How to find underpriced items on Facebook Marketplace

Why do listings get underpriced?

Many cheap listings are cheap for a reason: wear, a fault, an old model. The ones worth your time are cheap because of the seller’s situation or the way the listing was written. Knowing the reasons tells you what to search for.

Reason	What the listing looks like	Why it ends up cheap
Moving house, interstate or overseas	“Moving sale”, “must go by Friday”, many items from one seller	A deadline matters more than the last dollar
Deceased estates and downsizing	“Estate”, “deceased estate”, “downsizing”, “clearing out Dad’s shed”	Family members may not know what each item is, and have a lot to clear
Vague titles	“Old table”, “box of tools”, “camera stuff”, “bike”	The seller did not name the brand or model, so model searches miss it
Misspellings	“Makitta”, “Dewault”, “Playstaion”, “Hermon Miller”	Buyers searching the correct spelling may never see it
Poor photos	One dark photo, taken sideways, item half out of frame	Scrollers skip it, even if the badge in the corner is a good brand
Wants it gone today	“Need gone”, “first to pick up”, “free to a good home”	Speed and no hassle beat price
Priced from memory	A price that matches what things cost years ago	It can be well under today’s price, or well over

Be kind with estate listings. A family clearing a house is often grieving, and a fair offer with a reliable pickup is worth more to them than a lowball.

Facebook has also been adding AI tools for sellers. In March 2026 TechCrunch reported that Meta AI can draft a listing from a photo and suggest a price based on similar items in the area. Where sellers use it, some pricing mistakes may get rarer, so do not expect every search to turn up a bargain.

Which searches surface underpriced listings?

Think like the seller who does not know what they have. They will not type the model number. They will type what it looks like, and sometimes they will spell the brand wrong.

Search type	Examples	Tip
Clear-out words	moving, relocating, must go, need gone, clear-out, garage sale, estate, downsizing	Pair with a category, such as “moving furniture” or “estate tools”
Vague words	tools, box of, job lot, bundle, old, vintage, lot	Scan photos for brand badges and model labels
Misspellings	Makitta, Milwakee, Dewault, Playstaion, Hermon Miller	Make a short list per brand you care about and rotate through it
Brand without the model	Makita, Dyson, Thule, Weber	Catches sellers who know the brand but not the model
Category browse	Tools, Musical instruments, Sporting goods, sorted by newest	Add a maximum price to cut the noise
Wider area for bulky items	Furniture, trailers, gym equipment 100 to 250 km out	Fewer buyers will make the drive; see searching a wide area

Facebook’s search may match some misspellings on its own and miss others, and it changes over time, so test your list. If a misspelling returns the same results as the correct spelling, drop it. Our Marketplace search tips cover how words, radius and filters behave.

Sort by newest

Cheap listings can go quickly, so see the newest first. Facebook’s Help Centre says you can sort search results by distance or by when the listing was created. On a computer, use Sort by and choose Date listed. In the app, the option sits under Filters. Labels can differ by app version.

Check at set times, not all day

Pick a few times that suit you and work through your searches in order. In Zoopy’s measurements, Facebook keeps a new listing out of public search for about six to seven minutes after posting, for everyone. Refreshing every few seconds does not beat that; a steady routine, or alerts, does the same job with less effort.

How do you check the price before you pay?

A listing is only underpriced if it is cheaper than what the same thing, in the same condition, actually sells for. This five-minute check keeps you honest.

1. Pin down the exact model. Ask the seller for a photo of the label, model number or serial plate if it is not in the listing. For phones, you need the model and storage. For cars, the year, variant, gearbox and kilometres.
2. Compare five recent listings of the same model on Marketplace. Treat asking prices as a ceiling. Listings that have sat for weeks are probably priced too high.
3. Check sold prices. eBay lets you filter searches to sold or completed listings, and for cars a price guide such as Redbook (Australia) or Kelley Blue Book (US) gives a private-sale range.
4. Adjust for condition and what is included. Missing batteries, chargers, boxes or service history all move the price.
5. Decide your top price before you message. If the seller wants more, you already know whether to walk away.

For the full method, with a worked example, see how to check if a Marketplace price is fair.

When is a cheap listing too cheap?

The same things that make a real bargain attractive make a fake one work. Scamwatch lists “a seller offers products at an unbelievably low price” as a warning sign. A price far below the others is a reason to check harder, not to hurry.

Red flag	Why it matters	What to do
Price far below every similar listing, especially phones, consoles and cars	The classic hook for a scam, or a sign of a fault or a stolen item	Ask why it is cheap; inspect in person
Seller wants a deposit to hold it, or says others are about to pay	Scamwatch advises not to pay for big-ticket items before inspecting them	Pay only after you have seen and tested it
Seller cannot meet and wants you to pay first, then post it or send a “courier”	You have nothing to fall back on if it never arrives; the US FTC warns that paying outside a marketplace’s own payment system loses any protection the site offers	Walk away unless you can see it in person
Seller asks you to move the chat to email or another app	Scamwatch advises keeping communications within the platform	Keep the chat on Facebook
Odd payment requests: gift cards, crypto, several different PayIDs	Between them, Scamwatch and the FTC name these as ways scammers ask to be paid	Refuse. Check a PayID name matches the seller
Phone with no proof of ownership, or locked to an account	It may be stolen or unusable	Check it is erased and not locked to the owner; run an IMEI check
Car, boat, caravan or trailer much cheaper than the rest	It may have money owing, or be written off or stolen	In Australia, run a PPSR search before paying

A few checks cost little and catch a lot:

• iPhones and iPads: Apple says not to take a device that shows “iPhone Locked to Owner” or asks for the previous owner’s Apple Account during setup.
• Phones in Australia: AMTA’s free IMEI checker shows whether a phone has been reported lost or stolen. AMTA also suggests asking for proof of ownership. In the US, CTIA’s Stolen Phone Checker does a similar job.
• Cars and high-value goods in Australia: a PPSR search costs A$2 online at the time of writing. For a car it shows any registered security interest, and may also tell you if the car is recorded as stolen or written off.
• The seller’s profile: see how long they have been on Facebook and what else they are selling. A new profile selling ten phones at once is a warning.

Our scams guide covers the tricks in more detail.

A routine that finds more bargains

Put it together as a routine you can keep up:

• One or two categories you know well enough to price in minutes
• A saved list of clear-out words, vague words and misspellings for each
• Every search sorted by Date listed, with a maximum price
• A top price written down for each model you want
• A ready first message, and cash or a transfer you can make on the spot
• The checks above done before any money changes hands

A genuinely cheap listing tends to get attention fast, so hearing about it early helps. What helps more is being ready: knowing your price, your checks and when you can collect. See how to get to new listings sooner for the first-message part.

Sources

1. Sort by distance or new listings on Facebook Marketplace, Facebook Help Centre
2. Buying and selling scams, Scamwatch (ACCC)
3. Buying from an online marketplace, US Federal Trade Commission
4. Facebook Marketplace now lets Meta AI respond to buyers’ messages, TechCrunch, 12 March 2026
5. Pricing your items, eBay Help
6. Redbook car valuations and Kelley Blue Book: what’s my car worth?
7. Activation Lock for iPhone and iPad, Apple Support
8. Check if a phone has been reported lost or stolen, AMTA
9. Stolen Phone Checker, CTIA
10. Do a used car or vehicle search and PPSR fees, Personal Property Securities Register