Deal hunting on online marketplaces used to mean manually refreshing pages, bookmarking searches, and constantly checking your phone. It was a full-time job to find a part-time deal. But marketplace automation has changed the game entirely.

If you are new to automating your deal hunting, this guide walks you through everything — from understanding what automation means to setting up your first automated marketplace monitor.

What Is Marketplace Automation?

Marketplace automation means using tools to do the repetitive parts of deal hunting for you. Instead of you manually:

Opening Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, and Craigslist
Typing in your search terms
Sorting by newest first
Scrolling through dozens of listings
Checking back every 30 minutes

An automated monitor does all of this continuously in the background and only notifies you when something matching your criteria appears. Think of it as having a personal shopping assistant who watches every marketplace 24/7 and taps you on the shoulder when they spot a deal.

Getting Started in Five Minutes

Automating your deal hunting does not require any technical knowledge. Here is how to get started:

Step 1: Install the Chrome extension

The MKPL Chrome extension is the foundation of your automated deal hunting. It installs in one click and runs silently in your browser without slowing anything down.

Step 2: Set up your first keyword

Think about what you are currently searching for. A new couch? A used bike? A gaming console? Add that as your first keyword. Here are some tips:

Be specific enough — "mountain bike" is better than "bike"
Include the brand — "Trek mountain bike" is even better
Set a price range — Eliminates overpriced listings and commercial sellers

Step 3: Choose your platforms and cities

Select which platforms to monitor. For Canadian deal hunters, we recommend starting with all three — Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, and Craigslist — to maximize your coverage.

Choose your city and consider adding one or two neighbouring cities. Toronto shoppers should consider Hamilton. Calgary shoppers should add Edmonton. Less competition in nearby cities often means better deals.

Step 4: Enable notifications

This is the critical step that makes automation work. Without notifications, you would still need to manually check the extension. Connect Telegram for instant push notifications on your phone — this way, you see new deals within minutes no matter where you are.

Step 5: Let it run

That is it. The extension now monitors your selected marketplaces in the background. Go about your day, and you will receive a notification whenever a new listing matches your keywords and price range.

Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

Too many keywords at once

Start with two or three keywords for items you are actively looking for. Once you are comfortable with the alert flow, add more. Starting with twenty keywords will flood your notifications and cause alert fatigue.

Keywords that are too broad

"Furniture" will match thousands of listings. "Mid century dresser" will match the listings you actually want. Be specific.

Ignoring alerts

The whole point of automation is speed. When you receive an alert for a great deal, act on it immediately. A quick message to the seller puts you ahead of everyone who is still manually browsing.

Only monitoring one platform

Sellers choose different platforms for different reasons. Some prefer Facebook Marketplace for its social features. Others use Kijiji for its category organization. Craigslist attracts sellers who value simplicity. By monitoring all three, you see every listing.

When to Upgrade to Pro

The free Chrome extension is powerful but has one limitation — it only monitors while your browser is open. If you close your laptop at night or shut down Chrome, monitoring stops.

Pro monitoring solves this by running on our servers 24/7. This matters because:

Deals do not follow your schedule — Some of the best listings appear at 6 AM or midnight
Weekend postings — Friday night and Sunday evening are peak posting times
Competition never sleeps — Other deal hunters with Pro monitoring will see listings before you do

If you are serious about finding the best deals consistently, Pro monitoring pays for itself with the first deal you catch that you would have otherwise missed.

Real Results from Automated Monitoring

Here is what automated deal hunting looks like in practice:

You set up a monitor for "KitchenAid mixer" under $150
Three days later, you get an alert at 7:30 AM — someone just listed a barely-used KitchenAid Artisan for $120
You message the seller immediately and arrange pickup for that evening
The same mixer retails for $450

Without automation, that listing would have been claimed by someone else within the hour. With automation, you were first in line.

Start Automating Today

Ready to stop manually refreshing and start getting deals delivered to you? Install the free Chrome extension and set up your first automated monitor in under five minutes.

Already know you want 24/7 coverage? Check out our pricing page to see Pro and Business plans that monitor marketplaces around the clock.

Automate Your Deal Hunting: A Beginner's Guide