# When is the best time to have an ebay auction end? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 1, 2012, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023 "2012-08-01T02:59:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/1 "2012-08-01T02:59:58Z")
I assume there’s a factual answer to this question as ebay will have differing amounts of traffic at various times. Most of the action on ebay auctions occurs in the last few minutes - so obviously something that ends at 5pm eastern in the US is going to get more action than something that ends at 4am. Is there an optimal day and time where the activity level is highest? I’ve read that you want it to end on a weekend afternoon - people aren’t at work and have time to sit around on the internet. But I’ve also heard that doing it during weekday work hours is better - people actually often use the internet for personal reasons at work more than they do on weekends. Lots of sites has significant traffic drop off over the weekends. So what’s the story with ebay? What’s the ideal time for an auction to end? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/3 "2012-08-01T04:07:59Z")
A friend who sells a lot of things that ladies like - candles, vintage clothing, etc., says her things sell best when the auction ends in the late mornings/lunchtimes during weekdays, because that’s when the women do all their eBaying from work. I usually end my auctions at dinnertime or later if I’m selling stuff that’s of more general interest. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/4 "2012-08-01T04:08:19Z")
The conventional wisdom was always Sunday evening. I have no idea if that’s based on any sort of data. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/5 "2012-08-01T04:58:03Z")
I’d be very curious if there has been any actual study done on this question. FWIW, I usually try to end my auctions between 6 and 8 PM California time. I don’t pay attention to what day of the week it ends. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/7 "2012-08-01T21:27:17Z")
You’d think with several billion ebay auctions in the books they’d be a definitive answer to this. ---
**Author:** ![madrabbitwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c37758/32.png) [@madrabbitwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madrabbitwoman)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/8 "2012-08-02T11:41:40Z")
I have sold quite a lot of stuff and I end my auctions between 7:30pm -10:30pm Friday - Sat -Sun. I found daytime and other week-nights to be a waste of time. Aussie EST of course ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/9 "2012-08-02T13:05:28Z")
Assuming you know what timezone your item will sell in, avoid ending it in the evening rush hour. I used to buy items in a category where a little flurry of competitive bidding was the norm, so I would seek out those listings ending during the evening rush, snap them up at bargain prices, then just resell them to end about 8PM on a Saturday or Sunday, at triple the price or more. In short - don’t stay late at work to list your items (they’ll end at the same time of day). ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/10 "2012-08-02T14:15:54Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > You’d think with several billion ebay auctions in the books they’d be a definitive answer to this. Who would be able to keep statistics other than EBay? And it seems like Ebay wouldn’t be in a hurry to share that information. It would be detrimental to their operations to encourage sellers to all end their auctions during the same time of day and/or day of week. Like any website they would prefer a constant stream of traffic as opposed to inviting everyone over on Sunday night. So, I think it would be simple for Ebay to determine this answer and my guess is that they’ve already done so. But they don’t see any advantage in sharing it ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/11 "2012-08-02T15:05:17Z")
> [@BubbaDog](#): > > Who would be able to keep statistics other than EBay? There are many sellers with 50,000+ auctions over a decade, so I figured maybe they shared some insight at some point. Or if it’s a dramatic difference, much less data would be needed to be suggestive. ---
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/12 "2012-08-02T15:46:41Z")
I found some statistical data for Ebay online several years ago, and if I recall correctly, the data showed evenings and weekends to be the best times for auction endings from a seller’s viewpoint. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/13 "2012-08-02T18:00:57Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > There are many sellers with 50,000+ auctions over a decade, so I figured maybe they shared some insight at some point. Or if it’s a dramatic difference, much less data would be needed to be suggestive. Good Point ---
**Author:** ![s0meguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@s0meguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/s0meguy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/14 "2012-08-02T18:43:44Z")
This will absolutely differ depending on what you are selling and who searches for what you are selling. A good pointer would probably be to look at your competitors that sell the same stuff. Though if there is a lot of competition at a certain time, its better to do it at the next best time. It’s also easy to test, just make a dummy account, put auctions on it at different times and the results will give you the answer. To make sure it’s a usable pattern, repeat next week and again. You’re technically legally supposed to actually sell the stuff you’re offering, but nobody will really go after you unless you take the money. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/15 "2012-08-02T19:04:27Z")
As an eBay veteran since 1997 (buying and selling) my own observations are, in order, Sunday evenings, Thursday evenings and Monday evenings. Additionally Jan and Feb are the best months. Summer is buying time… as competition from other collectors goes way down during the warm months. Everyone is outside. Time is a factor, too. Ten to eleven pm gives both coasts a reasonable window. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2012, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-is-the-best-time-to-have-an-ebay-auction-end/630023/16 "2012-08-04T04:49:31Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Most of the action on ebay auctions occurs in the last few minutes - so obviously something that ends at 5pm eastern in the US is going to get more action than something that ends at 4am. most of that last-minute bidding is done by computer programs, not humans. The buyer enters the end time of yiur auction, as well as their pricing decision into the program. Then it tries to get a bid in at the last minute, just a bit higher than the previous bid. Since it’s all automated, it really doesn’t matter what time your auction ends – these computer programs don’t care, It might matter if human people are monitoring and making bids, but most people just enter their maximum bid and let the auction system take it from there,