Install in 10 minutesUpload, import the database, edit config.php, log in.How bidding worksExact bids, automatic bidding, reserve price, anti-sniping.Get paid onlineStripe, PayPal and bank transfer for the fees of the site.Turn on the AIListing assistant, AI search, translation and moderation.
Getting started
Requirements, installation and the first hour with your new auction website.
1Introduction to PHP BidWhat PHP Bid is, who it is for and how its three parts work together: the auction website, the members area for buyers and sellers, and the admin panel.2Requirements and installationHow to install the PHP Bid auction script: PHP and MySQL requirements, uploading the files, importing the database, editing config.php and the first login.3First steps after installationA practical checklist for your new PHP Bid auction website: password, site name, logo and template, categories, fees, payments, AI and the first test auction.4Files, folders and customizationThe folder structure of the PHP Bid source code: website pages, templates, members area, admin panel, language files and where to make your own changes.
The website (front end)
What visitors, bidders and buyers see: search, auction pages, bidding and Buy it now.
5The home page of your auction websiteWhat the PHP Bid home page shows: hero search with AI, featured auctions, ending soon and just listed lots, categories, how it works, statistics and newsletter.6Browsing categories and searching auctionsHow bidders find items on a PHP Bid site: categories, keyword search, price and condition filters, category fields, sorting, ending soon and the AI search.7The auction page (lot page)Everything on a PHP Bid auction page: photo gallery, live countdown, bid box, Buy it now, offers, shipping, VAT, questions, Ask AI and seller rating.8Bidding: exact bids, automatic bidding, reserve and anti-snipingHow bidding works in PHP Bid: exact bids or automatic proxy bidding, bid increments, reserve prices, anti-sniping extensions, outbid alerts and winning.9Buy it now, fixed price items and Make an offerHow Buy it now works during an auction, how fixed price listings work, and how buyers make offers, receive counter-offers and buy at the accepted price.10Registration, login and password resetHow visitors create an account on your auction site, log in with e-mail or username, verify their e-mail address and reset a forgotten password.11Pages, blog, FAQ, contact form and newsletterThe content pages of a PHP Bid site: How it works, About, Terms and Privacy pages, the auction blog, the FAQ page, the contact form and the newsletter sign-up.
Members area
The buyer and seller panel: bids, watchlist, listings, AI assistant, sales, offers and invoices.
12The members area and dashboardHow the PHP Bid members area works: one account for buying and selling, the dashboard with active bids and alerts, notifications and the members menu.13My bids, won items, paying the seller and feedbackBuying with PHP Bid: follow your bids, bid again when outbid, see the items you won, choose shipping, pay the seller, confirm delivery and leave feedback.14Watchlist, saved searches and recently viewed itemsHelp buyers come back: the watchlist with ending soon reminders, saved searches that e-mail new matching items, and the recently viewed items on the website.15Selling an item with the AI listing assistantHow sellers list an item in PHP Bid: photos, AI title and description, category fields, auction or Buy it now, reserve, duration, shipping and VAT.16Bulk import of listings from a CSV fileImport many auction listings at once from a CSV spreadsheet, with photos downloaded from URLs, then check the drafts and publish them together.17Managing listings, relisting and answering questionsHow sellers manage listings in PHP Bid: live, scheduled, draft, pending and ended items, editing, ending early, relisting and answering questions.18Sold items: payment, shipping and trackingWhat sellers do after a sale in PHP Bid: see the buyer and the total, confirm the payment, ship with a tracking number, cancel a sale and rate the buyer.19Offers and counter-offersHow buyers and sellers negotiate in PHP Bid: send an offer, accept, decline or counter, buy at the accepted price, and how offers expire automatically.20Private messages between buyers and sellersHow the built-in messaging of PHP Bid works: contact a seller from an auction, message about a sale, conversations per item, e-mail alerts and admin oversight.21Invoices and paying the fees of the websiteHow members see and pay the fees of your auction website: commission, buyer's premium, listing and featured fees, by Stripe, PayPal or bank transfer.22Profile, e-mail preferences, feedback and passwordHow members edit their public profile and picture, the shipping address, the e-mail notifications they want, see their feedback rating and change the password.
Admin panel
Running the marketplace: auctions, moderation, sales, members, content and administrators.
23Admin login, dashboard, messages and passwordThe PHP Bid admin panel: logging in, the dashboard with auctions, sales, traffic and pending items, contact messages, login logs and the password.24Managing auctions: approval, editing and bidsManage listings in the PHP Bid admin: filter all auctions, approve or reject new listings, add and edit auctions, feature them and retract bids.25Categories and category fieldsBuild the category tree of your auction site with images and sub-categories, and add fields like brand, size or year that become search filters.26Moderation: questions, reported listings and banned wordsKeep your auction marketplace safe: moderate public questions, handle listings reported by members, block banned words and use AI moderation in PHP Bid.27Sales, invoices, payments and feedbackFollow every sale of your auction site in the admin panel, change a sale status, confirm bank transfers, record payments, cancel invoices and moderate feedback.28Members, newsletter subscribers and member messagesManage auction site members: search, edit, deactivate or stop selling, see activity and logins, export newsletter subscribers and read messages.29Website pages, menus, blog and the AI page writerEdit the pages and menus of your PHP Bid site, write blog posts with cover images, use the AI page writer and set SEO titles and descriptions.30Templates, logo, colours and interface textsChange the design of your PHP Bid site: 8 templates, editable HTML, logo and favicon upload, your own colours and any text of the interface.31Featured listings and advertisement zonesTwo extra sources of income: paid featured listings shown at the top of your auction site, and advertisement zones for your own banners or Google AdSense code.32Administrators, groups and permissionsGive staff safe access to the PHP Bid admin panel: create administrators, use groups such as Moderator and choose which pages each group sees.
Configuration
Every setting explained: auction rules, fees, VAT, payments, AI, SEO, languages and design.
33General settings, design, members and e-mailThe general settings of PHP Bid: site name, contact details, time zone, languages and URLs, maintenance mode, colours, registration and e-mail.34Auction rules: listings, durations, increments and anti-snipingSet the auction rules: member listings and approval, offers, messages, saved searches, reports, banned words, durations, increments, anti-sniping.35Currency, commissions and feesSet the currency of your auction website and how it earns money: seller commission, buyer's premium, listing fee, featured listing fee and payment instructions.36VAT / sales tax and shipping methodsTurn on VAT or sales tax: tax name, rates for sellers, prices with or without VAT, VAT on the website fees, and the suggested shipping methods.37Payments: Stripe, PayPal and bank transferConnect Stripe, PayPal and bank transfer so members pay your fees online: API keys, the Stripe webhook, PayPal sandbox and bank details.38AI settings: provider, key and AI featuresTurn on the AI of PHP Bid: choose Groq, OpenAI or DeepSeek, add the API key and enable the listing assistant, AI search, translation and Ask AI.39SEO, tracking codes and social media linksGet your auction site found on Google: friendly URLs, SEO titles and descriptions, Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel and social media links.40Languages: a multilingual auction websiteRun your PHP Bid auction site in several languages: add a language, translate the interface texts, pages and categories with AI, and set the default language.41Cron job, live updates and e-mailsHow PHP Bid closes ended auctions and sends reminders and alerts, the optional cron job, live price updates and the e-mails sent to members.
Help & reference
Earning money with your site, troubleshooting and maintenance.
42Earning money with your auction websiteThe revenue models of an online auction site: seller commission, buyer's premium, listing and featured fees, advertising, and pricing tips.43Troubleshooting and common questionsFixes for common PHP Bid problems: blank pages, database errors, e-mails, photo uploads, friendly URLs, Stripe webhooks, AI and auction closing.44Security, backups and updatesKeep your auction website safe: admin passwords and access, HTTPS, the security salt, database and file backups, demo data and updates.
Prefer to read it offline?
The complete manual is also available as one clean, printable PDF with all chapters and screenshots.