International auctions

Bidding is open to bidders from several Swoopo countries on most of our auctions. Doing this allows us to offer you a greater variety of products than we'd be able to do if we were to only allow bidding from one country.

Do I have less chance of winning because you allow bidding from other countries?
We always try to offer enough auctions of any item to ensure the winners get a great bargain, without us losing money, irrespective of where the bidders are located. When we find there is more interest in a certain item, we run more auctions, trying to keep the bargains on offer roughly the same. By allowing bids from several countries, we can offer even more auctions of a particular item, and auction items that would otherwise be unprofitable for us.

Why is there sometimes a different item displayed on the same auction in different countries?
We do our best to find matching products in all our markets, but sometimes it is impossible to find an exact match. To ensure the auctions remain fair, we always try to ensure that any inexact matches are of comparable products.

Are the auctions affected by bid prices being different in different countries?
We adjust our bid prices to try to reflect changes in currency exchange rates, aiming to make sure that the price of a bid is the same for all our users, and that they can buy bids in their local currency.

If the same auction is running in different countries, am I at a disadvantage by being located in one country or another?
Today's internet technologies make it almost irrelevant where you are located. Your request to place a bid reaches our servers will usually reach us in just a few milliseconds, whether you are based in New York or London. Please bear in mind, however, that certain users can, at certain times, experience a longer delay in the transfer of data.