Marketplace software for founders

Frequently Asked Questions

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What is an online marketplace?

An online marketplace platform is a website (or sometimes a mobile app) that aggregates inventory from multiple suppliers (sellers) in one place. It also lets customers (buyers) engage in transactions with the suppliers. A transaction on a marketplace can mean a product purchase, a calendar booking, a message to request a quote, or anything else that leads to an exchange of value between the customer and the supplier. Airbnb, Uber, eBay, Amazon, and Upwork are examples of popular online marketplaces.

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Who is Sharetribe for?

Sharetribe is for founders who have a marketplace idea. You and your team may be entrepreneurs looking to build the next marketplace unicorn. Or you might have a great idea for a side project. Perhaps you are an intrapreneur in a bigger organization. Maybe you want to start a non-profit or cooperative marketplace. In each case, Sharetribe's online marketplace software is for you.

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Does Sharetribe work for my idea?

If your business idea is an online marketplace for something, you can make it happen with Sharetribe's marketplace software. Your platform can be about selling products, renting items, vehicles, or spaces, or selling services. And a host of other things. Here’s a gallery of our customers where you can look for inspiration.

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How does Sharetribe work?

You start your marketplace project by answering a series of questions. Based on your answers, we'll create a test marketplace website for you. This only takes a few minutes. You can then customize the marketplace to your liking using Sharetribe's intuitive no-code marketplace website builder. Once you're happy with your marketplace, you can make it live, connect it to your own custom domain, and start inviting people to use it. You can also customize and extend your marketplace with custom code. Add any unique features or designs with Sharetribe's developer platform.

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Is it easy to create a marketplace with Sharetribe?

Yes. With Sharetribe's online marketplace builder, you can have a fully functional marketplace up and running in minutes. Customizing it to match your unique concept usually takes no more than a day. You don't need any coding skills. Comprehensive text and video tutorials will guide you through the setup process.

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What should I do if I need help?

If you need help setting up your marketplace platform, Sharetribe's free email support is available seven days a week. Just send us a message at hello@sharetribe.com, and we’ll get back to you in no time.

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How much does it cost to build a marketplace with Sharetribe?

The Sharetribe Build plan is $39/month with a 14-day free trial. There are no upfront fees to create an account with Sharetribe, and you can build the marketplace yourself. No coding skills are required. Once you're ready to set your marketplace live and invite actual users, you can subscribe to a live plan, which start at $99/month. If you need unique features that are not available in Sharetribe's marketplace software out of the box, you can either add those yourself with custom coding (this requires knowledge of HTML, CSS, and Javascript) or hire a Sharetribe Expert or another developer to build them for you. If you hire a developer, they will charge you based on the time it takes to build what you need.

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How does free trial work?

You can start your free 14-day Sharetribe trial without any payment commitment. We only ask for payment once you're ready to go live or your trial period has passed. During the trial, you have all Build plan features at your disposal. You have access to a test marketplace, which will be the basis for your eventual live platform. You can configure your settings and test your marketplace's functionality.

Once you're ready to go live, you can subscribe to the Lite, Pro, or Extend plan, depending on your needs. If you want to continue building your marketplace after your trial ends, you can subscribe to the affordable Build plan.

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Do I need to hire someone to build my marketplace?

No. You can build your marketplace yourself. No coding skills are required to create a marketplace with Sharetribe. However, if you need a specific unique feature that is not available in Sharetribe's marketplace builder out of the box, and you're not a developer, you might need to hire a developer to build the feature for you.

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How do I host my Sharetribe-powered marketplace?

You don't need to install or host anything to launch a marketplace with Sharetribe. Sharetribe's cloud hosting infrastructure takes care of hosting for you. You can either connect your own domain to your marketplace or use a default domain, [your-marketplace].mysharetribe.com. If you are using Sharetribe's developer platform to add custom features, you will need to install and host the custom code you've written on your own server. This is easy and affordable, as you only need to host user interface code. The heavy lifting related to databases and business logic still happens on Sharetribe's servers. Your custom code connects to Sharetribe's servers via APIs.

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Can I use my own design?

Yes. Sharetribe comes with a beautiful design template that is available out of the box. However, you have full freedom to modify or even replace it with your own unique design, thanks to Sharetribe's headless approach. Sharetribe gives you full control over the user interface of your marketplace. Modifying template design requires custom development with HTML, CSS, and Javascript. You can either develop a new design yourself or hire a Sharetribe Expert or another developer to help you.

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Can I add any features I want?

Yes. Sharetribe's developer platform allows you to customize and extend your marketplace platform infinitely. You can add any features, integrate any third-party services, or change your design and workflows. Making these changes requires custom development with HTML, CSS, and Javascript. You can either develop custom features yourself or hire a Sharetribe Expert or another developer to help you.

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Can I build a mobile app with Sharetribe?

Yes. Sharetribe comes with a responsive marketplace website template that looks great on mobile browsers. You can also build a native mobile app. This requires custom development on top of Sharetribe's APIs using the developer platform.

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My marketplace idea is completely unique. Are you sure I can build it with Sharetribe?

Yes. Sharetribe works for any marketplace idea. If your marketplace requires lots of custom features that are unique to your concept, you will likely need to use the developer platform and custom-develop the features on top of Sharetribe's standard marketplace functionality.

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I expect my marketplace will have millions of users and listings. Can Sharetribe support it?

Yes. Sharetribe does not limit how many users and listings you can have. Sharetribe’s hosted cloud infrastructure is optimized to ensure that your marketplace performs, regardless of how much data it has. And we maintain excellent uptime.

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Is Sharetribe secure?

Yes. Sharetribe's marketplace software has been powering online marketplace businesses for over ten years. Over the years, we've built powerful safeguards against hacking attempts and DDoS attacks and follow best practices to ensure your data is safe.