Auctions
How not to lose on the buyer fee: what the auction charges on top of your bid
The real Copart fee table for a buyer without a dealer license, with an example at five lot prices.
· ImportOS
Your bid is not the whole price of a lot. The auction adds a buyer fee, an online bid fee and flat fees. For cheap lots these fees can be a noticeable share of the price.
An example on a real table
Below is a calculation from the public Copart table for a buyer without a dealer license: Non-Clean title, Secured payment, online bid. The numbers come from the calculation library that powers the ImportOS calculator.
| Lot price | Buyer fee | Bid + flat fees | Total fees | % of price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,000 | $375 | $210 | $585 | 58.5% |
| $3,000 | $655 | $235 | $890 | 29.7% |
| $5,000 | $775 | $250 | $1,025 | 20.5% |
| $8,000 | $925 | $285 | $1,210 | 15.1% |
| $12,000 | $1,000 | $285 | $1,285 | 10.7% |
Copart USA — Member Fees (Non-Licensed / Public), розділ usNonLicensed*Standard · 2026-10-17
You can see that in absolute terms the fee grows with the bid, but its share of the lot price is largest for inexpensive cars.
What the fees include
- Buyer fee depends on the price bracket. At higher prices (from $15,000) it is a percentage of the bid.
- Online bid fee depends on the price bracket and on the channel (live bidding or a pre-bid).
- Flat fees: gate fee, environmental fee, title shipping.
What the table depends on
- Title status. Clean and Non-Clean titles have different tables.
- Payment method. Secured and Unsecured have different tables (Unsecured is more expensive).
- Account type. The table above is for buyers without a dealer license. Licensed, high-volume dealers pay less, so in the calculator they set their own table.
- Auction. IAA has its own table. For some IAA fees (EH&S and Fuel Surcharge) the amount is not published, so the calculation shows a warning instead of an invented number.
How not to lose
- Calculate the bid together with the fees, not separately.
- Compare channels: online and pre-bid have different fees.
- Check the date the table took effect: the Copart page does not state it, so verify freshness for important decisions.
- Allow for the flat fees on every lot, even a cheap one.
Disclaimer
Tables can change. Check current terms on the auction websites. ImportOS is not affiliated with the auctions.