What Is Autolist? A Dealer's Guide (It's Owned by CarGurus)
Autolist is a used-car search site owned by CarGurus. What it is, how dealer cars end up on it, what shoppers see, and what to ask before counting on its leads.
Part of the Listings, photos & merchandising guide: Where to list your cars for leads — and how to be on every site at once
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A lot of people search for Autolist every month, and almost all of them are shoppers looking for the app. If you're a dealer, the question is different: is this another site I need to sign up for, and how did my car end up there?
The short answer surprised me: Autolist is owned by CarGurus. I run a used-car lot and built DealerVLO, the DMS my lot runs on, which sends a daily feed to CarGurus. Here's what Autolist is, read off its own site and CarGurus' filings on November 11, 2026, and what to ask before you count on it.
Autolist is CarGurus
CarGurus' 2025 annual report says it "operates the Autolist online marketplace in the U.S." as an independent brand, the same way it runs PistonHeads in the UK. Autolist.com's footer reads "© 2026 CarGurus, Inc.," and its "Sell My Car" link goes to CarGurus.
The annual report describes Autolist as a US marketplace, on the web and in an app, that "includes inventory from top automotive dealers across the U.S." with alerts when new cars or price changes match a shopper's saved search. Autolist's own help page is blunter: "Autolist does not sell cars - we find existing listings and help you find the best deal."
So Autolist isn't a separate company you need a contract with. It's another storefront for listings, owned by the same company as CarGurus.
How dealer cars end up on Autolist
This is the part nobody spells out. Autolist doesn't publish a dealer signup, a price list, or where each listing comes from. Its help page gives one dealer contact, dealersuccess@autolist.com, under a heading for its New Car Shopper Assistant.
CarGurus' annual report has a telling contrast. For PistonHeads in the UK, it says paying UK dealers "who list on the CarGurus platform automatically have their inventory added to the PistonHeads site." For Autolist, it says nothing like that. Maybe it works the same way, maybe it depends on your package, maybe Autolist pulls listings from elsewhere too. I don't know, and I won't guess.
What you can do is take the path you control:
- Get your cars on CarGurus. CarGurus has a free Restricted tier with capped, anonymous leads and paid packages; I covered both in the cheapest way to get your inventory on CarGurus.
- Ask your CarGurus rep about Autolist. Does my listing show there? Does it depend on my package? Where do the leads go?
- Tag the source on every lead so you know whether Autolist is sending you anyone.
In DealerVLO, the CarGurus feed is included in the $29 a month, along with Cars.com, Autotrader and Carfax.com. Tick CarGurus under Settings → List my cars on other sites (no CarGurus ID needed), and your cars go out once a day with their photos and price. DealerVLO doesn't send anything to Autolist directly; whether your CarGurus listings show up there is CarGurus' call.
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What shoppers see on Autolist
When I searched used Honda Civics near my lot on Autolist on November 11, 2026, every listing showed a price marked "Includes dealer fees" and a deal label: Good Deal, Fair Deal, Uncertain, or No Rating on new cars. Each car had a "Request Info" button and an estimated monthly payment.
Those labels look a lot like CarGurus' own deal ratings, but Autolist's search pages don't explain how they're calculated, so I won't tell you they're the same thing. Two things are safe to take from it:
- Your price is being judged. A car priced high for your market will look it on Autolist just like on CarGurus. My guide to how CarGurus deal ratings work covers how to price for them.
- Fees are in the price. "Includes dealer fees" means a low sticker with a doc fee hidden behind it isn't how it'll show. CarGurus' dealer pricing policy, since October 13, 2026, says advertised prices must include mandatory dealer fees, doc fee included. DealerVLO's feed sends the price only, no separate fee columns, so set your fees in CarGurus' Dealer Fee Setup or include them in your advertised price.
DealerVLO sends the same price (your internet price, or asking price if none is set) to your website and every feed. Change it once and CarGurus, Cars.com, Autotrader and Carfax.com get it with the next daily feed, so the price a shopper sees on Autolist never comes from a stale copy you forgot to update.
Leads from Autolist
Autolist listings have a "Request Info" form, and the shopper's question goes to the seller. Ask CarGurus how those leads reach you and how they're labeled, because if they arrive looking like ordinary CarGurus leads you'll never know Autolist sent them.
DealerVLO doesn't import leads from listing sites. When one lands in your email, add it in the lead inbox with the Add lead form, source "Listing site," the site's name in the notes, and a follow-up date so it shows up on your Due list. After 60 to 90 days you'll know whether it's worth asking about. My post on lead source tracking covers the rest.
Before you count on Autolist
Get the answers in an email. If your CarGurus listings do show on Autolist, it's extra exposure at no extra cost. If they don't, you haven't lost anything by asking.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Autolist?
Autolist is a car-shopping site and app in the US, run by CarGurus as a separate brand. CarGurus' 2025 annual report describes it as a US automotive marketplace with inventory from dealers across the country, and Autolist's own help page says it doesn't sell cars; it finds existing listings and helps shoppers find a deal.
Who owns Autolist?
CarGurus. Its 2025 annual report says it operates the Autolist marketplace in the US as an independent brand, and Autolist.com's footer reads "© 2026 CarGurus, Inc." as of November 11, 2026.
How do I get my cars listed on Autolist as a dealer?
Autolist doesn't publish a dealer signup or say where each listing comes from. Since CarGurus owns it, ask your CarGurus rep whether your CarGurus listings appear on Autolist, and whether that depends on your package. Autolist's help page lists dealersuccess@autolist.com as its dealer contact.
Is Autolist free for dealers?
Autolist doesn't publish any dealer pricing. CarGurus has a free Restricted tier and paid packages; whether either one puts your cars on Autolist is a question for CarGurus.
Does Autolist show deal ratings?
When we searched Autolist on November 11, 2026, used listings showed labels like Good Deal, Fair Deal, Uncertain and No Rating, and prices marked "Includes dealer fees." Autolist doesn't explain on those pages how the labels are calculated.
Can DealerVLO send my inventory to Autolist?
Not directly. DealerVLO sends a daily feed to CarGurus, which owns Autolist, along with Cars.com, Autotrader and Carfax.com, all included in its $29 a month. Whether your CarGurus listings also show on Autolist is up to CarGurus, so ask your rep.
The bottom line
Autolist is CarGurus' second storefront in the US, not a separate site you need to sign up for. Get your cars on CarGurus, ask your rep whether they show on Autolist, price with your fees in, and tag the leads so you know what it sends.
DealerVLO sends your cars to CarGurus, Cars.com, Autotrader and Carfax.com every day, with your DMS and dealer website, for $29 a month flat. Start your free 14-day trial.
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