Getting Started with Auctions
Auctions are a powerful way to drive engagement and sales on your Shopify store. With Auction Plus, you can create timed auctions with flexible bidding rules, reserve prices, automatic bids, and more — all integrated seamlessly into your existing storefront and checkout.
Before You Launch
How auctions work on your storefront
Auction listings are tied to your existing Shopify products. When you create an auction, you choose a product (or a collection of products) and Auction Plus replaces the standard purchase flow on that product's page with a bidding widget — showing the current price, bid count, and a countdown timer.
Customers can bid from the product page, as well as collection pages on supported plans. When the auction ends, the winner receives an email with a link to add their winnings to their cart. They can then check out through your store's standard checkout flow. The product price is updated to the winning bid amount automatically.
What you need to set up
Three things must be in place before your auction is visible to customers:
Enable the app embed — This powers all Auction Plus storefront features (bidding, countdowns, offers). Without it, app features will not appear on your storefront. See Theme Setup.
Create your auction products — Auctions are tied to your existing Shopify products. You can use your existing products or create new ones for your auction. You can also give customers one place to browse your auctions by creating a dedicated Auctions Page or an auction collection.
Add auctions to your store navigation — We recommend adding a link to your auctions page or collection in your store navigation so customers can easily find your auctions. Learn more about navigation in Shopify's navigation guide.
Auction Plus will guide you through setting up your first auction via the Setup Wizard.
If you are experiencing issues with your auctions not showing on the storefront, see Common Issues.
Creating your First Auction
Creating an auction is as simple as choosing your products, setting your auction rules, and going live. Learn more about creating auctions in our Creating an Auction guide.
Know These Settings First
We recommend familiarizing yourself with these key auction settings before you create your first auction:
Bid increment controls the minimum next bid
Automatic bids let customers set a hidden maximum
Soft close extends the auction when bids arrive at the end
Reserve price keeps the item from selling below your minimum
See Auction Listing Settings for the detailed reference.
After an Auction Ends
When an auction closes:
The winner will be declared and notified
The customer checks out through Shopify
You can follow up on unpaid winners
You can relist unsold items or send second-chance offers
Related Pages
Auction Events
Last updated