Open Dataset: U.S. Government Surplus Auctions
A free, open dataset of completed U.S. federal (GSA) surplus auction lots - what the federal government sold, in what condition, where, and the bids it drew. Released under CC-BY 4.0 and updated monthly. Free to use, even commercially, with attribution to GovAuctions.
Lots
4,195
From
May 6, 2026
Through
Jun 9, 2026
License
CC-BY 4.0
Why this is free and open
GSA is a U.S. federal agency, so its listings are works of the U.S. government and are not subject to copyright (17 U.S.C. §105). The dataset is data only - no images - and contains no personal information (the sellers are federal agencies). That makes it clean to republish, cite, and build on.
What's in it
One row per completed federal surplus lot:
title- lot title (public-domain federal text)category- normalized categorycondition- condition as reported by GSAstate / city / zip- lot locationstarting_bid- opening / list pricecurrent_or_final_bid- bid level (see caveat)bid_count- number of bids observedbuyer_premium_pct- buyer's premium, when applicablesold- true / false / unknownended_at- auction end date (UTC)source_url- link to the original GSA listing
Full data dictionary and methodology are in the repository README.
Important caveat on price
current_or_final_bid is the current or last-observed bid, not a confirmed hammer price - treat it as a bid level. Auction prices are heavily right-skewed, so medians are more meaningful than means. Use the sold flag to filter to lots with a positive sale signal where you need one.
How to cite
GovAuctions (https://govauctions.app), “U.S. Government (GSA) Surplus Auction Dataset.” Updated Jun 11, 2026.
Working on a story or a study and want a custom pull or an embargoed look? See our about page.
See the aggregate picture in State of Government Surplus, or browse live auctions.
Need live or programmatic access instead of a monthly snapshot? The Developer API serves current listings plus sold-price comps as JSON, on demand.