# Ebay Hardware Hunter > Hunt eBay for a target piece of hardware (default: Mac mini) on a budget, score every listing for deal quality, log them to a Zapier Table, and report the best buy plus backups with direct purchase links. Built entirely on the Zapier SDK CLI - no eBay developer keys, no app code. Use when the user wants to find, compare, or track hardware deals on eBay (e.g. "find me a cheap Mac mini", "hunt for compute", "what RAM upgrades are going on eBay", "log today's GPU deals"). - Skill: `zapier/ebay-hardware-hunter` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add zapier/ebay-hardware-hunter` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/zapier/ebay-hardware-hunter/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Docs & Writing - License: MIT - Author: zapier (https://skillmd.com/u/zapier) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/zapier/ebay-hardware-hunter --- # eBay Hardware Hunter An agent skill that shops eBay for hardware on a budget, scores the listings, and records them - all through the **Zapier SDK**. (Build walkthrough: .) The native eBay Zapier app is seller-focused (orders, fulfilment), so this skill reaches the **buyer-side eBay Browse API** through Zapier's authenticated `curl`, which injects your connected eBay account's OAuth token. Everything stays inside the Zapier SDK. ``` search (eBay Browse API via Zapier curl) -> score -> log (Zapier Table) -> report best deal + backups ``` ## Prerequisites (one-time setup) 1. **Node.js 20+** and the Zapier SDK packages: ```bash npm install @zapier/zapier-sdk@^0.70.2 @zapier/zapier-sdk-cli@^0.55.3 ``` Every command below is run as `npx zapier-sdk `. 2. **Log the SDK into Zapier** (browser auth, token stored locally for the OS user that runs it): ```bash npx zapier-sdk login ``` Verify with `npx zapier-sdk get-profile`. > Headless box? The login prints an authorize URL and listens on > `localhost:` for the callback. Open the URL, approve, then `curl` the > resulting `http://localhost:/oauth?code=...&state=...` URL **from the > same machine** the CLI is running on to complete the handshake. 3. **Connect your eBay account to Zapier** at -> **Add connection** -> **eBay** -> sign in and authorize. This grant carries the base `api_scope` the Browse API needs. Confirm it exists: ```bash npx zapier-sdk find-first-connection ebay --json ``` ## Configuration Read these knobs from the user's request; fall back to the defaults. | Setting | Default | Notes | |------------------|----------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | `QUERY` | `mac mini` | eBay search keywords. | | `CATEGORY_ID` | `111418` | eBay category to restrict to (`111418` = Apple Desktops & All-in-Ones). Omit to search all categories. **Strongly recommended** - without it, accessories dominate (see relevance guard below). | | `EXCLUDE` | `box only, empty box, dock, hub, stand, case, shell, charger, cable, psu, power supply, lead, spares, faulty, screen protector, sticker, skin` | Title keywords that mean "not the actual machine". | | `MARKETPLACE` | `EBAY_GB` | eBay marketplace id (`EBAY_US`, `EBAY_DE`, ...). | | `CURRENCY` | `GBP` | Must match the marketplace (`USD` for `EBAY_US`, etc.). | | `BUDGET` | `400` | Max total price (item) you'll consider, in `CURRENCY`. | | `MIN_PRICE` | `50` | Floor to skip junk/parts listings. | | `CONDITIONS` | `USED|NEW` | eBay condition set: `NEW`, `USED`, `CERTIFIED_REFURBISHED`. | | `BUYING_OPTIONS` | `FIXED_PRICE` | `FIXED_PRICE`, `AUCTION`, or `FIXED_PRICE|AUCTION`. | | `MAX_RESULTS` | `15` | Listings to fetch, score, and log. | | `TABLE_NAME` | `Mac mini deals` | Zapier Table to log into (created if missing). | ## Procedure ### Step 1 - Resolve the eBay connection id ```bash npx zapier-sdk find-first-connection ebay --json ``` Take `.data.id`. If `data` is null, stop and tell the user to connect eBay (Prerequisite 3). ### Step 2 - Search eBay (Browse API through Zapier) Build the Browse API URL and call it with `curl --connection `, passing the marketplace header. URL-encode the query and the `filter` value. ```bash npx zapier-sdk curl \ "https://api.ebay.com/buy/browse/v1/item_summary/search?q=mac%20mini&limit=15&sort=price&category_ids=111418&filter=price:%5B50..400%5D,priceCurrency:GBP,buyingOptions:%7BFIXED_PRICE%7D,conditions:%7BUSED%7CNEW%7D" \ --connection \ -H "X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID: EBAY_GB" ``` Notes for building the URL from config: - `q=` URL-encoded `QUERY`. - `category_ids=` `CATEGORY_ID` (omit the param entirely if `CATEGORY_ID` is blank). - `limit=` `MAX_RESULTS` (max 200 per page). - `sort=price` returns cheapest first. - `filter=price:[MIN_PRICE..BUDGET],priceCurrency:CURRENCY,buyingOptions:{BUYING_OPTIONS},conditions:{CONDITIONS}` - encode `[` as `%5B`, `]` as `%5D`, `{` as `%7B`, `}` as `%7D`, `|` as `%7C`. - Header `X-EBAY-C-MARKETPLACE-ID: MARKETPLACE`. > **Relevance guard - do not skip this.** A bare keyword search for popular > hardware is full of accessories and parts. `q=mac mini` alone surfaces docks, > hubs, stands, and even "BOX only" listings that are cheap and therefore score > as "great deals". Two defences, both applied: (1) `CATEGORY_ID` restricts the > server-side search to actual machines; (2) the `EXCLUDE` keyword check in > Step 3 drops anything whose title still betrays a non-machine. The response is JSON with an `itemSummaries` array. For each item read: `title`, `price.value`, `shippingOptions[0].shippingCost.value` (absent -> treat as collection/unknown, default 0), `condition`, `buyingOptions`, `seller.username`, `seller.feedbackPercentage`, `seller.feedbackScore`, `marketingPrice.discountPercentage` (optional), `itemId`, and `itemWebUrl` (the direct buy link). ### Step 3 - Score each listing (0-100) First **drop irrelevant listings**: skip any item whose lowercased `title` contains an `EXCLUDE` keyword (box only, dock, hub, stand, case, charger, cable, etc.). This is what stops an empty "Mac Mini BOX only" from topping the ranking. Then compute `total = price + shipping` and skip anything with `total > BUDGET`. Sum the components below (clamp the final score to 0-100). State the rubric to the user so the ranking is transparent. - **Value vs budget - up to 40.** `40 * (BUDGET - total) / BUDGET`. Cheaper relative to budget scores higher; at-budget scores ~0. - **Seller trust - up to 25.** `25 * (feedbackPercentage / 100)`, then subtract up to 10 if `feedbackScore < 50` (thin track record). Floor at 0. - **Condition - up to 15.** `NEW`/`Brand New` = 15; `Certified`/`Excellent - Refurbished` = 12; `Used`/`Very Good`/`Good` = 8; `For parts or not working` = 0. - **Buying option - up to 10.** `FIXED_PRICE` (buy-it-now, instant) = 10; `FIXED_PRICE` **with** `BEST_OFFER` = 10 (+ note offer is possible); `AUCTION` = 5 (price not final). - **Shipping - up to 10.** Free = 10; otherwise `10 * (1 - shipping / 20)` floored at 0 (i.e. >= 20 in shipping scores 0). - **Discount bonus - up to 5.** If `marketingPrice.discountPercentage` present, add `min(5, discountPercentage / 10)`. Sort listings by score descending. The top one is the recommended deal. ### Step 4 - Ensure the log table exists ```bash npx zapier-sdk list-tables --json ``` Find a table whose `name` equals `TABLE_NAME`. If none exists, create it and its fields (one-time): ```bash npx zapier-sdk create-table "Mac mini deals" --description "eBay hardware hunter log" # take .data.id from the output, then: npx zapier-sdk create-table-fields '[ {"name":"title","type":"text"}, {"name":"score","type":"number"}, {"name":"price_gbp","type":"text"}, {"name":"shipping_gbp","type":"text"}, {"name":"total_gbp","type":"text"}, {"name":"condition","type":"text"}, {"name":"buying_options","type":"text"}, {"name":"seller","type":"text"}, {"name":"seller_feedback_pct","type":"text"}, {"name":"seller_feedback_score","type":"number"}, {"name":"url","type":"text"}, {"name":"item_id","type":"text"}, {"name":"found_at","type":"text"} ]' ``` > Money and percentage values are stored as **text** on purpose: Zapier Table > `number` fields round to integers on write, which would turn `319.99` into > `319`. Keep `score` and `seller_feedback_score` as `number`. ### Step 5 - Log the scored listings Each record must be wrapped in `{"data": {...}}`. Write all scored listings (up to 100 per call): ```bash npx zapier-sdk create-table-records '[ {"data":{ "title":"Apple Mac mini (2020) M1 256GB 8GB", "score":82, "price_gbp":"319.99", "shipping_gbp":"0.00", "total_gbp":"319.99", "condition":"Excellent - Refurbished", "buying_options":"FIXED_PRICE", "seller":"clove-technology", "seller_feedback_pct":"99.1", "seller_feedback_score":15282, "url":"https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/267581736217", "item_id":"v1|267581736217|0", "found_at":"2026-06-15T16:45:00Z" }} ]' ``` Use the item's `itemWebUrl` for `url`. Set `found_at` to the current UTC time. ### Step 6 - Report to the user Reply in chat with: - **Best deal**: title, total price, condition, seller (feedback %), buy link, and one line on why it won (the scoring breakdown). - **2-3 backups**: title, total, link. - A line confirming how many listings were logged to the `TABLE_NAME` table. This chat report is the "notification" (this skill is notification-channel agnostic; see Extending below to fan out to Slack, etc.). ## Failure modes & fallbacks - **`find-first-connection ebay` returns null** -> eBay isn't connected. Send the user to . Do not proceed. - **Browse API returns `errorId` 1100/"Access denied" or HTTP 403** -> the connected eBay token lacks Browse scope. Reconnect eBay in Zapier; if it still fails, the account may need a fresh OAuth grant. (In testing, a standard eBay connection carries the base `api_scope` the Browse search needs.) - **`"total": 0` / empty `itemSummaries`** -> loosen the filter: widen `BUDGET`, add `AUCTION` to `BUYING_OPTIONS`, or broaden `CONDITIONS`. Report the empty result honestly rather than inventing listings. - **Auth error on any `zapier-sdk` call** -> run `npx zapier-sdk login` as the OS user that will run the skill (the token is per-user). ## Known limitations - The Browse API item summary does **not** expose watcher counts or bid counts, so those are not scored or logged. - This skill **finds and records** deals and hands you a purchase link - it does **not** place bids or buy. eBay's API and the Zapier eBay app do not expose buyer bidding/checkout, so completing a purchase stays a human click. (This matches the "prepare checkout / deep link" approach.) ## Extending - **Other hardware**: change `QUERY` (e.g. `rtx 4090`, `ddr5 64gb`, `thinkpad x1`). Tune `BUDGET`/`CONDITIONS` to match. - **Other notification channels**: any Zapier-connected app can be the alert. After Step 6, e.g. Slack: ```bash npx zapier-sdk run-action slack write create_message \ --inputs '{"channel":"#deals","text":"Best Mac mini lead: ..."}' ``` (Requires a Slack connection. Discover inputs with `npx zapier-sdk get-action-input-fields-schema slack write create_message`.) - **Scheduling**: run this skill on a cron to hunt daily and keep the table as a running price history.