AuctionSleuth searching is based on the premise that there are only two ways to win an auction at the right price: Be the first buyer when an auction item first appears with the Buy It Now option, or be the successful high bidder right before an auction closes (End of Auction). AuctionSleuth constantly scans available auctions and instantly notifies you with a pop-up message, an audio signal, or an e-mail when it finds an auction that meets the criteria you specify. If you are away from your computer, AuctionSleuth can send a message to your cell phone.

AuctionSleuth works with both eBay and Yahoo auctions. Only those auctions that meet your search criteria are displayed. AuctionSleuth only searches for Buy It Now and End of Auction. You can go about your daily business while the program runs in the background on your PC, relentlessly searching for auctions. Fifty auction searches can be configured. AuctionSleuth provides both simple and advanced search operators to help isolate searches that meet your criteria. Users can select the update-time interval that best suits their needs. AuctionSleuth incorporates a custom auction browser to ensure that your normal Web browsing isn't interrupted.

Version 1.8.7 includes a sorting feature in the main window, adds a Check for Updates icon in the toolbar, fixes international searches, and fixes the window size if AuctionSleuth shuts down while in the tray.