change is that the compensation offered to a buyer's agent to bring a buyer is no longer listed on the Multiple Listing Service. Sellers are consistently offering 2.5 to 3% right now."

The request is now tied to the offer. Ashley Oshinsky, broker and owner of Higher Living Real Estate in Metro Detroit, says her sellers decide one offer at a time:

"If the offer is strong, they'll usually still honor the buyer agent commission. If it's weak, that's the first thing they push back on. The compensation is tied to the strength of the deal now."

Treat the buyer's agent fee as part of the offer's net price. An offer of $400,000 that asks you to pay 2.5% nets you the same as a $390,000 offer where the buyer covers their own agent. Both leave you $390,000 before other closing costs.

Clever's survey of FSBO sellers found that most still paid a buyer's agent commission, often as a seller concession.[12] Decide your answer before the first agent calls. When one does, ask specifically: "What does your buyer's agreement say you'll be paid, and is your buyer asking me to cover it?"

How Zillow's 2025 listing ruling impacts you

In 2025, Zillow began enforcing what it calls Listing Access Standards. If an agent markets a home to the public without putting it on the MLS within one business day, Zillow can refuse to show that listing. [13]

Compass sued over the rule, lost its bid for an injunction, and dropped the case in March 2026.[14]

Here's what it means for you:

• Posting FSBO directly on Zillow: No change. The standards cover agent listings, not owner listings.
• Flat fee MLS: No change. Your home goes on the MLS, so it goes on Zillow.
• Listing with an agent: Ask how they plan to launch your home. If the plan starts with weeks of private "office exclusive" marketing, your home may be kept off Zillow during that time.

Zillow also launched Zillow Preview in March 2026 (FSBO sellers can't use it). It lets agents at participating brokerages show a home on Zillow and Trulia before it goes on the MLS, at no cost to sellers.[15]

What to do after your listing goes live

Posting the listing is the easy part. NAR says FSBO sellers most often struggle with pricing, preparing the home, and selling on their own timeline.[9]  In Clever's FSBO survey, 64% of FSBO sellers didn't get their target price, and 43% said they made legal mistakes.[12]

1. Price from sold comps, not the Zestimate

For off-market homes, the Zestimate's median error is 7.20%.[16]

Half of all estimates miss by more than that, so on a $400,000 home, the Zestimate could be off by $28,800 or more.

Pull three to five homes like yours that sold in the past six months, within about a mile. Adjust for size, condition, and updates. For a sharper number, ask a local agent for a free comparative market analysis (CMA).

Brian Wittman, a Realtor in Illinois, says the biggest pricing problem he sees with FSBO sellers is emotional: "If they haven't seen the comps and actually looked at the information, they might have an unrealistic idea of what their property is worth."

2. Answer inquiries fast, and screen every buyer

A Zillow FSBO listing lets anyone contact you, including buyers who can't get a loan. Answer calls and messages the same day. Before you schedule a showing, ask: "Are you pre-approved, and with which lender?" Ask for the pre-approval letter with any offer.

3. Schedule showings safely

Book showings in blocks, like two hours on Saturday, so you aren't on call all week. Keep valuables and prescription drugs out of sight, and get the full name and phone number of anyone who asks to tour the home.

4. Fill out your disclosures before the first offer

Most states require sellers to disclose known defects on a state form. Ask your state's real estate commission or a local title company which form you need. If your home was built before 1978, federal law requires you to give buyers an EPA lead hazard pamphlet, disclose any known lead-based paint, and give buyers 10 days to test for it.[17] Keep a signed copy for three years.

5. Use a real purchase contract

Don't write the contract yourself. Michael Perna of The Perna Team says this is where FSBO sellers get hurt most often:

"Sellers who go FSBO most commonly underestimate how bad ChatGPT contracts are. They miss important clauses. They add clauses that either don't matter or are actually illegal."

His fix: "Their best bet here is to call a good local title company. They have all the documents and often have a closing department that will actually handle the whole thing." In attorney states like New York and Illinois, hire a real estate attorney instead.

6. Negotiate the whole offer, not just the price

An offer includes the price, the buyer's agent fee, repair requests, contingencies, and the closing date. The buyer's agent negotiates these for a living, and you may be doing it for the first time. Chuck Vander Stelt, a broker at Quadwalls Real Estate in Northwest Indiana, says the FSBO sales that go well usually get outside help:

"Most successful FSBOs have a buyer's agent who coaches the seller on what to do."

Keep in mind that the buyer's agent works for the buyer. If you want your own advice, pay a flat fee broker or an attorney for contract review.

How to list a house for rent on Zillow

You can use the same Zillow account to list a house for rent, but it's a different process from selling. Here’s how to list a house on Zillow for rent:

1. Go to Zillow Rentals

Go to the Zillow Rentals page, and click “Post your listing.”

2. Add your rental property

Before you can create a listing, you need to add your rental property. There will be three screens that ask for your basic information, property address, and location. After you add your property, click "Create Listing."

3. Fill in your property information

Zillow then takes you through a series of screens for you to provide:

• Property information
• The rental price and other details
• Property photos and 3D tours
• Amenities
• Tenant screening criteria
• Additional fees that you charge, such as parking
• Additional details renters should know about the lease terms, including whether renters need renters' insurance
• Showing availability

4. Review and publish the rental listing

You’ll have a chance to review all the information you entered before being taken to the publish page. From there, you can publish your listing.

The bottom line

Listing on the MLS is the best way to reach buyers. It's a go-to for buyer's agents to find homes for their clients. Your MLS listing also automatically appears across a broad range of real estate sites (including Zillow), where buyers often search for homes themselves.

Using a realtor is the simplest way to access the MLS.

Some sellers sell on their own to avoid paying agent fees. But many end up selling for much less.

For most people, a better option is working with a low-commission agent. Services like Clever Real Estate can help you find the top low-cost agents in your area. You'll get expert support to help you sell for top dollar — at half the typical commission rate.

FAQ

Related reading