Configure Auction Experience

Auction experiences enable competitive bidding on products, allowing the market to determine fair prices. This is ideal for high-value items, collectibles, and unique products where demand exceeds supply.

When to Use Auctions

Auctions are best for:

High-value items - Luxury goods, rare collectibles
Price discovery - Let the market set the price
Unique products - One-of-a-kind or limited items
Charity events - Fundraising with competitive bidding
Overstock liquidation - Clear inventory at market prices

Creating an Auction Experience

Navigate to Experiences > Create Experience
Select Auction from the experience type options
Complete the auction configuration form

Caption: The auction creation form with all configuration options

Auction-Specific Settings

Auction Type

Choose the auction format:

Type	API value	Description	Best For
English (Ascending)	`english`	Bids increase until time expires	Most common, transparent
Dutch (Descending)	`dutch`	Price drops over time until purchase or floor price	Quick sales, perishables

Caption: Choose the supported auction format

Pricing Configuration

Caption: Configure pricing rules for your auction

Field	API field	Required	Description
Auction Type	`auctionType`	No	`english` or `dutch`; defaults to `english`.
Reserve Price	`reservePrice`	No	Minimum successful price.
Minimum Bid Increment	`minBidIncrement`	No	Minimum increment for English auctions.
Start Price	`startPrice`	No	Starting price for Dutch auctions.
Floor Price	`floorPrice`	No	Lowest Dutch auction price.
Price Drop Amount	`priceDropAmount`	No	Dutch auction drop amount.
Price Drop Interval	`priceDropIntervalSeconds`	No	Seconds between Dutch price drops.
Quantity	`quantity`	No	Quantity available.

Reserve PriceIf the reserve price isn’t met, the item won’t sell even if there are bids. The reserve is hidden from bidders by default.

Send money values as decimal strings, such as "100" or "100.00", when using the Admin API.

Schedule Configuration

Field	API field	Required	Description
Open At	`openAt`	No	When bidding opens.
Close At	`closeAt`	No	When bidding closes.
Settle At	`settleAt`	Yes	Settlement timing used for the auction schedule.
Auto Extend Seconds	`autoExtendSeconds`	No	Extension duration for late bidding.

Auto Extend

Extend the auction when late bidding occurs:

Setting	API field	Description
Auto Extend Seconds	`autoExtendSeconds`	Extension duration applied by the auction when late bidding extends the close.

Caption: Prevent sniping with automatic auction extension

Payment Integration

Auctions require payment integration to collect from winners.

Stripe Connect

Connect your Stripe account to process auction payments:

Navigate to Settings > Payments
Connect your Stripe account
Enable auction payments

Caption: Connect Stripe to process auction payments

Bidder Requirements

Control who can participate:

Setting	Description
Audience Restriction	Limit to specific audiences by configuring the sequence.
Access Code	Require an access code on the sequence when appropriate.
Account Requirement	Use your integration path to require identified consumers for bidding.

Caption: Set requirements for auction participants

Notifications

Bidder Notifications

Event	Notification
Bid Placed	Confirmation of your bid
Outbid	Someone bid higher
Auction Ending Soon	Reminder before close
You Won	Congratulations + payment instructions
You Lost	Auction ended, you didn’t win
Payment Reminder	Reminder to complete payment

Seller Notifications

Event	Notification
New Bid	Someone placed a bid
Reserve Met	Bidding reached reserve price
Auction Ended	Final results
Payment Received	Winner completed payment

Auction Timing

upcoming → active → ended
              ↓
            killed

Auction visibility and bidding actions are derived from the distribution timing state:

State	Description
upcoming	The auction is scheduled but bidding has not opened
active	Bidding is open
ended	Bidding has closed and winner/payment follow-up can proceed
killed	The auction was manually stopped

Example: Collectible Auction

Scenario

Item: Signed memorabilia
Expected value: $500-1,000
Duration: 7 days

Configuration

Name: "Signed Championship Jersey Auction"
Product: Signed Jersey #23
Audience: All Registered Users

Auction Type: English (Ascending)

Pricing:
  Starting Bid: $100
  Reserve Price: $500
  Bid Increment: $25

Schedule:
  Open At: Monday 9 AM
  Close At: Sunday 9 PM
  Settle At: Sunday 10 PM

Auto Extend:
  Auto Extend Seconds: 300

Payment:
  Follow your checkout/payment integration after the auction settles

Notifications:
  - All bidder notifications
  - Seller notifications for new bids

Caption: A fully configured collectible auction

Best Practices

Setting Prices

Research comparable sales - Check what similar items sold for
Start low to attract bidders - Low starting bids drive competition
Set realistic reserves - Too high and you won’t sell
Consider no reserve - Guaranteed sale, potentially lower price

Auction Duration

Duration	Best For
3 days	Low-value items, quick sales
7 days	Standard auctions
10-14 days	High-value items, maximum exposure

Timing

Start mid-week - Avoid Monday/Friday when people are busy
End on Sunday evening - Maximum bidder availability
Avoid holidays - Reduced participation

Handling Issues

Reserve Not Met

Options when reserve isn’t met:

Contact highest bidder to negotiate
Relist with lower reserve
Accept the highest bid anyway

Payment Failure

If winner doesn’t pay:

Send payment reminders
Contact winner directly
Offer to second-highest bidder
Relist the item

Disputed Bids

If a bidder disputes:

Review bid history
Check for technical issues
Contact bidder for clarification
Consider canceling problematic bids

Payment Settings - Configure Stripe Connect
Experience Schedule - Understanding auction timing
Experience Analytics - Auction metrics

Getting Started

Experiences

Audiences

Consumers

Loyalty

Settings

Analytics

Billing

Configure Auction

Configure Auction Experience

When to Use Auctions

Creating an Auction Experience

Auction-Specific Settings

Auction Type

Pricing Configuration

Schedule Configuration

Auto Extend

Payment Integration

Stripe Connect

Bidder Requirements

Notifications

Bidder Notifications

Seller Notifications

Auction Timing

Example: Collectible Auction

Scenario

Configuration

Best Practices

Setting Prices

Auction Duration

Timing

Handling Issues

Reserve Not Met

Payment Failure

Disputed Bids

​Configure Auction Experience

​When to Use Auctions

​Creating an Auction Experience

​Auction-Specific Settings

​Auction Type

​Pricing Configuration

​Schedule Configuration

​Auto Extend

​Payment Integration

​Stripe Connect

​Bidder Requirements

​Notifications

​Bidder Notifications

​Seller Notifications

​Auction Timing

​Example: Collectible Auction

​Scenario

​Configuration

​Best Practices

​Setting Prices

​Auction Duration

​Timing

​Handling Issues

​Reserve Not Met

​Payment Failure

​Disputed Bids

​Related Guides

Configure Auction Experience

When to Use Auctions

Creating an Auction Experience

Auction-Specific Settings

Auction Type

Pricing Configuration

Schedule Configuration

Auto Extend

Payment Integration

Stripe Connect

Bidder Requirements

Notifications

Bidder Notifications

Seller Notifications

Auction Timing

Example: Collectible Auction

Scenario

Configuration

Best Practices

Setting Prices

Auction Duration

Timing

Handling Issues

Reserve Not Met

Payment Failure

Disputed Bids

Related Guides