When a seller sets a reserve price (the minimum amount they're willing to accept), your bid must meet or exceed this amount to win the item. If your bid is below the reserve, you may not win unless the seller decides to accept a lower offer.
How Proxy Bids Work with Reserve Prices
If you place a proxy bid (your maximum bid amount) that's below the reserve price, our system will not automatically increase your bid to meet the reserve — instead it bids the first increment. Why?
- We respect your budget — we've trained our AI to be kind to our bidders. We won't force you to pay more than you specified; only human-to-human bids increase the amount.
- We maintain fairness by letting natural bidding occur between real people.
- You maintain control over how much you're willing to spend.
Example
If the reserve is $100 and your proxy bid is $80, we won't automatically take $100 from you. Your bid remains at $80 until other bidders enter the auction.
When another bidder places a bid, your proxy bid will compete naturally, increasing to outbid them (up to your maximum) if possible. This creates a more authentic auction experience where prices rise through genuine competition rather than automatically jumping to reserve levels.