Example scenario · illustrative, not a real seller
An example pair of boots lists at $80 and cost $20. At a chosen 15% fee, a $54 offer still leaves $25.90. So offers below $54 can be declined automatically, and $68 or more accepted.
What you’ll get
- How eBay’s offer tools work.
- A floor worked out from fees and cost.
- Minimum and auto-accept amounts from that floor.
- Counteroffer and sending-offer timings.
- A habit of reviewing declined offers.
An offer setting is a price decision made in advance
Best Offer lets buyers propose a price on your fixed-price listing, and eBay lets you set amounts that are automatically accepted or declined. That saves time, but it also means a rule you set weeks ago can accept a sale while you are asleep. If the accept amount was not calculated against your real costs, the convenience has a price.
Set your offer rules from the numbers, then let them run.
How eBay's offer tools work
eBay's Best Offer help page, checked November 8, 2026, explains the main settings and limits:
| Feature | What eBay says |
|---|---|
| Where it works | Fixed price listings; offers are not available on an auction with Buy It Now |
| Minimum offer amount | Offers below it are declined automatically |
| Auto accept amount | Offers at or above it are accepted automatically; it must be below your Buy It Now price |
| Offers between the two | You decide manually |
| Response time | 24 hours to respond before the offer expires |
| Counteroffers | Should be below Buy It Now and above the offer; each expires after 96 hours |
| Buyer attempts | Up to three offers per item in most categories |
| Exclusions | Not available in cell phones, motors, real estate, tablets and tickets |
eBay also notes that buyers won't know your limits, and that automatic responses can't be used in some situations, such as when the item is in a sale event or the buyer added extra terms.
Step 1: Work out your floor
Your floor is the lowest item price at which the sale still meets your minimum profit after fees and shipping. Start with your cost, add the shipping you pay, packaging and fees, then add the profit you need.
In this chosen example, a pair of boots is listed at $80 with buyer-paid shipping. You paid $20 for them. You assume selling fees of about 15% of the item price for simplicity, and you need at least $25 profit.
| Offer accepted | Assumed fees (15%) | After fees | Less cost | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $80 | $12.00 | $68.00 | $20 | $48.00 |
| $64 | $9.60 | $54.40 | $20 | $34.40 |
| $54 | $8.10 | $45.90 | $20 | $25.90 |
| $50 | $7.50 | $42.50 | $20 | $22.50 |
At these assumptions, $54 is about the lowest price that still clears $25. The 15% figure is a simplification, not eBay's rate for your category; use the offer room tool with your actual fee and shipping figures.
Step 2: Set the minimum and auto-accept amounts
With a floor of about $54, a sensible configuration might be:
- Minimum offer: $54, so anything lower is declined without a conversation.
- Auto accept: perhaps $68, a price you would be happy to take at any time.
- Between $54 and $68: you review and counter.
A narrow gap means fewer manual decisions; a wide gap gives you more room to negotiate. Neither is right for every item.
Promotion check: eBay says that if you accept a Best Offer after any buyer clicked one of your general Promoted Listings ads within the last 30 days, you'll be charged an ad fee on the final total sale amount. If an item is promoted, include that ad rate in your floor.
Step 3: Counter with a reason
When an offer lands between your limits, counter at a price you would genuinely accept, not just halfway. eBay says you can counter several buyers at once and whoever accepts first wins, so don't send counters on a single item unless you can honor every one.
Step 4: Send offers to interested buyers carefully
eBay also lets you send offers to buyers who watched an item or added it to their cart. Its help page says the offer must be at least 5% below the Buy It Now price, shipping isn't included in the offer price, offers go to up to the 30 most recent interested buyers, and each offer lasts 96 hours or until the item sells. Items must have been in a buyer's cart for at least 2 days before you can send an offer to that buyer. You can also turn on automated offers for future interested buyers.
Run the same floor check before sending. A 20% offer to thirty watchers is a price you are publishing to all of them.
Step 5: Review offers you declined
If you regularly decline offers in the same range, your asking price may be above what buyers will pay. Compare declined offers with recent sold prices on the product research guide, and adjust the price rather than holding out indefinitely.
Common mistakes
- Setting an auto-accept amount without calculating fees and shipping.
- Forgetting that a promoted listing can still carry an ad fee after an accepted offer.
- Sending counteroffers to several buyers on a one-of-a-kind item without being ready to sell to any of them.
- Leaving the minimum offer blank and spending time on very low offers.
- Sending deep discounts to watchers that undercut your floor.
The offer and counteroffer floor manual explains floors in more depth.
Let the rules do the waiting
A Best Offer setting is only as good as the floor behind it. Calculate the lowest price you can accept, set the minimum there, and let the automatic rules handle the rest.
Worked example · hypothetical, not a real seller
Keep the example in view
| Offer | Fees at 15% | Profit after $20 cost |
|---|---|---|
| $80 | $12.00 | $48.00 |
| $64 | $9.60 | $34.40 |
| $54 | $8.10 | $25.90 |
| $50 | $7.50 | $22.50 |
Chosen example · edit the numbers
Try your own floor, asking price and discount.
Illustrative inputs, not market benchmarks or an achieved outcome. Scratchpad values stay in tab memory, not saved by this application. Reload to reset.
Before the next transaction
With JavaScript and browser storage, only checked-step IDs can stay on this device. No buyer details or amounts are saved.
Practical questions
How long do I have to respond to a Best Offer?
eBay says offers expire if you don’t respond within 24 hours.
How long does a counteroffer last?
eBay says a counteroffer expires after 96 hours.
How many offers can a buyer make?
Up to three per item in most categories, according to eBay.
Does an ad fee apply after an accepted offer?
Yes, if the sale is attributed to a promoted listing. eBay’s Best Offer help notes the ad fee applies to accepted offers.
Do this next · one concrete move