Making an offer on a listing

On many fixed-price listings you do not have to pay the asking price without discussion. You can make an offer, which is a price you propose to the seller. (Offers are a fixed-price feature; auctions work by bidding instead. See How auctions and bidding work.)

Sending an offer

Open the offer dialog from the listing and fill in two things:

• Your offer amount: the price you are proposing to pay for the animal. This is the field that matters most. Offer what you believe is fair; the seller can accept it or not.
• A message (optional): a short note to the seller. Use it to introduce yourself, explain your offer, or ask a question. A genuine, friendly note often helps a seller say yes, especially on animals where they care who the buyer is.

Submit, and the seller is notified of your offer.

Making an offer as a guest

You can make an offer even before you have a Creatures account. If you are not signed in, the offer dialog also asks for your first name, last name, and email, so the seller knows who the offer is from.

Because sending an offer is a real commitment, Creatures verifies your email before the offer goes out. When you submit, we email you a 6-digit code and the dialog switches to "Check your email." Enter the code and your offer is sent, and a buyer profile is created for you at the same time, so you are ready to check out if the seller accepts. The code expires in an hour, and you can resend it if it does not arrive.

If you are already signed in, none of this applies: your offer is sent immediately, with no code and no extra fields.

What the seller can do

The seller has exactly three responses (this is the seller's view of an offer, covered in Reviewing offers on your listing), and it helps to know there is no back-and-forth haggling built in:

• Accept: the seller agrees to your price. You are then sent to checkout at the agreed price, where you pay that amount (plus the buyer fee and any add-ons).
• Decline: the seller turns the offer down. You are notified, and you are free to make another offer or simply buy at the asking price.
• Withdraw (an accepted offer): if a seller accepted but circumstances change before you have paid, they can withdraw the acceptance, and you are notified.

There is no counter-offer. The seller does not send back a different number; they accept or decline what you proposed. If your offer is declined, the next move is yours: offer again at a different price, or buy outright.

After an offer is accepted

Once the seller accepts, your job is to check out promptly at the agreed price.

An accepted offer is held open for a limited window (a few days), so complete the purchase while it is yours. Checkout works exactly like any fixed-price purchase: you pay, Creatures holds the funds, and the seller is paid only once you confirm delivery. See How buying works.

At that checkout you also get the same privacy option as any purchase: tick "Keep this animal private" and the animal is set private (hidden from the feed, search, and your public profile), no acquisition post is made, and watchers and saved-search alerts about the sale are suppressed. The sale still shows in the public recently-sold results as an anonymized comparison with only the category and price. See Keeping your purchase private.

Related information

• Buying at a fixed price
• How buying works: payments, held funds, and protection
• Buyer applications: what they are and how to apply

Updated on: 07/07/2026