If you’ve logged back into Rocket League after a break, or just started playing and heard old fans gush about swapping rare decals, black market items, and car bodies with other players, your first question is probably is trading still in Rocket League. For years, trading was one of the most beloved parts of the game’s community, letting players turn duplicate drops into items they actually wanted without spending extra cash on the item shop. But a lot has changed since Psyonix rolled out major updates to the game’s economy, leaving many players confused about what’s allowed, what’s not, and how the feature works now. I’ve been playing Rocket League on and off since 2017, and have traded hundreds of items over the years, so I’m breaking down exactly what you need to know about trading in the current version of the game.
The Current State of Rocket League Trading
The short answer to the core question is yes, trading is still available in Rocket League, but it looks very different than it did before late 2023. Direct player-to-person trading is no longer supported due to Psyonix’s shift to align with Epic Games’ cross-game economy policies, which restricted unregulated player transactions to cut down on scams and fraud. But the in-game trade-in system is fully functional, and that’s what most players are referring to when they talk about trading in the game now.
This system lets you trade up 5 items of the same rarity to get one random item of the next higher rarity, and it works across all your owned items no matter what platform you play on. It applies to uncommon, rare, very rare, import, and exotic items, and you can even trade in non-crate items from Rocket Passes or limited-time event drops. I was pretty frustrated when direct P2P trading got removed at first, because I had a stack of duplicate Octane decals I was planning to swap for a white zombie decal with a friend. But once I got used to the trade-in system, I realized it’s way lower risk, and I’ve gotten three black market decals from trading up exotics in the last six months that I never would have gotten otherwise.
A lot of new players who are just learning that trading is still in Rocket League get overexcited and trade in all their lower rarity items immediately, which is a mistake you can easily avoid by learning the rules of the system first.
What You Can (and Can’t) Trade in Rocket League Right Now
All trade-eligible items are clearly marked with a small trade icon in your inventory, so you don’t have to guess if something qualifies for a trade-in. To make it even simpler, here’s a breakdown of what counts and what doesn’t:
- Tradeable items: All non-premium item drops from matches, Rocket Pass free track rewards, event earnable items, and any items you purchased from the item shop before the 2023 trading policy change that were marked as tradeable.
- Non-tradeable items: Any item purchased from the item shop after December 2023, premium Rocket Pass track rewards, items gifted to you by other players, and limited-time promotional items tied to external collaborations like movie or sports partnerships.
- Items you can get from trade-ins: Rarity-upgraded random items from the same pool as the items you traded in, including rare black market decals, goal explosions, and car bodies that regularly sell for thousands of credits in the item shop.
One common mistake new players make is trying to trade premium items they bought with credits, because they assume all owned items qualify. If you don’t see the little trade icon next to an item in your inventory, don’t waste time trying to add it to a trade-in, it won’t work. Also, you can’t trade credits directly anymore, so any offer you see online for swapping credits for items is a scam, no exceptions.
Tips to Get the Most Out of Rocket League Trading Today
Now that you know how trading works, there are a few simple tricks to make sure you’re getting the best possible value out of every trade-in, instead of wasting items you could have used later. First, only trade in duplicate items you will never use. I’ve seen so many players trade in four rare decals they like plus one duplicate just to get a random import item, and end up with something they hate far more than the items they gave up. If you only use one or two car bodies, it’s fine to trade in duplicates of other car bodies, but hold onto any decals or wheels you might want to use later, even if you don’t use them right now.
Second, group trade-ins by item type if you’re chasing a specific reward. If you want a new black market goal explosion, only trade in exotic goal explosions, not a mix of exotic decals and wheels. The trade-in system pulls rewards from the same category as the items you put in, so you’ll have a much higher chance of getting the type of item you want.
Third, hold onto your trade-in items during in-game events. Psyonix regularly runs limited-time trade-in bonuses that give you a chance to get exclusive event items when you do trade-ins during the event window. Last year I saved up 20 very rare items for the Halloween event, and got two limited-time haunted house goal explosions that are no longer available anywhere in the game. All valid trading happens exclusively inside the Rocket League client, so there’s no reason to ever log into an external site to trade items, even if they claim to be affiliated with Psyonix.
Common Myths About Whether Trading is Still in Rocket League
There’s a lot of misinformation floating around Reddit, TikTok, and Discord servers about Rocket League trading, so let’s bust some of the most common myths I’ve seen over the last year. First myth: “Trading is completely gone from Rocket League”. As we covered earlier, that’s not true at all. The direct P2P trading system is gone, but the core trade-in feature is still active, and it’s used by millions of players every month to get rare items without spending money.
Second myth: “Psyonix is bringing back direct player-to-player trading soon”. I’ve seen so many fake leak posts claiming this, but as of now, Psyonix has made it very clear that they have no plans to bring back direct P2P trading. The decision was tied to Epic Games’ cross-economy rules, so it’s extremely unlikely to reverse any time soon.
Third myth: “Trade-in items are worse than items you get from the item shop”. That’s absolutely not true. I’ve gotten several black market items from trade-ins that are identical to the ones sold in the item shop for 2000+ credits, and I didn’t spend a single cent to get them. The only difference is that trade-in items are random, but if you’re patient, you can get way better value from trade-ins than you ever will from buying items directly. Don’t believe people who claim they can duplicate tradeable items or give you free items via trade either. All of these are scams that will either get your account stolen or banned, so just ignore any unsolicited messages offering free rare items.
At the end of the day, if you’re asking is trading still in Rocket League, the answer is a clear yes, even if it doesn’t look exactly like the trading system long-time fans remember. The new trade-in system is lower risk, more accessible for new players, and you don’t have to worry about getting scammed out of rare items by untrustworthy users. If you take the time to sort your inventory, save items for event trade-in bonuses, and only trade in duplicates you don’t want, you can build a really impressive collection of customization items without spending extra cash on credits or item shop purchases. It might take a little getting used to if you played before the 2023 changes, but once you learn how the new system works, you’ll probably find it’s a lot less stressful than the old direct trading setup ever was.
