The hammer price is never what you pay. Add the buyer’s premium, online bidding fees, VAT, shipping and import tax, or work backwards from your budget to the highest bid you can afford.

Preset fees checked November 2026 from published terms. Auction houses change their fees and each sale’s own terms apply; always check them before bidding.

What gets added to the hammer price

Buyer’s premium: a percentage of the hammer price that the auction house charges the buyer, often 20% to 30%. Big houses use tiers: a higher rate on the first part of the price and lower rates above set thresholds.
VAT on the premium: in the UK and EU, VAT is often charged on the premium (not the hammer). Printed books are zero-rated in the UK, so many houses don’t add VAT to the premium on books; the sale terms say which.
Online bidding fees: bidding through a platform such as the-saleroom or Invaluable can add 3% to 5% of the hammer price, sometimes plus VAT. Bidding on the house’s own site may avoid it.
Shipping and insurance: usually quoted after the sale, and not cheap for heavy or valuable books.
Import VAT and duties: charged by your own country when the lot arrives from abroad. Many countries do not charge duty on books, but import VAT or handling fees may still apply.

Set your maximum bid before the auction

Decide what you are willing to pay in total, then use “how high I can bid” to turn it into a hammer price. With a 25% premium plus fees, a total budget of 1,000 usually means a maximum bid of around 750 to 790. Auctions move fast; it is easy to forget that every extra bid costs a quarter more than it looks.

Auction fee calculator

What gets added to the hammer price

Set your maximum bid before the auction

Fees by platform