In this article, you can learn how to create new auction items, edit your existing listings, and organize items into categories. You can also take a look at how auction items are arranged on an auction page, with or without categories.
Create new auction items ➕
Add new items in just a few steps! Include pictures, a description, selling format, and any other details you need to create a winning listing.
Click on the Auction tab on the campaign you're working on, then click on Items in the sub-menu on the left side of the page.
Click on Add Item, then click Create new item.
After you create a new item, you'll be taken to a page where you can fill out the details.
Name – Enter a unique name for your item. This will be the first thing bidders see on your auction page. (Maximum 255 characters.)
Description – Enter a description for the item. You can use different types of formatting, headers, and links, so get creative! You cannot directly embed a video in the description – to add a video, you must include a link to a video hosted on an external platform like YouTube or Vimeo.
Concerned about typos? Our built-in spellcheck tool prevents errors across all text editor locations in Givebutter.
Category – Optionally add this item to an item category, or create a new category. Items can only belong to a single category. You will not be able to add items to multiple categories simultaneously.
Photos – Add photos via upload or drag-and-drop.
Images must be under 5MB each, and in PNG, JPG, JPEG, or SVG format.
Up to 20 images are supported, so show as many as possible!
Landscape format is recommended. (19:11 ratio if possible.)
Selling Format – Choose whether this is an Auction Style or Fixed Price listing.
Auction Style (default) – Set a starting price, bidders up the ante with each increasing bid, and the highest bidder wins.
Buy Now – There is no bidding on fixed-price listings, and you can set a total quantity available for purchase. As bidders purchase this item, this quantity will decrease until eventually your item is sold out. Total and remaining quantities are not shown on the auction page. When all quantities are sold, the item will no longer be available for purchase.
Anyone visiting your auction can purchase Buy Now items without registering as a bidder!
Set your pricing information for this item.
Starting Price – Sets the lowest amount at which a bid can be placed. A best practice is to start at approximately 50% of the item's value.
Buy Now Price – Sets a fixed price at which buyers can purchase the item outright and can complete their purchase immediately. The Buy Now price for an item is disabled if the current bid exceeds the Buy Now price. Buyers can set their name as anonymous during the checkout process.
Reserve Price – Sets the lowest acceptable winning price for this item. Items that do not reach their set reserve price have no winning bidder. This is not shown to bidders, and is not publicly viewable. Reserve price can be edited at any time.
Item Value – Indicates the retail price of the item being listed. This is displayed on the Item page as "Retail Value". According to the IRS, donors who purchase items at a charity auction may claim a charitable contribution deduction for the excess of the purchase price paid for an item over its fair market value, as long as they can prove they knew the fair market value before they bid.
Bid Increment – Sets the minimum amount an auction price must be raised during bidding. Setting bid increments prevents bidders from outbidding each other by small amounts, such as a bid going from $40.00 to $40.01. Bid increment can be edited if no bids have been placed yet.
Requires Shipping – Enable required shipping and shipping costs. If turned on, the shipping amount will be added to the item's winning price as a separate line item. Leave this toggle off if it's a virtual item, experience, or doesn't need to be shipped.
Custom Bidding Date & Time – Add custom bidding date & time for this specific item, if it differs from the overall auction dates.
Visibility – Choose whether this item is Public (viewable to anyone) or Private (only accessible via shareable link).
Fulfillment Details – Add optional information to assist with item fulfillment, such as instructions for collecting the item, or delivery estimates if you're shipping the item. Fulfillment Details are only sent to the winner or purchaser of the item via their emailed receipt. They are not posted on the auction item listing.
Click Save as Draft or Save & List.
Auction item categories 📁
If you have auction items with multiple themes, you can organize them using auction item categories! Categories are particularly helpful if you have many items and wish to further sort them into groups.
Items included in categories will be ordered in the same arrangement as non-categorized auctions, within those category sections.
Click on the Auction tab on the campaign you're working on, then click on Items in the sub-menu on the left side of the page.
Click Actions, then click Manage categories.
A sidebar will appear on the right side of the page, where you can:
Reorder categories (drag into the correct order)
Edit an existing category
Delete an existing category
To create a new category, click New Category.
Enter your category information:
Category label – Choose a name for this category, to display on the public auction page. Click on the placeholder emoji if you would like an emoji displayed next to the name. (Maximum 255 characters.)
URL slug – Creates the link (URL) to this category on your auction page. This automatically populates based on the label entered, but you can edit this independently if you like.
Description – Enter an optional description to display below the category title.
Make visible – Choose whether or not this category should be visible on the public auction page. If toggled off, the category can still be shared via link.
Click Save category when you're done.
Other (uncategorized) items
If only some of your items are in categories, a default Other items category will be displayed at the bottom of the auction page to include items that do not otherwise have an indicated category.
Edit auction items ⚙️
Once auction items are created, you may need to make changes to them.
Click on the Auction tab on the campaign you're working on, then click on Items in the sub-menu on the left side of the page.
Click the three dots [...] next to the desired item to see the available options.
Can't find your item? Use the search bar to quickly locate specific auction items.
Choose from the following options:
Convert to Draft – Unpublishes the item and removes it from the public auction page.
View – See the auction item page as it publicly appears to bidders.
Details – View details such as pricing information and custom dates. Access this to place a bid manually.
Edit – Make changes to your item's description, photos, pricing, category, or other information (with some limitations if bids have already been placed).
Duplicate – Creates a duplicate auction item from your listing, where you can adjust any details before publishing. Click Save changes when you're ready to publish.
Cancel – All bids placed will be canceled and result in the item having no winner.
Delete – Entirely removes the listing.
Export QR Code – Exports a QR code with (or without) details for just this item.
End listing – Locks in the current top bid as the winning bid and closes bidding for the item.
Hide listing – Removes the item from the public auction page, regardless of whether or not bids have been placed. The item can still be accessed via link. If you have provided a link for that item publicly, bidders can still access it and bid.
If bids have been placed 💳
Some options will be unavailable (greyed out) if bids have already been placed on an auction item.
You cannot fully delete an auction item that already has bids, but you can Hide it.
You cannot convert an auction item that already has bids to draft status. If you need to remove an item from your public page, we recommend clicking Edit instead and changing the Visibility to Private, or Hiding it.
Under the Edit menu – Selling Format, some Pricing, Shipping, and Custom Start or End Dates cannot be edited once a bid has been placed. (Reserve Price can be edited after bids have been placed.)
How are auction items arranged? 🧮
Regardless of the order in which auction items are created, they will be displayed in this order on the public auction page:
Active items – ending soonest shown first
Coming soon items – ending soonest shown first
Sold items – oldest win or purchase dates shown first
Ended items with no bids – oldest end date shown first
If items have the same end date and time, they will be further sorted within their item category in alphabetical order, A to Z. Item titles that start with a number will appear first. If you'd like to organize items in a specific order using numbers, ensure you use two-digit numbers, such as 01, 02, 03, and so on.
When sorting by price, items will still show in this category order, then sorted by price, and further sorted alphabetically for items that have the same price.
Auction items included in categories will also follow these ordering rules within those category sections.
Private + hidden auction items 🔒
Private auction items can still be shared, bid on, and purchased. To access the shareable link for a private auction item, go to your Items tab. Private items will be labeled with a badge in the list of auction items.
Click the three dots [...] on the right side of the item, and click View. (This View option is also accessible from the item's details page.)
Clicking View will take you to the item's private page. Copy the URL for this page, and you can send it out to specific people. The item will not be listed on the public-facing auction page.
You can also Hide an auction item if you want to convert it to a Private item later on.
FAQ 🤔
Can the shipping charge for an auction item be made optional?
Not currently – if a shipping charge is added to an auction item, it will be added to the item's total price as a separate line item, and it cannot be opted out of. Please see the feature request for making the shipping charge optional!
Can auction items be reordered or sorted?
Auction items currently only follow the above arrangement order. To change the order of your auction items, you can adjust the end dates and times or modify the item titles to influence the alphabetical sorting. Please note that you are able to change the order of any item categories you've created. See the feature request for reordering auction items!
I created a test item in my auction. How can I remove or hide it?
You can hide an auction item from your Items page. Click the three dots on the right of the item and choose Hide Item. You can hide items that already have bids.
How do I remove an item from a specific category?
To remove a category from an item, click the three dots [...] to the right side of the item, click Edit, and then under Category, select None. (If you have other categorized items, this item will be moved to Other items.)
Can I add an auction item to multiple categories?
No – an auction item can only be added to one category at a time.
Are there any items that are prohibited from being listed in an auction?
Guns and other weapons are prohibited from auctions, per our terms of use. Please review these terms or ask a member of our team if you are unsure about items you wish to list in an auction.