How PrivateAuto Works

We streamline the process of buying a used car from a private seller. Here are the steps involved.

Browse private-party used vehicles for sale.

Take a look at our awesome car listings. Sort and filter by make, model, vehicle type, geography, and other criteria. Whether you’re shopping for a Land Rover, a Honda Civic, or a Ford Mustang, you’ll find great vehicles from private-party sellers.

Make offers on vehicles you like

When you see a vehicle you like, make an offer. Unlike other platforms, PrivateAuto allows you to offer what you’re willing to pay—instead of accepting the seller’s asking price.

Schedule the test drive

When a seller accepts your offer, you can schedule a meetup without ever sharing your contact info. Messaging and scheduling happen within the PrivateAuto app.

Get an inspection and vehicle history report

You can opt for a vehicle inspection if you want to be sure about the car’s condition. You also may want to get a vehicle history report (included with premium listing on PrivateAuto).

Finalize paperwork with the seller

When you and the seller meet for the test drive, you can handle the title transfer, bill of sale, and other necessary paperwork in minutes. You and the seller will go through the transaction sequence in our mobile app, including signing an official bill of sale that protects you both.

Pay for the car

After the seller signs the bill of sale, you will be prompted to release payment via PrivateAuto Pay, our integrated banking gateway. Funds will transfer instantly to the seller, any time of day, any day of the year. No fees for the money transfer. It’s magic. Using PrivateAuto Pay, you can even buy a car remotely—without the need for escrow services.

Finalize with the DMV

After the car is yours, you’ll need to go to your local DMV (or equivalent motor vehicle regulatory agency for your state) to handle registration, transfer the vehicle title into your name in the state records, and other procedural matters. Depending on your state, you may also need to get new license plates and pay car sales tax.

Historically, buying a used car from a private party had its pros and cons (PrivateAuto removes the cons and leaves you with the pros).

Pros

1. More bang for your buck. Dealerships need to buy low and sell high to make a profit. The average price of a private-party used car should be lower than you could find at a dealer. Plus, PrivateAuto allows you to make offers; you never know when a motivated seller will accept.
2. More selection. Private seller cars vastly outnumber dealership cars, meaning that you can have far more vehicles from which to choose. PrivateAuto even helps you to buy a car remotely if you find your dream vehicle in another state.

Cons

1. Risk. You don’t know who you’re dealing with and the private-party used car market is awash with fraudsters. That’s why PrivateAuto requires identity verification from all buyers and sellers on our platform. Plus, we protect your personal information by routing all communication and interaction through our app, keeping you safe.
2. Inconvenience. With a private car purchase, you have to arrange payment, and there haven’t been a lot of great ways to move funds between strangers—until now. PrivateAuto Pay allows you to instantly send unlimited transfers, fee-free, 24/7/365.

PrivateAuto gives you dealer-like convenience in the palm of your hand, yet you get the rewards of buying from a private seller. Whether you’re buying a pickup truck, a Dodge Charger, a Kia Optima, or a Toyota Tacoma, we help you get the deal done safely, securely, and conveniently.

Enjoy a seamless and safe transaction with PrivateAuto.

PrivateAuto is the best place to buy a used car online because we offer full transactional infrastructure that is self-serve. Where other sites serve as “meetingplaces” that merely connect a buyer to a seller, PrivateAuto gives you the tools to get the deal done, from first contact to payment.

All messaging, negotiating, and scheduling happen in our app. You never disclose personal information. And we facilitate instantaneous, fee-free payments without exposing your financial information.

Even though we’re the best car-buying app, we don’t hate other listing sites. In fact, we love them so much that we created a solution just for them. It’s called DealNow.

Even though PrivateAuto is amazing, we know that you may find a great car listed for sale elsewhere, such as on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist. We also know that these sites will leave you in the lurch when it comes to getting the transaction completed.

That’s why we created DealNow. DealNow lets you find a car for sale on another site, and then buy it with our awesome transactional workflow. You skip the marketplace aspect of PrivateAuto and go straight into a streamlined transaction.

Here’s how it works:

1. Invite the seller to DealNow via a custom link.
2. Enjoy identity verification, in-app messaging, and our test drive scheduling feature (none of which require you to exchange contact info).
3. Meet the seller, and drive the car.
4. You and the seller go together through a step-by-step transaction process in which you each confirm relevant details right in the PrivateAuto mobile app. From mileage to the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) to the condition of the vehicle, we help you both prevent any errors.
5. You and the seller each electronically sign an official bill of sale. This is stored in your PrivateAuto account as a legal record you can refer to down the road.
6. You will then be prompted to initiate payment.
7. The seller will get a notification of funds received and confirm receipt of payment.
8. The seller signs over the car title and hands over the keys.

DealNow is so smooth, so safe, and so fast that you’ll never want to buy a car without it. No matter where you find your seller—from eBay Motors to Autotrader to the friend of a friend—DealNow will help you get the deal done.