Item Specifics help buyers to find and compare particular types of items more easily when searching and browsing eBay.

By using Item Specifics in listings, sellers can also benefit in these ways:

  • Increased exposure of their listings in eBay's search and browse pages
  • Recommendations for more effective names and values (so the seller doesn't have to guess)
  • Faster listing times (because you can pre-fill recommended names and values for the seller)
  • More structured data to help buyers grasp the details of the seller's listing more easily

In the API, Item Specifics are name/value pairs (simple strings). A seller chooses from a list of the most popular field names and values defined by other users, and/or defines their own field names and values. In the API, you use the names and values the seller specified (as-is) when you list or display an item.

Note: Item Specifics are not supported in all categories.

Item specifics can be included in a listing as follows:

  • You can pre-fill Item Specifics based on stock information from an eBay catalog product. For example, if you are listing a camera, you just specify the UPC in Item.ProductListingDetails, and if eBay is able to match the UPC value to a product in the eBay product catalog, eBay will be able to automatically fill out some of the product details, including the pertinent Item Specifics for that product. For additional information, refer to eBay catalog products.
  • You can define the Item Specifics yourself in the Item.ItemSpecifics container of an add/revise/relist call. This might be necessary if you are listing an item that does not have a UPC, ISBN, EAN, or other industry-standard identifier, or if the product has an identifier but eBay is unable to match the identifier to a product in the eBay product catalog. For additional information, refer to Required Item Specifics.
  • You can list a collection of similar items as a multiple-variation listing. For example, if you are listing T-shirts that are all the same brand and style, but they come in different colors and sizes, call AddFixedPriceItem, use the Item.ItemSpecifics container to define the common information (e.g., "Brand" and "Sleeve Length",) and then use the Item.Variations.Variation.VariationSpecifics container to specify the Item Specifics for each variation of the product. Generally, t-shirts and other pieces of clothing would vary by "Color" and "Size". For additional information, refer to Multiple-variation listings.