How to Bid at Auction

1. Log In

In order to bid on a Gustafson's auction, you’ll first need to log in. Our log in page requires an email address; it is to this email address that all correspondence relating to the auction will be sent, including payment instructions if you are declared the winning bidder. Once you have created your account, check both your inbox and potentially your spam/junk folder for an account activation email. Click "activate your account" within this email.

2. Join Auction

Now that you have activated your account, find the first lot you would like to bid on. Review the Terms & Conditions and check the adjacent box, then select "Join Now". In order to ensure a safe and secure bidding experience, Gustafson's requires bidders to "purchase" for $1.00 access to the auction. This one-time fee grants access to every lot within the auction (and all future auctions) and will be refunded if you are declared a winning bidder of any lot. Upon the successful completion of your lot, check your inbox for an email titled "Auction Joining Fee Refund" with a coupon code to be applied at checkout.

3. Place Your Bid

Once an auction is open for bidding, place your maximum bid on each of your desired lots. This maximum bid is known as a "Proxy Bid". The platform will automatically place incremental bids on your behalf up to your maximum bid amount. View our incremental bid structure here. All lots are scheduled to close at the same time but will be extended by two minutes if a bid is placed within the final minute before the lot’s scheduled closing time (i.e., "Popcorn Bidding"). This prevents sniping and allows everyone an opportunity to bid before the auction closes. A lot can be extended up to five times.

4. Payment

Your final amount due will include the hammer price, buyer’s premium, shipping, and local taxes. Click here to review our buyer's premium.

Our Post-Sales Service team will send to the email address you used to originally log in a notification titled "You won! Pay now to receive your object." Click the "Pay Now" button within this email to be directed to your Bidding Details page. Don't forget to apply your Auction Joining Fee Refund coupon code at checkout to reduce your overall payment by your $1.00 joining fee. Click here to view accepted payment options. Untimely payment may result in cancellation and impact your ability to bid in the future.

5. Shipment

We are fortunate enough to have cultivated a global client base, consisting of world-class museums, authors, and renowned private collectors. We strive to ship won lots as soon as possible via the United States Postal Service's Priority Mail option, which includes tracking information and complimentary insurance coverage of $100.00 for domestic shipments and $200.00 for international shipments (more coverage can be acquired at the bidder's expense). Please note that the checkout page sometimes lists "1/2/3 business day(s)", this is not a guarantee that your order will arrive in 1/2/3 business days after placing it, but rather it is an estimate by USPS which factors only the buyer's proximity to our place of business with no accounting for handling time. We are pleased to offer complimentary domestic and international shipping on orders over $500.