The bottom line: Autotrader’s Private Seller Exchange lists your car on Autotrader and its partner sites, and private buyers message you through it. When a buyer pays through Autotrader, it holds the payment, pays off any loan and then pays you, so you don’t have to accept cash or a check.
You pay $9, $29 or $49 for the ad, set by your asking price, and 0.99% of the price when the car sells, at least $99. On a $15,000 car that’s about $160 to $200 in all; on a $5,000 car the $99 alone is about 2% of the price.
Autotrader checks a buyer’s ID before they pay, not when they first message you, and sellers report scam messages in that gap.
For a quick sale, Autotrader points you to a Kelley Blue Book Instant Cash Offer from a participating dealer, and some sellers who got one while their ad ran report it far below their asking price. If you’d rather have a firm price than wait for a buyer, Sell Car Advisor’s comparison tool gets you several instant offers at once.
Autotrader's exchange takes the buyer's payment and does the title paperwork
- Buyer pays through PSX, not cash
- Free AutoCheck report on every ad
- Ad shows on Autotrader and KBB.com
- Title paperwork and payoff handled
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Buyer reach 25% 4/5
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Safety features 25% 5/5
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Listing cost 20% 2/5
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Time to sell 15% 3/5
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Ease of listing 15% 3/5
What We Like
- Your listing appears on both Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book at the same time
- Free AutoCheck vehicle history report included with every listing
- KBB gives you suggested prices based on actual sales data when you create your listing
- Every buyer must pass a Stripe ID check before they can pay you
- All messages go through Autotrader’s chat so your phone number stays private
- Autotrader gets your liability released with your state once the car is sold
What You Should Know
- The ad fee isn’t refunded if the car doesn’t sell or no buyer gets in touch
- Dealers can contact you with offers unless you choose “No, thanks” when you list
- Some sellers report an ad that wouldn’t go live, lost its photos, or wouldn’t show buyers’ messages
- Sellers who got only scam messages report that support told them nothing could be done
Automated assistant: general info, not legal advice
Answers come from our state paperwork data and published guides. Confirm anything binding with your state DMV.
Compare Instant Offers
How Does Autotrader Compare to Alternatives?
Autotrader isn’t your only choice for selling a car privately.
| Platform | Listing Cost | Transaction Fee | Main Benefit | Main Drawback |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Autotrader Private Seller Exchange | $9 to $49 based on price | 0.99% (min $99) | Buyer’s ID checked before they pay, and Autotrader holds the payment | Sellers report scam messages |
| Facebook Marketplace | Free | None | No cost, large audience | No fraud protection |
| Craigslist | $5 | None | Simple, low cost listing | High scam risk |
| eBay Motors | $34 or $79 | 2.8% of the deposit | Auction format available | The buyer can walk away after the deposit, and the listing fee is still due |
If you need the car sold this week, a Kelley Blue Book Instant Cash Offer usually arrives in minutes, stays good for seven days at any participating dealer, and the sale can finish in a day, against an average of two to three weeks for a private sale on Autotrader.
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Buyer reach 25% 5/5
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Safety features 25% 3/5
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Listing cost 20% 5/5
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Time to sell 15% 4/5
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Ease of listing 15% 5/5
- Free to list, with no fee on a local sale paid in person
- Sell directly to buyers near you
- Post to a local buy and sell group at the same time
- Buyers see your profile and seller ratings
- You handle the payment and paperwork yourself
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Buyer reach 25% 4/5
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Safety features 25% 4/5
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Listing cost 20% 5/5
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Time to sell 15% 3/5
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Ease of listing 15% 4/5
- Free listing at your own asking price
- Instant dealer offer, valid for 3 business days
- Caramel handles payment and DMV paperwork
- No obligation to buy a car from the dealer
- You do the inspection photos on your phone
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Buyer reach 25% 5/5
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Safety features 25% 1/5
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Listing cost 20% 5/5
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Time to sell 15% 3/5
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Ease of listing 15% 3/5
- $5 to list a car by owner
- Fee paid by card when posting
- Direct cash deals with buyers
To see what instant-offer buyers would offer for your car, compare quotes from several services at once with the tool.
Compare instant offers before you accept one
How Does Autotrader’s Private Seller Exchange Work?
1. List Your Car
Start by entering your VIN or license plate. The system pulls up your car’s info automatically. Then you add details about the condition, features, and mileage.
Autotrader shows you a suggested price based on KBB data. You can set your own price, but the KBB number helps you stay competitive.
Autotrader sets the ad price by your asking price: $9, $29 or $49. Your ad shows up on both Autotrader and KBB.com, and buyers can see a free AutoCheck report.
You also verify your identity and fill out a short safety checklist on the car, covering things like seat belts, lights and tires. If the car fails it, you send Autotrader a repair bill before the car can sell.
Autotrader reviews each ad by hand, which can take up to 24 hours. Check that yours is live with every photo, and if it isn’t up within 72 hours, call Autotrader right away, because that’s one of the few cases where the ad fee is refunded.
Step1
Step2
Step3
Step4
Enter VIN or license plate
Sign up for an account
Enter mileage, trim, other details, photos
Pay for ad
2. Talk to Buyers Through Autotrader’s Chat
All messages from buyers come through Autotrader’s chat system. Your phone number and email stay hidden. Anyone can message you at first. A buyer has to pass Autotrader’s Stripe ID check before paying, and the chat marks which people messaging you have passed it.
Sellers report scam messages, and one script they describe is a “buyer” who asks you to buy a vehicle history report from a site they name. Reply only to people marked as ID-checked, keep every message on Autotrader, and never buy a report for anyone, because your ad already carries a free AutoCheck.
Book test drives through the chat, so Autotrader logs when and where you’re meeting, and photograph the buyer’s driver’s license and proof of insurance before they get in.
3. Get Paid Through Their System
When a buyer wants your car, they pay through Autotrader’s online system. Autotrader checks that the money is real before telling you it’s okay to hand over the keys.
This protects you from fake checks and fraudulent wire transfers. Once the funds clear, the money goes to your account minus the 0.99% fee (at least $99).
4. Finish the Sale
Once Autotrader confirms the buyer’s payment, hand over the car and keys. Before the buyer drives off, make sure they’ve checked the box in Autotrader’s checklist that says they have the car, because that’s what starts your payment.
Don’t give the buyer your title. Autotrader tells you when to send it, you and the buyer each sign one or two documents online, and your paperwork has to reach Autotrader within two weeks of the handover, a deadline your state sets.
Take your license plates off before the buyer leaves, unless you’re in California.
How Much Does It Cost to Sell on Autotrader?
You pay twice: $9, $29 or $49 for the ad when you list, set by your asking price, and a seller fee when the car sells. Autotrader doesn’t publish which asking price gets which ad fee, and when we priced a 2020 Jeep Grand Cherokee at $10,500, the ad came to $49.
The seller fee is 0.99% of the price, at least $99, so it’s a flat $99 on any car that sells for $10,000 or less. On an $8,000 car you pay $108 to $148 in all, and on a $12,000 car the fee is $119, or $128 to $168 with the ad.
Autotrader Reviews – What Other Sellers Say?
| Platform | Autotrader Rating | Good | Bad |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.3 out of 5 stars (65 total reviews) | A seller who sold for more than the car’s KBB value | Scam messages, and ad fees not refunded | |
| Trustpilot | 3.7 out of 5 stars (1,562 total reviews) | Sellers who sold praise the held payment, the paperwork and the phone staff | Sellers who didn’t sell report only scam messages, and no refund of the ad fee |
Google ★ 2.3 · 65
Trustpilot ★ 3.7 · 1,562
Reviews
Reviews
Reviews
Expand to see reviews from 2025:
Trustpilot
ConsumerAffairs
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Compare instant offers before you accept one
Common Questions About Selling on Autotrader
How long does my listing stay up?
Your ad runs for 180 days, or longer while a sale is pending. After that, you pay again to renew it. If you stop answering buyers, Autotrader can remove the ad sooner and keep the fee.
How does Autotrader protect me from scams?
By taking the payment itself. Autotrader buys the car from you and resells it to the buyer, and it guarantees your money once the buyer has paid through it and has the car.
So turn down any other way to pay, including a cashier’s check, a payment app or gift card, a buyer who sends too much and asks for the difference back, and anyone who wants the car shipped without seeing it.
What cars can’t I sell on Private Seller Exchange?
A car made before 1989, an RV, a motorcycle, a police car, or anything with a salvage or branded title. The car also has to run, be safe to drive and be with you for test drives. Autotrader has separate sites for classic cars, RVs and motorcycles.
Can I sell a car I still owe money on?
Yes. Give Autotrader your lender’s 10-day payoff figure when you list, and it pays the lender out of the sale. If you owe more than the car sells for, you pay the difference at the sale by wire, ACH or card; Autotrader offers no payment plan for it.
Can I sell a leased car?
Not through Private Seller Exchange, unless you buy the car from your leasing company first. You can still run a plain Autotrader ad for it and handle the payment and paperwork yourself, or take a Kelley Blue Book Instant Cash Offer.
What paperwork do I need?
Your title, in the same name as your Autotrader account; Autotrader supplies the bill of sale and the other forms. It can’t accept a title with a lien release stamp on it, so if yours has one, get a clean title from your DMV first. A title in a business’s name, or in someone else’s, needs company papers or a notarized power of attorney.
When do I get paid after the sale?
Usually the same day the buyer confirms they have the car, or the next business day; after 9pm or at a weekend, it’s the next business day. Link your bank account for a direct deposit before the sale, because a seller paid by check was still waiting four days later.
How do I transfer the title?
It depends on the buyer. For most buyers, Autotrader files the new title and registration with the state once you’ve sent it your title; for a buyer paying in full without a loan who lives outside Washington, Oregon, Texas, California and Florida, it only prepares the title, and the buyer registers the car at their own DMV.
A seller whose buyer hadn’t chosen Autotrader’s full service found the title work was theirs, so ask the buyer which they’ve chosen before you accept the offer.
How is Autotrader different from Facebook Marketplace?
Facebook Marketplace costs nothing to list on, but you take the payment and handle the title yourself. Autotrader charges for the ad and 0.99% at the sale, and in return it holds the buyer’s payment and does the title work.
Some sellers who gave up on Autotrader’s scam messages sold the same car on Facebook Marketplace.
Can I take my car off Autotrader if I change my mind?
Yes, you can cancel the ad at any time. You get the ad fee back only if you sold the car to a dealer on a Kelley Blue Book Instant Cash Offer while the ad was live: ask in Ad Manager within 60 days of the offer, and within five months of buying the ad, with the dealer’s name.
Is Autotrader legitimate?
Yes. Autotrader has run since 1997 and is part of the same family as Kelley Blue Book. The Better Business Bureau grades AutoTrader.com D-.
Autotrader Review
Autotrader's Private Seller Exchange takes the buyer's payment, pays off any loan and gets your liability released, which is why it scores 5 of 5 on safety among the listing sites we score. The ad costs $9, $29 or $49, set by your asking price, and you pay 0.99% of the price, at least $99, when the car sells.
Product Brand: Autotrader
3.6
Pros
- Your listing appears on both Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book
- Buyers verify their identity through Stripe before they pay
- Payments are processed through their system before you hand over keys
- Free AutoCheck vehicle history report included with every listing
Cons
- The ad costs $9, $29 or $49 by asking price, plus 0.99% of the sale price (at least $99) when it sells
- Cannot sell cars made before 1989 through their Private Seller Exchange
- Some sellers report an ad that wouldn't go live or lost its photos
Article Update History
The comparison table now has current costs across competing platforms, with Autotrader's fees and recent reviews checked.
Originally posted and shared with our readers.
Sources
"Autotrader Reviews" Accessed Jan. 23, 2026
"Autotrader Reviews" Accessed Jan. 23, 2026
"Autotrader Sell Car USA" Accessed Jan. 23, 2026
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