Posting a free classified ad

Posting a classified ad on Underground Aquarium is free. You fill in one form on the Post it free page, and your ad goes live straight away for 45 days. Buyers reach you through on-site messages.

How do I post a free classified ad?

1. Tap Post Free Ad in the top bar. On a phone, tap the + button in the middle of the bottom bar and choose Post a free ad. The footer also has a Post a free ad link, and every area page and the Every listing page has a Post free ad button. All of them open Post it free.
2. Sign in if you're asked to (see below).
3. Choose For sale, Free or Wanted under What are you posting?
4. Type a Title and pick a Category.
5. Under Where are you?, pick your State, then your Closest metro area. Your town is optional.
6. For a For sale ad, enter a Price (USD) or leave it empty. Pick a Condition if the field is shown.
7. Add up to 8 photos and a Description.
8. Decide whether to show your email or a phone number under How people reach you.
9. Tap Post it, free. The button changes to Posting… while it works, then you land on your new listing page.

The page tells you under the button: "Stays up for 45 days. Renew or delete it any time."

Do I need an account to post?

Yes. If you open Post it free while signed out, you see Sign in to post with the note "Posting is free. An account just keeps the site free of spam and lets buyers message you." Tap Sign in if you have an account or Create account to make one. Browsing listings never needs an account. See Creating an account.

What's on the post form? (every field)

The form is one page, top to bottom:

Only the title, category and area are truly required. Everything else makes your ad better but won't stop you posting.

What do For sale, Free and Wanted change on the form?

The three buttons at the top change which fields you see:

• For sale: shows Price (USD) and, for non-living items, Condition (optional). Title hint: "Blue dream neocaridina, adult breeders".
• Free: hides the price box. Your ad shows Free in place of a price and gets a green Free tag. Condition still shows for non-living items.
• Wanted: hides both price and condition. Your ad gets a blue Wanted tag and no price. The title hint changes to "Looking for a 40 gallon breeder" and the description hint to "What you're after, size, budget, how far you'll travel."

More detail in Listing categories and ad types.

Setting a price

The Price (USD) box only appears for For sale ads.

• Type a number like 25 or 25.99. It shows on your ad as "$25" or "$25.99".
• Leave it empty and your ad shows "Contact for price".
• Enter 0 and your ad shows as Free, with the Free tag, exactly like a Free ad.
• A negative number shows the error "Enter a valid price, or leave it blank for 'contact for price'."

Prices are in US dollars. There's no separate "or best offer" option, so say "OBO" or "firm" in the description if it matters.

Choosing your state and metro area

Your area decides where your ad appears, because buyers browse by metro area.

1. Pick your State. States are listed alphabetically by name.
2. Pick your Closest metro area. Until a state is chosen, this box reads "Choose your state first". After, it reads "Choose an area in (your state)…". If you change the state later, the metro area clears and you pick again.
3. Optionally type Your town (for example "Roseville").

Once an area is chosen, a green line confirms it, for example "Your ad will show in Sacramento, California, listed as Roseville." Before you pick one, the form explains "Buyers browse by metro area, so this is what puts your ad in front of people near you. Your exact address is never shown."

The site remembers the last area you posted in on that device and browser, and fills it in on your next new ad. More in Choosing your area.

Adding photos to your ad

Tap Add photos (it becomes Add more once you have one) and pick pictures from your phone or computer. You can pick several at once.

• Up to 8 photos per ad. The label shows your count, like Photos (3/8).
• The first photo is marked Cover and is what shows on listing cards.
• Tap the X on a photo to remove it.
• iPhone HEIC photos are converted automatically. You'll see Processing photos… while they're prepared, and the post button waits until it's done.

Photos upload when you tap Post it, free, not when you pick them. Full details, including errors, are in Listing photos.

How people reach you

Under How people reach you, the first box always reads Buyers message you here, "Always on. Your email address is never shown." Every ad can be messaged, and messages land in your Messages inbox.

Below that, two optional extras:

• Show my email on the listing: shows your account email on the ad as a tap-to-email link. The form warns "Anyone can see it, scrapers included."
• Phone number (optional, shown publicly): shows the number on your ad with Call and Text buttons. The Text button opens the buyer's texting app with a starter message asking if your item is still available.

Leave both off to keep everything in on-site messages. See Contacting a seller for what buyers see.

The listing rules line

Just above the post button, the form says: "By posting you confirm this listing follows our listing rules: nothing endangered, protected or illegal in your state." The listing rules link opens the Listing rules page in a new tab. If you pick a fish, invert, coral or plant category, you also get a reminder about state laws. See Livestock and restricted species.

What happens after I tap Post it, free?

• Your photos upload, then the ad is saved as active.
• You land on your new listing page, where you see "This is your listing." and buttons for Mark as sold (or Mark as found) and Manage this listing.
• Your ad appears in your metro area's page, on the nationwide Every listing page, on your public profile's Listings tab, and it can show up in The Feed as something you listed.
• It stays up for 45 days. You can edit, renew, mark sold or delete it from My listings.

Your ad's web address is made from the title you first gave it plus a short code. Editing the title later doesn't change the address.

Can I post more than one ad?

Yes. There's no limit on how many ads you can have live. Post each item or lot separately, or bundle several things in one ad and list them in the description. My listings shows your most recent 200 ads.

Can I save a draft and finish later?

No. The post form doesn't save drafts, and leaving the page loses what you typed. The only drafts in My listings are ads carried over from the old version of the site. If you're not ready, write your description somewhere else first and paste it in.

Common problems

"Give your listing a title." The Title is empty. Type a title and tap Post it, free again.

"Pick a category." You haven't chosen from the Category list. It starts on "Select a category…".

"Choose the area you're posting in." You need both a State and a Closest metro area. Picking only a state isn't enough.

"Enter a valid price, or leave it blank for 'contact for price'." The price is negative or isn't a number. Fix it or clear the box.

"You need to be signed in to post." Your session ended while you were filling in the form. Sign in again in another tab, then come back and tap the button. If the page reloads, your typing is lost, so copy your description first.

"Photo upload failed: ..." or "Posting failed: ..." Something went wrong saving your photos or your ad. Check your connection and try again. If it keeps happening, email support@undergroundaquarium.com with the exact message.

The post button is greyed out. It's disabled while photos are still processing (Processing photos…) or while the ad is posting. Wait a few seconds.

I don't see a Condition box. It's hidden for Freshwater Fish, Saltwater & Coral, Shrimp, Snails & Inverts and Aquatic Plants, and for all Wanted ads. That's on purpose.

My town isn't in the metro area list. The list is metro areas, not towns. Pick the closest one and type your town in Your town. See Choosing your area.