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Getting Started at Swapster

Welcome to the worlds first swapping marketplace! Here are a few details about the steps you need to take following sign up and some tips on getting the best out of our service.

Your Profile

Verify Your Email Address

Before you can add any details about yourself or upload swaps you must verify your email address. Check your inbox for a welcome email and click the link to verify and activate your account. Please remember to check your junk/spam folder as sometimes emails will go in there.

Create your Profile

Once you have verified your email, complete your profile here. Enter a username which will be your 'handle' on the website, your full name, upload a profile picture if you want, write a little bit about what your interested in and set some preferences for the kind of swaps you would like to make.

Add an Address

Before you can post a swap, please add your address for collections and deliveries. We'll also be able to show swaps that are closer to you.

Posting Your First Swap

Hit the Swap Now Button!

The first thing to do is add some pictures! If you are swapping a physical item, take a few well lit, uncluttered images of it to upload. Alternatively if you are posting an offer of a service like mowing a lawn or a diy task, take an image of yourself doing the task or the tools you use to do the job. Be creative to stand out! Here's a few tips to get good images for your swap.

• Lighting: Try to take your image in a well lit room, in full daylight if possible.
• Use a plain background: Place your item in front of a plain background if you can, so it stands out and it is clear what is actually on offer for the swap.
• Nothing Flashy: Don't use the camera flash it will make the colours look different. Natural light is always better
• Always use your own images: Please take the images yourself or ask a friend to do it for you, if you are in the picture you can use the editor to blur your features (recommended). Copyright and AI images are not allowed.
• Use up to 10 images: If you are posting a physical item, get as many angles and detailed pics as you can, up to 10. Show any defects or marks. For services, you probably only want a few, but the more you post, the better!

Uploading and Editing Your Images

Uploading pictures is easy with our image editing tools. You can use our image upload editor to add multiple images of your item or service. Click upload, and then browse your photo library or take an image with your device. Select the file(s) and then click edit to make changes like cropping, resizing and framing. If you upload more than one image ( a maximum of 10 ) the image editor will load each one in order for you to edit. The first image on the left is your main image. You can click to drag and drop reorder the images to your liking.

Note: Please do not use ai generated images, they will be rejected and your account may be suspended.

Filling in the Basics

In the Offer section under the images, type into the item field the sort of the item you are offering. Start typing the item name, e.g. bike, apples, iphone into the item field and select the one that is the closest match. For example, if you have a tee shirt to swap, when you type in 't' you'll see 'casual t-shirt', select that. Enter the quantity, and the unit of measurement. The unit of measurement selector will only show those that apply to the item you have chosen, so for t-shirt, you will only see No. (number of). If you chose a service item like lawn mowing service, than the unit would be hour. Some things may show more than one option, like apples could be in grams or kilograms or number of, just choose the appropriate unit for your item.

When you select an item, any attributes you can detail will load below, so again for example if you select a t-shirt, you will be able to add the size, colour, brand, material etc.

Once you have filled in all the details of your offer, you can then fill in the details of the item you are asking for in return (Ask). Tell us the quantity, unit, item, attributes, title and description of the item you would like to receive.

After you have added all the details, read and confirm the authenticity declaration and hit Create Swap!

Your First Match

What Happens Now?

After you submit your swap to the market, you will be redirected to the home page feed and you will probably want to take a look at your swap and check the details. While you are doing that, the Swapster Engine is running in the background to see if your swap matches up with any already posted on the site. If your swap is open (unmatched) you can make changes to it. If the swap is matched, editing is suspended.

If you receive a match, you will see a notification and you will see a picture appear of the item offered for your item on your swap post. Click the link in the notification or click 'view match' on your swap detail page to view the item offered. You can then either accept or reject the offer.

Accepting the Match

You did it! A match was found, and you will see a notification asking you to review it. If you are happy with the match, click accept. Now it's up to the other people in the chain to accept their matches. If there's just one person (a straight swap), if they accept your offer then the swap is locked and you can arrange collection. When there is more than one person its a chain, and each person in the chain must accept their match to lock in the swap.

Rejecting the Match

If you are not happy with the match, you can reject it. When you reject a match, the rest of the chain will collapse and all the swaps will be free to match again. IT will remove the match from your swap and allow you to make changes to your swap post again.

Fulfillment Arrangements

Once everyone in the chain has accepted their match, the swap is locked and each seller needs to create a fulfillment arrangement — this is how you agree on the when, where, and how of the exchange.

Choosing Your Fulfillment Type

As the seller, when creating a fulfillment arrangement you'll choose from five options:

• They collect from me: The buyer comes to your address to pick up the item. Perfect for most local physical item swaps.
• I deliver to them: You take the item directly to the buyer's address in person.
• Post / courier: You ship the item via a carrier such as Royal Mail or DPD. You'll choose the carrier and service level, and can add a tracking number once the item is dispatched. The buyer's address is used as the delivery destination automatically.
• Service at my location: For service swaps where you perform the work at your own address — the buyer comes to you.
• Service at their location: For service swaps where you travel to the buyer's address to perform the service — lawn mowing, home repairs, tutoring, etc.

After choosing the fulfillment type, set a time window for when the exchange will happen, select the address, and add any notes or special instructions such as gate codes, parking information, or access requirements. The address field automatically switches to the correct party's address based on the fulfillment type you choose.

Confirmation — Buyer First, Then Seller

Once the seller creates the arrangement, the buyer reviews it and confirms first. The buyer must agree to the time and location before the seller can lock it in. This protects the buyer — they won't be committed to a time they didn't agree to.

If the proposed time doesn't work, the buyer can click Request different time instead of confirming. This signals to the seller that a change is needed. The seller then edits the arrangement with a new window, which resets both confirmations — the buyer reviews again, confirms, and then the seller confirms to lock it in. You can go back and forth as many times as needed until both parties are happy.

Once both have confirmed, the arrangement status changes to Confirmed and the exchange can go ahead.

Marking as Received

After the exchange takes place — whether that's a collection, delivery, or service — the buyer marks the arrangement as received on the arrangement page. Once every arrangement across the whole chain has been marked received, the swap status advances to "Received" and ratings unlock for everyone.

Rating

After you have collected the item, you can rate the swap and the seller. This will help other users make informed decisions when choosing swaps, and rating feedback directly affects the exchange value score (exv) of any items listed by that user, so being a trustworthy swapper has value. Click 'Rate the Swap' and use the three scores to rate the item. We score on quality of the item, delivery timing, and comparison value. Each score is ranked 1-5. A good rating means any other items will see an increase in exchange value, and a bad rating will decrease it, in comparison to the market value (mxv) of the item.

Completed Swaps

After rating your swap, it's classed as completed, and it is archived for you. You can still view the details in your profile, under the 'Completed Swaps' tab. And that's it... If you have any questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out to our support team via the email below or use the contact form