Guide
How to Auto Reply to "Is This Still Available?"
Reply templates, time-wasters and auto reply options. By Julien Benaggoune, founder of PilotAgent. Last updated: October 2026
Short answer: reply fast, confirm it's available, and end with a time, for example "Yes, it's still available. I can do pickup tonight after 6 or Saturday morning. Which works for you?" It is the most sent message on Facebook Marketplace, because it is Facebook's one-tap default: in our car dealers' chats, 44% of buyers open with it and nothing else. Many senders vanish after you answer, but your real buyer is in there too. Below are reply templates, how to filter out time-wasters, and the three ways to answer it automatically.
Reply templates that get an answer
Each one confirms availability, answers the next obvious question, and ends with a question the buyer has to answer.
Any item
Furniture
Electronics
Cars
Rentals
How to filter out time-wasters
- 1
Never answer with just “yes”. Answer with a time. A buyer who has to pick a time either commits or drops out, and both save you messages.
- 2
Put the answers in the listing. Price, condition, pickup area, and “price is firm” if it is. Every fact in the listing is a question you never have to answer.
- 3
Ask one question only a real buyer answers. “When could you pick it up?” sorts buyers from browsers faster than anything else.
- 4
Don't hold items without a time. “First to pick up gets it” is fair and stops the “can you hold it till next week?” chain.
- 5
Share the exact address only once a time is agreed. Give the area in the listing, and the address when the pickup is confirmed.
- 6
Follow up once, then let it go. One message the next day is enough. Chasing a buyer who has gone quiet rarely works.
- 7
Let something else send the first reply. If the first answer is automatic, a time-waster costs you nothing. You only step in for the buyers who reply.
Three ways to auto reply to "Is this still available?"
Option 1: Meta AI's built-in auto reply (free)
Since March 2026, Facebook offers AI replies to availability questions. When a buyer asks about an item, Meta AI answers using your listing details such as price, availability and pickup location. You switch it on, and can preview it, when you create a listing.
Good
- Free and built in
- No setup beyond a toggle
- Fine for casual, one-off selling
Limits
- Handles the first availability question, then stops
- Cannot negotiate, capture the buyer's number, or agree a time
- You still do all the actual selling
Option 2: Saved replies (business pages)
If you sell through a Facebook business page, Messenger lets you create saved replies and an instant reply for new conversations. You write the text once and it fires at every new message.
Good
- Free
- Instant acknowledgement so buyers know you exist
- You control the exact wording
Limits
- Needs a business page, not a personal profile
- Same canned text for every buyer and every listing
- A buyer's second message goes unanswered
Option 3: An AI that finishes the conversation
The availability question is never the real conversation. What follows is "will you take $80", "what's the mileage", "can I come Saturday". An AI auto reply tool like PilotAgent answers the first message and everything after it: it knows your listing details, negotiates within a floor price you set, pulls the buyer's name and number into a CRM, and suggests times to agree the viewing or pickup. It runs as a Chrome extension in your own browser, so there is no Meta API approval and no business page requirement.
The practical difference: options 1 and 2 acknowledge buyers. Option 3 sells to them, including the many that message while you are at work or asleep. In our car dealers' chats, 61% of first messages arrived outside weekday 9 to 5.
Frequently asked
How do I auto reply to “Is this still available?” on Facebook Marketplace?
You have three options. Facebook's Meta AI reply can answer the availability question from your listing details for free. Business pages can set a saved reply in Messenger. Or an AI agent like PilotAgent answers the availability question and every follow-up, negotiates within your rules, and agrees a time to meet.
What is the best reply to “Is this still available?”
Confirm it, then ask a question that moves the buyer forward, usually a time. For example: “Yes, it's still available. I can do pickup tonight after 6 or Saturday morning. Which works for you?” A reply with a time gets far more answers than a plain “yes”.
Why do buyers ask if it's still available and then disappear?
It is Facebook's default suggested message, one tap for the buyer, and many people send it to several listings at once. Real buyers are mixed in with them, and the only way to find out which is which is to answer.
How do I stop time-wasters on Facebook Marketplace?
Put the price, condition and pickup area in the listing, answer with a time instead of a plain yes, don't hold items without an agreed pickup time, and give the exact address only once a time is agreed. Letting an AI send the first reply means time-wasters cost you nothing.
Does ignoring these messages hurt my listings?
Slow or missing replies lose real buyers, who usually message several sellers at once and buy from whoever answers first. Facebook also shows how quickly you respond on your profile, and a slow response makes future buyers less likely to message.
About the author
Julien Benaggoune is the founder of PilotAgent, the AI agent for Facebook Marketplace sellers. He works directly with the car dealers, landlords and sellers who use it, and writes these guides from the questions their buyers ask every day.
Related reading: Facebook Marketplace auto reply, the full guide, scripts for car dealers, scripts for landlords, too many Marketplace messages? how to keep up, or the auto reply tools comparison.