BidKing comes in three editions: Starter at $29, Plus at $49 and Pro at $59, each a one-time licence. All three run the same auction engine. The higher editions add a shop, sellers and the tools auction houses use. This guide lists what each edition includes, so you can pick the one that fits your site and skip paying for plugins you won't switch on.
The short answer
- Starter if you're selling your own items by auction and want to start simply.
- Plus if other people will sell on your site, or you also want a fixed-price shop, coupons and shipping fees.
- Pro if you run auctions as a business: proxy bidding, anti-sniping, a buyer's premium, staff roles and wallet cash-outs.
What every edition includes
The auction plugin is the same in all three, so every edition can run:
- Auction formats: English, sealed-bid, penny and unique-bid (lowest or highest) auctions.
- Buy Now: a fixed price on any lot, so buyers can skip bidding.
- Payments: 11 payment gateways, including Stripe, PayPal and Razorpay, plus the coin wallet and coin pricing that penny auctions use for bid fees.
- Referrals: a one-level referral program.
- Page caching: speeds up pages for visitors who aren't logged in.
- Themes: Classic and Editorial.
Every edition is self-hosted on your own server, and the code is yours to run without a monthly fee.
Side by side
| Feature | Starter | Plus | Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| All auction formats, Buy Now, 11 gateways | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Referrals | One level | Multi-level | Multi-level |
| "Notify me" emails for upcoming auctions | — | Yes | Yes |
| Flat shipping fee on auction items | — | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-vendor sellers with commission and payouts | — | Yes | Yes |
| Fixed-price shop and flash sales | — | Yes | Yes |
| Coupons and gift cards | — | Yes | Yes |
| Tax rules per country | — | Yes | Yes |
| Custom manual payment methods (bank transfer, QR) | — | Yes | Yes |
| Blog, live chat (Tawk.to), Google / Facebook / Apple sign-in | — | Yes | Yes |
| Proxy bidding (auto-bidder) | — | — | Yes |
| Anti-sniping time extension | — | — | Yes |
| Buyer's premium | — | — | Yes |
| Abandoned-cart reminders | — | — | Yes |
| Wallet withdrawals | — | — | Yes |
| Staff roles and "log in as customer" | — | — | Yes |
| Insights dashboard and fraud settings screen | — | — | Yes |
| Themes | Classic, Editorial | Classic, Editorial | Classic, Editorial, Bazaar |
| Price (one-time) | $29 | $49 | $59 |
Starter: your own items, one seller
Starter fits a business that auctions its own stock: a reseller clearing inventory, a collector selling a collection, or a club running a fundraiser. You get every auction format and Buy Now, plus card and wallet payments. What you don't get is a way for other people to list items, or a regular shop next to the auctions.
One thing to plan for: Starter has no shipping-fee setting on auction lots. If you post physical items, build shipping into your starting prices, add the shipping add-on, or choose Plus.
Plus: a marketplace with sellers and a shop
Plus is the edition for a marketplace. People can apply to become sellers, list items, and get paid on a schedule you set, minus the commission you choose. It also adds:
- A fixed-price shop, with timed flash sales.
- Coupons and gift cards.
- A flat shipping fee on auction items, added at checkout.
- "Notify me" emails, so shoppers hear when an upcoming auction goes live.
- Per-country tax rules.
- Custom manual payment methods with your own instructions and QR code.
- Social sign-in with Google, Facebook or Apple.
- A blog and live chat.
If you're comparing auction marketplace software, this is usually the edition to look at. Our guide to building a multi-vendor auction marketplace covers the seller side in more depth.
Pro: the auction-house toolkit
Pro adds what serious bidders and busy operators expect:
- Proxy bidding. A bidder sets a limit, and the system bids for them whenever they're outbid, up to that limit. It works on English, reverse and penny auctions.
- Anti-sniping. A bid in the last few minutes extends the auction, so others have time to respond. You set the window and the extension per auction.
- Buyer's premium. A percentage added to the winning bid when the auction settles, as many auction houses charge.
- Wallet withdrawals. Customers can cash out their wallet balance through payout methods you set up, and you approve each request.
- Staff roles. Give each staff account only the permissions it needs.
- "Log in as customer". Reproduce a customer's problem from their own account, with a visible banner while you're in it.
- An Insights dashboard. It runs on your own server and flags big spenders, churn and unusual activity using fixed rules, not AI.
- The fraud settings screen. Device and multi-account limits, risk scoring and a log of fraud events.
- Abandoned-cart reminders for the shop.
- The Bazaar theme.
If you're unsure between Plus and Pro, ask yourself whether you need proxy bidding or anti-sniping. Most competitive auction sites end up wanting both.
Need one feature from a higher edition?
You don't have to move up a whole edition for one feature. Anything an edition doesn't bundle can be bought on its own from Add-ons in your admin panel. So a Starter site can add multi-vendor selling later, and a Plus site can add anti-sniping. If you can see you'll need most of a higher edition's extras, buying that edition up front is simpler.
Add-ons are also where the other auction extras live, along with more than 25 extra payment gateways, including regional gateways and crypto.
Common questions
Do all BidKing editions have the same auction types?
Yes. English, sealed-bid, penny and unique-bid auctions, and Buy Now, are in every edition. Plus and Pro add selling tools around them, and Pro adds proxy bidding, anti-sniping and a buyer's premium.
Which BidKing edition supports multiple sellers?
Plus and Pro. Both include the multi-vendor plugin, where sellers apply, list items and are paid out minus your commission. Starter sites can add it later from Add-ons in the admin panel.
Can I add a Pro feature to Starter or Plus?
Yes. Features an edition doesn't bundle are sold individually from Add-ons in your admin panel, so you can add one, such as anti-sniping, without buying a different edition.
Is BidKing a subscription?
No. Each edition is a one-time licence, and you host it on your own server. Support terms for each edition are listed on its product page.