Copart vs IAAI — the same buyer fees, different add-ons, and who can bid.
Copart and IAA (Insurance Auto Auctions, at iaai.com) are separate companies; IAA is one of RB Global's brands. Both sell insurance total losses and salvage-title vehicles online, and both publish a fee schedule for buyers without a dealer license. Read side by side, Copart's non-clean-title buyer fee and online-bid fee match IAA's at every price. What differs is the fixed fees and Copart's membership: on a non-clean title IAA costs $15 more at any bid, and on a $900 car the totals are $495 at Copart and $510 at IAA. Here is the full comparison, computed from the schedules read on 16 October 2026.
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Quick Answer
- Is IAA the same as Copart?
- No. IAA, Insurance Auto Auctions, is a separate company; RB Global lists it among its brands alongside Ritchie Bros. Copart runs its own auctions, memberships and fee schedule. Both sell insurance and salvage vehicles online, which is why buyers compare them.
- Is IAAI cheaper than Copart?
- Not on the fees. Both auctions charge the same tiered buyer fee and online-bid fee at every price. IAA adds a $105 service fee and $20 title handling; Copart adds a $95 gate fee on non-clean titles and a $15 environmental fee. So IAA is $15 more on a non-clean title, and more again on a clean one, where Copart's tables and $79 gate fee are lower. Copart's membership is $99 or $249 a year on top.
- What is the $400 deposit for on Copart?
- It belongs to Copart's Premier membership: $249 a year plus a $400 deposit, for bidding of up to $100,000 a day. Basic members ($99) can buy one vehicle a day up to $2,000 with no deposit; above that, the deposit is 10% of the buying power you want. That is why a new Basic account can only bid $2,000.
Five checks before you bid at either auction
The fees are close enough that the lot decides. These are the steps that change what you pay and what you get.
- 1Read the title typeCopart charges less on clean titles ($428 on a $900 bid against $495 non-clean). IAA's public schedule has one table.
- 2Check you may bid on the lotCopart public members are limited to lots marked No License Required, or must go through a broker; licensed-only lots need a dealer license.
- 3Match the membership to the bidCopart Basic stops at $2,000 a day without a deposit; Premier's $400 deposit opens $100,000.
- 4Run the VINEarlier auction sales, title brands and odometer readings tell you what the photos and the listing don't.
- 5Add the fixed fees and the ride homeIAA: $105 service + $20 title. Copart: gate + $15 environmental, then title mailing. Transport is extra at both.
Two Companies, Two Fee Schedules
IAA is Insurance Auto Auctions, and its U.S. site is iaai.com, which is why buyers write it both ways. It is not part of Copart: RB Global, the company behind Ritchie Bros. equipment auctions, lists IAA among its brands. Copart runs its own auctions, memberships and online bidding. Both sell insurance total losses and salvage-title vehicles online, and Copart also runs repo and impound sales for lenders on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
For a buyer without a dealer license, each auction publishes a separate fee schedule: Copart's "U.S. Non-Licensed Fees" and IAA's "Standard IAA Non-Licensed Buyer Fees". Both were read on 16 October 2026, Copart's cell by cell from its HTML tables and IAA's from the text and image of its chart. Licensed dealers pay from other schedules that this page doesn't model. Everything below is computed from those two public schedules, so every number on the page moves when the code that holds them is updated.
What You Pay at Each Bid
Total auction fees on top of the winning bid: secured funds and a live online bid at both auctions. IAA's public schedule has no clean-title table, so its column applies to any title.
| Winning bid | Copart, non-clean title | Copart, clean title | IAA (any title) | IAA minus Copart non-clean |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $500 | $380 | $338 | $395 | +$15 |
| $900 | $495 | $428 | $510 | +$15 |
| $2,000 | $755 | $663 | $770 | +$15 |
| $5,000 | $1,010 | $953 | $1,025 | +$15 |
| $10,000 | $1,270 | $1,093 | $1,285 | +$15 |
| $20,000 | $1,770 | $1,693 | $1,785 | +$15 |
Not included: Copart's membership ($99 or $249 a year), Copart's title mailing ($15 USPS or $20 FedEx), IAA's optional $10 premium imagery, IAA's environmental and fuel surcharge (listed without an amount), sales tax, storage and transport. A pre-bid at Copart or a proxy bid at IAA costs a little less than a live bid at both.
Why the Totals Are So Close
The two schedules share their core. Copart's buyer fee for a non-clean title paid with secured funds and IAA's public buyer fee return the same amount at every price, and the two online-bid fee tables match row for row: our fee code tests this on every build. On a $900 bid that is $320 in buyer fee and $65 for the live bid at either auction. Above $15,000, both switch to a percentage: 7.5% at Copart (non-clean, secured) and 7.5% at IAA.
The difference is in the flat fees. Copart charges a gate fee ($95 on a non-clean title, $79 on a clean one) and a $15 environmental fee. IAA charges a $105 service fee (effective October 1, 2026) and $20 for title handling. That is $125 against $110, a $15 gap that stays the same from a $50 bid to a $20,000 one. Copart's clean-title tables are lower, and paying with non-secured funds moves Copart to a higher table (up to 12.5% above $15,000).
The flat fees, side by side
- Copart gate: $95 non-clean, $79 clean.
- Copart environmental: $15 on every lot.
- IAA service: $105 from October 1, 2026.
- IAA title handling: $20.
Total Cost by Bid at a Glance
The six worked bids from the table on one card, with the fixed fees that make up the difference.
Every figure is computed from both auctions' fee schedules as read on 16 October 2026.
Copart's Memberships, the $400 Deposit and the $2,000 Limit
Copart makes public buyers pick a membership. Basic costs $99 a year and lets you buy one vehicle a day for up to $2,000 with no deposit. To bid higher on Basic, you put down a deposit of 10% of the buying power you want, so $5,000 of buying power takes a $500 deposit. Premier costs $249 a year plus a $400 deposit and allows bidding of up to $100,000 a day. That $400 is the deposit people ask about, and the $2,000 no-deposit ceiling is why a new account can't bid more.
IAA's registration and public-buyer pages answered our reader with a bot challenge, which we don't bypass, so its sign-up terms and any deposit are not quoted here. Check them on iaai.com when you register. Its published fee schedule, above, is the part both auctions make public in full.
Copart memberships
- Basic, $99/yr: 1 car a day to $2,000, no deposit.
- Higher on Basic: deposit 10% of buying power.
- Premier, $249/yr: $400 deposit, to $100,000 a day.
- Membership fee: on top of every lot's fees.
Who Can Bid Without a Dealer License
Both auctions sell to the public, but not every lot. These are the routes that exist, and what each one costs you.
Copart public members
Copart limits public members to lots marked No License Required. Everything else needs a dealer license or a broker.
Copart brokers
A licensed broker bids on licensed-only lots in its own name for a fee. AutoBidMaster is one; our review covers its tiers and deposit.
IAA public buyers
IAA publishes a non-licensed buyer fee schedule, so it sells to buyers without a license. Read each lot's buyer rules before you bid.
IAA brokers
Third parties such as SalvageBid offer access to IAA inventory without a license, with their own deposit and terms.
A dealer license
Opens licensed-only lots at both, on the dealer fee schedules. Wholesale licenses in some states need no retail lot.
Copart repo sales
Lender repos, off-lease, bank-owned and impound vehicles, many with clean titles, sold Tuesdays and Thursdays; public members still bid only on No License Required lots.
Look Up the Lot's History First
Enter the VIN for a free preview of title brands, earlier auction sales with their recorded damage and photos, and odometer readings.
Copart or IAAI: Which to Use
A decision from the fee schedules and the access rules, not from a preference. The lot you want usually settles it.
Copart fits when…
- The lot has a clean title: $428 in fees on a $900 bid, the lowest here.
- You'll buy several cars a year, so one $99 or $249 membership spreads across them.
- You want lender repo and impound sales, which Copart runs on set weekdays.
- The lot is marked No License Required, so you can bid directly.
IAAI fits when…
- You're buying one non-clean car: IAA's fees run only $15 above Copart's, before Copart's yearly membership (check IAA's registration terms too).
- The vehicle you want is simply listed there; inventory, not fees, decides most purchases.
- You'll go through a broker that works IAA lots, such as SalvageBid.
Both: check the title type, the lot's license rule and the storage clock before you bid.
After the Hammer: Late Fees, Storage and the Title
Copart charges a $50 late fee if you don't pay within 3 business days, and can relist an unpaid vehicle after 8 calendar days, charging 10% of the bid with a $600 minimum. The title comes by mail for $15 (USPS) or $20 (FedEx), or $20 if handled in person. Its schedule also lists a $69 flooring fee.
IAA leaves storage and late fees to each branch, so read the branch's terms on the lot page. Its $20 title-handling fee is part of every purchase, and its environmental and fuel surcharge appears on the schedule without an amount. At both auctions, budget for transport: neither fee schedule includes moving the car.
Run the VIN Whichever Auction You Use
A salvage auction listing is written to sell the car. It shows the damage recorded for this sale and a set of photos. It doesn't show an earlier auction where the same car sold with different damage, a title brand from another state, or an odometer reading that jumps backward.
Those are the records a VIN report pulls. Ours lists title brands, NMVTIS junk and salvage records, insurance total-loss records, odometer readings, and auction records with the damage the auction recorded and its photos. Run it on the lot's VIN before you bid, and on any car a broker offers you: if an earlier auction sale is on record, the report shows it with the damage that auction recorded and its photos.
Related Checks and Guides
The fee calculators for each auction, the brokers, and the license that opens dealer-only lots.
Where These Facts Come From
Fees from each auction's own non-licensed buyer schedule, read on 16 October 2026; ownership from RB Global's site, read on 18 October 2026. Auctions change their fees; the cost estimate on each lot page is the final word.
CarCheckerVIN is not affiliated with Copart, IAA, RB Global or any broker. IAA's registration pages could not be read when this page was written, so its sign-up terms are not quoted.
Copart vs IAAI — Frequently Asked Questions
What buyers ask most when choosing between the two.
Is IAAI better than Copart?+
Neither wins on fees alone. Their tiered buyer and online-bid fees are identical; IAA's fixed fees are $15 higher than Copart's on a non-clean title, and Copart is cheaper still on clean titles, but Copart charges a $99 or $249 yearly membership. The car you want, and whether its lot needs a license, usually decides.
How much do you pay on a $900 car at Copart?+
With secured funds and a live bid, $495 in fees on a non-clean title or $428 on a clean one, so $1,395 or $1,328 in all, before the membership, title mailing, tax and transport. The same $900 car at IAA carries $510 in fees.
Can a regular person buy a car from Copart?+
Yes, with a Copart membership, on lots marked No License Required. Lots that need a dealer license can be bought through a broker, which bids in its own name for a fee.
Why can I only bid $2,000 on Copart?+
A Basic membership allows one vehicle a day up to $2,000 without a deposit. To raise it, add a deposit of 10% of the buying power you want, or move to Premier, which takes a $400 deposit and allows up to $100,000 a day.
Are IAA and Copart the same company?+
No. IAA is one of RB Global's brands, listed on RB Global's site with Ritchie Bros., Rouse and SmartEquip. Copart is a separate company with its own memberships and fee schedule.
Is it safe to buy a car from Copart or IAA?+
Many of their vehicles are insurance total losses, sold with the damage recorded for the sale. Check the title type and the lot's license rule, add every fee, and run the VIN for earlier auction sales, title brands and odometer readings before you bid.
Run the VIN Before You Bid
Enter any 17-character VIN for a free preview. The full report lists title brands, NMVTIS junk and salvage records, insurance total-loss records, odometer readings, and auction records with the damage the auction recorded and its photos.
CarCheckerVIN is an independent vehicle-history service and is not affiliated with Copart, IAA or RB Global. Fees are computed from each auction's published non-licensed buyer schedule and may change. Records in our reports reflect what was reported to our data providers. Our reports do not include police or repair-shop accident entries.
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