PoE Trade

[nelson]

An Overview of the Trade System.

Trade is integral to the in-game economy of Path of Exile. A lot of the in-game economy of PoE relies on player-to-player trade, which makes it pretty unique compared with other traditional RPGs. 

Here’s a breakdown of how trade works in PoE, including common trade terms, methods, and tips for navigating it:

Currency: The PoE economy does not have gold or any other currency. Instead, it has a number of currency items; most of the common ones are Chaos Orbs, Exalted Orbs, etc. These items also act as currency and crafting material.

Items: Most of the drops in-game will be able to be traded; however, some items -for example, the reward for a quest or some unique items- cannot be traded.

Trade Channels: In-game chat channels in PoE are /trade channels, used for players to communicate with one another for the sale or buying of items. Trade Methods Manual Trading: The typical way players advertise items is through the trade chat in either global or local channels. When you find what you want, whisper them, asking about a price, then meet in-game.

PoE-Trade Website: This is an external tool for players to list and then search for items. It is the most widely used method for trading, simply because you can filter items by specific stats required, price, and more. Players can view the stock available for an item, message a seller directly.

Direct Trade (In-Game): Once the particulars of a trade have been decided upon through PoE Trade or in chat, players can directly trade in-game by opening up a "Trade" window in game. This is accomplished by dragging an item into the window and then accepting the trade.

Currency Items

There are many different types of currency items in PoE's economy. A few examples include:

Chaos Orb: This is one of the most common pieces of currency within PoE and is typically used to reroll the properties of an item.

Exalted Orb: More appreciated as currency, adding a new mod to an item. Fusing Orbs, Jeweller's Orbs, and Chromatic Orbs: For the crafting and modification of items. Blessed Orbs, Regal Orbs, and Divine Orbs: Stronger currencies used in the modification of items; re-rolling or rerolling rarity. The PoE Trade Economy

Supply and Demand: The value of an item, which may include a few skill gems, divination cards, or certain unique items, can fluctuate. With the release of a new league, a patch release, the supply and demand change.

Bartering: Some just prefer to barter or trade the item directly to and with other players rather than use currency. An example would be when a player doesn't want to sell an item for Chaos Orbs; instead, that player makes an offer of various items in hopes of acquiring something more rare or precious.

Item Rarity: The rarer an item is-for instance, a rare item with particular affixes or uniques with particular mods-the higher the value of such an item. High-demand items, including those used for meta builds and end-game content, always fetch high prices.

How to Buy and Sell Effectively

Buying items: When buying, you really want to check an item's stats and compare prices to make sure you don't overpay for it. That's where PoE's Trade website can come in handy-it will show the pricing for items listed in your search results.

Selling Items: When you sell something, it is a very important task to price your items. In the case of items that are popular and in demand, you can quote a reasonable price, competitive with others, but leave some room for negotiation. You can also use the Trade website to help figure out reasonable prices.

Negotiation: Often, PoE trade involves some degree of negotiation. Sellers may list an item for a higher price than they actually expect to receive it for, assuming that buyers will haggle.

Scams and Caution

Scamming in Trade: While the PoE trade system is considered quite safe, there is always a scammer or two around the corner who wants to deceive people. Popular scams include but aren't limited to:

Item Swapping: Where the scammer throws an apparently lowly valued item in the trade window only to then immediately switch it out for something entirely different - such as a junk item or currency.

Scamming via Fake Listings: Listing an item at an extremely low price in order to scam a buyer into overpaying for a set of items.

How to Avoid Scams: Always verify the item being bought or sold. Take your time and look over the stats of the item. Never believe deals that sound too good to be true. Using the PoE Trade site is often safer than dealing directly in chat or global channels.

Trade Quality of Life (QoL) Tools

Path of Exile Trade Macro: Some players use external utilities or macros that allow them to more easily sort through and organize trade offers. These can be useful for sorting items quickly that meet certain criteria, such as affixes or item types.

Price Checking Tools: Community-driven sites, along with PoE Trade's own macros, can estimate the value of an item given its stats, rarity, and market conditions at any given time. You are also able to check the prices in PoE Trade.
 
Trade Restrictions

League Start and End: The beginning of every new league-the start, for example-always has very high demand for certain items like leveling gear, skill gems, or even crafting. As leagues progress, the demand does tend to shift.

Per-Item Trade Caps: Sometimes, there is a limit on how much a person can sell or trade within a given time frame. This is usually related more to gold farming and bottling, though.

Leagues and Trade

Leagues: PoE has temporary "leagues" with specific mechanisms and challenges. Items and currency within a league are only tradeable within that league, but one does have the option to transfer items to Standard if that is preferred. This usually results in unique market dynamics in which items might be super valuable in one league, absolutely worthless in another.

Standard vs. League: In Standard, it's possible to trade all items from past leagues. In a new league, only items that are relevant to the current league mechanics will hold value.
 
Advanced Trade Concepts

Crafting: Most of the players will craft items, alter them, and then resell. Crafting in PoE can range from simple operations like adding a random mod to an item to advanced strategies using Fossils or Eldritch crafts in order to achieve specific affixes on an item. These items can often sell for high premiums.

Flipping: Players purchase items at low prices and resell them at higher prices. This requires great knowledge of market trends and item values.

Auction-like Systems: While there is no traditional auction house in PoE, sometimes the players can create these informal "auction" listings for rare or high-value items where they let others bid on them.

Trading Tips:

Know the Item Values: Check out what similar items are going for on the website PoE Trade.

Be Prepared to Haggle: Trading involves some haggling often. Be prepared to go a little under your listed price, and be ready for buyers to do so as well.

Learn about Currency Conversion: While most people use bulk currency, such as Chaos Orb or Exalts, to buy and sell stuff, you can learn the fluctuation of various currencies to help gain more value with one item or another.

Patience Pays Off: If you are selling any rare items or high-value items, be patient. It just takes time when that buyer actually comes along.