POST/bidding/{item_id}/place_proxy_bid
This method uses a user access token to place a proxy bid for the buyer on a specific auction item. The item must offer AUCTION as one of the buyingOptions.
To place a bid, you pass in the item ID of the auction as a URI parameter and the buyer's maximum bid amount (maxAmount ) in the payload. By placing a proxy bid, the buyer is agreeing to purchase the item if they win the auction.
After this bid is placed, if someone else outbids the buyer a bid, eBay automatically bids again for the buyer up to the amount of their maximum bid. When the bid exceeds the buyer's maximum bid, eBay will notify them that they have been outbid.
To find auctions, you can use the Browse API to search for items and use a filter to return only auction items. For example:
/buy/browse/v1/item_summary/search?q=iphone&filter=buyingOptions:{AUCTION}
Restrictions
For a list of supported sites and other restrictions, see API Restrictions.Input
Resource URI
This method is supported in Sandbox environment. To access the endpoint, just replace the api.ebay.com root URI with api.sandbox.ebay.com
URI parameters
| Parameter | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| item_id | string | This path parameter specifies the unique eBay RESTful identifier of an item you want to bid on. This ID is returned by the Browse and Feed Beta API methods. RESTful Item ID Example: v1|2**********2|0 For more information about item ID for RESTful APIs, see the Legacy API compatibility section of the Buy APIs Overview. Occurrence: Required |
HTTP request headers
All requests made to eBay REST operations require you to provide the Authorization HTTP header for authentication authorization.
The table below shows additional HTTP request headers that are either required, conditionally required, or strongly recommended for this method. Other standard HTTP request headers- opens rest request components page (not in this table) can also be used, but they are optional.
| Header | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Content-Type | string | This header indicates the format of the request body provided by the client. Its value should be set to application/json. For more information, refer to HTTP request headers. Occurrence: Required |
| X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID | string | The ID of the eBay marketplace where the buyer is based. This value is case sensitive. For example: X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID = EBAY_US For a list of supported sites see, API Restrictions. Occurrence: Required |
OAuth scope
This request requires an access token created with the authorization code grant flow, using one or more scopes from the following list (please check your Application Keys page for a list of OAuth scopes available to your application):
https://api.ebay.com/oauth/api_scope/buy.offer.auction
See OAuth access tokens for more information.
Request payload
Copy complete valid JSON to clipboardRequest fields
| Input container/field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| maxAmount | Amount | The amount of the proxy bid to be placed. This is the maximum amount the buyer is willing to pay for the item.
Occurrence: Required |
| maxAmount.currency | CurrencyCodeEnum | The three-letter ISO 4217 code representing the currency of the amount in the value field. Occurrence: Required |
| maxAmount.value | string | The monetary amount. Occurrence: Required |
| userConsent | UserConsent | Specifies whether the buyer wants to give their consent to bid on adult-only items. For a buyer to bid on an adult-only item, you must collect their consent using this field, and they must agree to the Terms of Use. For more information about adult-only items on eBay, see Adult-Only items on eBay. Default: false Occurrence: Optional |
| userConsent.adultOnlyItem | boolean | The type that defines the fields for buyer consent to bid on adult-only items. Occurrence: Conditional |
Output
HTTP response headers
This call has no response headers.
Response payload
Response fields
| Output container/field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| proxyBidId | string | Identifier of the proxy bid created by the request. This indicates that the bid was placed and is not used for anything else. Occurrence: Conditional |
HTTP status codes
This call can return one of the following HTTP status codes. For an overview of the status codes, see HTTP status codes in Using eBay RESTful APIs.
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 200 | OK |
| 400 | Bad request |
| 404 | Not found |
| 409 | Conflict |
| 500 | Internal Server Error |
Error codes
For more on errors, plus the codes of other common errors, see Handling errors.
| Code | Domain | Category | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 120000 | API_OFFER | APPLICATION | There was a problem with an eBay internal system or process. Contact eBay developer support for assistance. |
| 120001 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The item ID {item_id} was not found. Check that this is an active auction item ID. |
| 120002 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The auction was ended because the item was purchased with Buy It Now (fixed_price). |
| 120003 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | A seller cannot place a bid. |
| 120004 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | You are not eligible to bid on this item. |
| 120005 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid price cannot be greater than the Buy It Now price. |
| 120006 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | You are not eligible to bid on this item due to seller restrictions. |
| 120007 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The bid amount is too high. |
| 120008 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid amount is too low. |
| 120009 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid currency needs to match the item price currency. |
| 120010 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | You cannot lower your proxy bid. |
| 120011 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The bid amount exceeds the limit. |
| 120012 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The auction has ended. |
| 120013 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The bid amount is missing or invalid. |
| 120014 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The bid currency is invalid. Refer to the documentation for a list of currency codes. |
| 120015 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID header is missing. This is a required header. |
| 120016 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The maximum bid amount is missing. |
| 120017 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | The Marketplace {marketplaceId} is not supported. Supported values are {allowedMarketplaces}. |
| 120018 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | For this auction, the bid amount cannot have decimals. |
| 120019 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | You must be pre-approval to bid on this auction. |
| 120020 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | A user agreement acceptance is required for this auction. |
| 120021 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | You are not authorized to bid on adult items. See the eBay help on adult items. |
| 120022 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | A privacy user agreement is required for this auction. |
| 120023 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | This is a business to business only auction. |
| 120024 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The item is currently unavailable. |
| 120025 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid was blocked because you have exceeded the item purchased limit. |
| 120026 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid was blocked due to a seller restriction based on your feedback score. |
| 120027 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid was blocked due to a seller restriction on the shipping location. |
| 120028 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The auction is restricted to users with a linked PayPal accounts. |
| 120029 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | There has been a buyer policy violation. |
| 120030 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | The bid was blocked due to unpaid items. |
| 120031 | API_OFFER | BUSINESS | This requires credit card verification. |
| 120032 | API_OFFER | REQUEST | This requires the user's consent for adult items. |
Warnings
This call has no warnings.
Samples
New to making API calls? Please see Making a Call.
Note: Identifiers, such as order IDs or user IDs, and personal data in these samples might be anonymized or may no longer be active on eBay. If necessary, substitute current, relevant eBay data in your requests.
Sample 1: Place a Proxy Bid
Places a bid for a buyer on an auction item.
Input
The input is the item_id passed in as a URI paramater and the buyer's maximum bid in the payload.
POSThttps://api.ebay.com/buy/offer/v1_beta/bidding/v1|2**********2|0/place_proxy_bid
Output
This call places the bid for the buyer and returns the proxyBidId.