Frequently Asked Questions

Prices and data

1. Why do I not see any data for my realm?

   If no price data appears after selecting a realm, there are a few possible reasons: the data collection may not have run yet for that realm, the data source (Blizzard API for Retail, TSM for Classic versions) may be temporarily unavailable, or the item may not have any active listings on that realm. Try selecting a different realm or check back after the next data collection cycle.

2. How often are prices updated?

   Retail prices are updated hourly from the Blizzard API. Classic versions use TSM (TradeSkillMaster) exclusively — TBC Anniversary updates hourly, MoP Classic updates daily, and Season of Discovery updates about twice a day. Check the “Recent Snapshots” table on the dashboard page to see the exact timestamp of the most recent data collection for your realm.

3. Why do Classic versions use TSM data instead of the Blizzard API?

   Classic-family game versions (MoP Classic, TBC Anniversary, Season of Discovery) use TSM (TradeSkillMaster) exclusively as their data source. The Blizzard API does not provide auction house data for these versions. TSM aggregates market data from its addon user base. MoP Classic data updates daily, TBC Anniversary updates hourly, and Season of Discovery updates about twice a day. A data source badge near the price stats indicates the data origin.

4. What does the price change percentage mean?

   The price change shows how the current price compares to the previous data snapshot. A positive percentage means the price has gone up; a negative percentage means it has gone down. Large swings can indicate market manipulation, sudden demand spikes, supply changes from a new patch or hotfix, or simply a low-volume item where a single listing can dramatically shift the average.

5. What is the difference between "Market Value" and "Avg Buyout"?

   Avg Buyout is a simple arithmetic mean of all buyout prices — every listing counts equally regardless of how many items it contains. Market Value is our estimate of what an item is worth, read from the auction listings we can see rather than from completed sales — on Retail, the quantity-weighted average of the current listings with high outliers discarded; on the Classic editions, TradeSkillMaster’s market value for the selected realm and faction, which weights the lowest-priced listings and trims outliers. The Auction House glossary in the guide carries the full definition for both.

6. What are commodity items and why do they show different data?

   In Retail WoW, commodity items (trade goods, consumables, reagents) are sold on a region-wide Auction House rather than per-realm. Their prices are the same across all realms. The site displays commodity data using unit price (per-item cost) rather than total buyout, and may show “Commodities” instead of a realm name. Classic versions do not have region-wide commodities — all items in Classic are realm-specific.

7. Can I track prices for items across multiple realms?

   Yes. Every item page has a Realm Price Comparison section that lines the item up across the realms in your region, and a Prices by Realm table underneath it. Retail commodity items are priced region-wide, so they read the same everywhere. On the Auction House pages themselves you work one realm at a time, chosen with the realm dropdown.

Using Booty Bay Broker

8. Do I need an account to use Booty Bay Broker?

   No. All core features — browsing the Auction House, viewing prices, and reading charts — work without an account. Creating an account with your email and password enables features like favorites, a custom dashboard of tracked items, and price alerts. You can also optionally link your Battle.net account for character syncing.

9. Is Booty Bay Broker free?

   Yes — no subscription, no paywall, and no premium tier. Accounts are optional and also free.

10. Why is the item I am looking for not in search results?

    The item database is populated from collected auction data. If an item has never appeared on any tracked auction house, it will not be in the database. Additionally, make sure you have the correct game version selected — items are version-specific, so a Retail item will not appear in Classic searches and vice versa. Try broadening your search terms, using a shorter keyword, or checking that you are browsing the right game version.

11. What regions are currently supported?

    The Auction House pages cover the US and EU regions on every edition. Retail also collects KR (Korea) and TW (Taiwan) realms, but they are not served on the Auction House pages yet — pick one in the region toggle and you will see US prices for now. The WoW Token page already covers all four. The Classic editions are US and EU only, because our Classic data source carries no KR or TW data.

About Booty Bay Broker

12. Is this affiliated with Blizzard Entertainment?

    No. Booty Bay Broker is an independently built tool. Retail auction data is sourced from the publicly available Blizzard Battle.net API; Classic versions use the TradeSkillMaster (TSM) API. World of Warcraft and all related content are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.

13. Is Booty Bay Broker family-friendly?

    Yes. Booty Bay Broker is a general-audience, family-friendly World of Warcraft economy tool with no adult content. “Booty Bay” refers to the in-game goblin-run trade port in Stranglethorn Vale — home to one of WoW’s most iconic Auction Houses since 2004 — not anything else. The site only tracks Auction House prices.

Tools and support

14. How do I track WoW Token prices?

    Visit the WoW Token page to see live gold prices for the US, EU, KR, and TW regions. The page shows current prices, 24-hour changes, historical price charts with multiple time ranges, and key statistics like 24-hour high and low, 7-day average, and all-time records.

15. How do I check crafting costs?

    The Professions tab on each Auction House page lets you browse recipes by profession, view material costs at current market prices, and calculate crafting profit margins. The Gathering Calculator helps estimate farming profits for herbs, ores, and other gathered materials.

16. How can I report a bug or suggest a feature?

    Have feedback or found a bug? Use the Feedback page, the Contact link in the site footer, email us at mize@bootybaybroker.com, or reach out on X/Twitter at @realmizeguy. Community feedback is welcome and helps improve the tool for everyone.