Amazon buyer messages and marketplace questions: reply deadlines for 10 marketplaces and 6 templates (2026)

Short answer: Amazon expects you to answer buyer messages within 24 hours, weekends and holidays included, and an auto-reply does not count as an answer. Kaufland wants 100% of customer tickets answered within 48 hours, Allegro gives you 24 hours (Monday to Friday) in a Dyskusja, Trendyol closes an unanswered question after 3 business days, and eBay sets no deadline but shows buyers how fast you usually reply. The safe rule for any marketplace: a real first reply within 24 hours, every day of the week, with no links or contact details in it.

Below: the rules per marketplace with sources, the content rules that get messages blocked, six reply templates you can paste into any seller panel, and how to keep all of it in one inbox when you sell on more than one marketplace. Rules were checked on each marketplace's seller pages in October 2026.

Response-time rules by marketplace (October 2026)

Sources: Amazon help text quoted on the Seller Forums and Amazon's note to sellers reported by ChannelX (2012); eBay time to respond and return requests; Kaufland Seller University; Allegro Dyskusja deadlines; Trendyol developer docs; Hepsiburada seller scores; Mercado Libre developer docs; PcComponentes seller help; MediaMarktSaturn seller site.

Two notes on Amazon. Amazon's help pages are only visible inside Seller Central, so the wording above comes from Amazon text quoted on its own seller forums and in trade press. And the often-repeated "90% within 24 hours" target is not something we could find in an Amazon source, so treat 24 hours as the deadline for every message, not for most of them.

Five rules that hold on every marketplace

1. The first reply is what gets measured. eBay counts only the first question and answer in each conversation, and Allegro's moderators have said the same about its reply metric. A quick, useful first answer matters more than a perfect third one.

2. Auto-replies don't stop the clock on Amazon. Amazon's help text says auto-responders "are not considered a valid response". A message that says "we got your message" buys you nothing there. Answer the question.

3. Weekends count more often than you think. Amazon includes weekends and holidays. Allegro's Dyskusja deadline and Trendyol's 3 business days do not. Plan for the strictest marketplace you sell on, because nobody on your team will remember which rule applies where on a Saturday.

4. No links, no phone numbers, no "buy direct". eBay bans links, email addresses and phone numbers in messages and any offer to sell outside eBay (member-to-member contact policy). Amazon allows only secure links needed to complete the order, and no marketing, emojis or GIFs (communication guidelines as published in 2020). Mercado Libre warns against emails, phones, addresses, external links and social profiles in answers (seller centre). Trendyol runs every answer through a banned-word filter, and repeated hits close the question for good.

5. Answer the product question, not the general one. "Does it fit a 2019 Golf?" needs "yes, every Golf from 2017" or "no, only up to 2016". Marketplace buyers compare three listings at once. The seller who answers in one line usually gets the order.

Six reply templates for marketplace messages

These are written to pass the content rules above: no links, no contact details, no marketing. Replace the brackets.

1. Size or stock question (pre-sale)

Hi [name], yes, the [product] in [size/colour] is in stock and ships within [1 business day]. It runs [true to size / a little small]: if you are between two sizes, take the larger one.

2. Compatibility question

Hi, yes, it fits the [model] from [year] onwards. It does not fit the [older model], because [the connector / the mount] is different.

3. Where is my order (shipped)

Hi [name], your order [number] left our warehouse on [date] with [carrier]. Tracking shows [status] and delivery is expected on [date]. If it has not arrived by [date], reply here and we will open a search with the carrier the same day.

4. Delay before dispatch

Hi [name], we are sorry: your order [number] will ship on [new date] instead of [old date] because [reason]. If you would rather not wait, you can cancel it from your orders page and we will approve it straight away.

5. Return request

Hi [name], no problem. Please start the return from your orders page on [marketplace] and choose [reason]. As soon as the parcel reaches us we refund you within [n] days, to the payment method you used.

6. Damaged or wrong item

Hi [name], we are sorry it arrived like this. Could you send a photo of the item and of the box here in this conversation? Once we have it we will send a replacement or refund you, whichever you prefer.

For more wording on delays and refunds, see our where is my order templates and the guide to answering refund requests.

Example: one store, two marketplaces, one Saturday

A UK store sells phone cases on its own Shopify site, on Amazon.co.uk and on eBay. Friday at 19:40 an Amazon buyer writes: "Will this case fit the Pixel 9 Pro or only the Pixel 9?" At 21:15 an eBay buyer asks whether a case can still arrive before Tuesday.

Without a plan, both wait until Monday. The Amazon message is then more than 24 hours late, and the eBay buyer has bought elsewhere.

With a plan, the person on the Saturday shift opens one list sorted by the oldest message, answers the Amazon buyer with template 2 ("No, it fits the Pixel 9 only; the Pro is 2 mm taller and the camera cut-out is in a different place") and the eBay buyer with the real dispatch cut-off. Ten minutes of work, both deadlines met.

How to keep every marketplace in one inbox

Logging into four seller panels three times a day is where deadlines get missed. If you sell on more than one marketplace, pull the messages into one place. Here is how it works in Shopxare, which is free:

1. Connect each marketplace under Settings → Stores & marketplaces. Allegro asks you to confirm a code on allegro.pl; eBay and Mercado Libre open their own approval pages. New questions usually arrive within a few minutes. Supported today: Amazon, eBay, Allegro, Kaufland, Mercado Libre, Cdiscount, Trendyol, Hepsiburada and several Mirakl marketplaces, including MediaMarkt, Worten, Carrefour, Decathlon and PcComponentes (Marketplaces docs).
2. Amazon works by email. Amazon has no API for buyer messages, so set up your support email first, then add your Shopxare address under Messaging permissions in Seller Central. Amazon gives each buyer an anonymised address and asks you to enable every email address your team replies from (Amazon's note on the Seller Forums).
3. Save the templates above as saved replies, one set per marketplace, so nobody pastes a link into an eBay reply by habit.
4. Set reply targets tighter than the marketplace. Under teams and assignment you can set office hours, shifts and reply targets. Twelve hours for Amazon leaves room for a bad day.
5. Let Are AI take the repeat questions. Are AI can answer new marketplace questions from your help articles, short answers and product data, and passes anything it is not sure about to your team. Start with pre-sale questions (sizes, compatibility, delivery times). For Amazon messages, keep a person on the reply until you have checked the answers for a few weeks.
6. Watch for rejected replies. If a marketplace refuses a reply, for example because of a banned word, the conversation shows the reason, so you can fix it before the deadline passes.

Each marketplace card also shows the last 30 days of questions, conversations and how many were answered, which is the quickest way to spot the channel that is slipping.

When you don't need a shared inbox

If you sell on one marketplace and get fewer than about ten messages a day, its own seller app is enough. Turn on its notifications and check it at fixed times, including weekends if you sell on Amazon. Mercado Libre also builds its own tools: in 2025 it said its AI suggests answers to buyer questions based on the seller's past replies (Mobile Time, Sept 2025). One inbox starts paying off at two marketplaces, or as soon as two people share the work.

FAQ

How long do I have to answer an Amazon buyer message? 24 hours, including weekends and holidays. Auto-replies do not count, so the clock keeps running until you send a real answer.

Do I have to reply to "thank you" messages on Amazon? No. Amazon lets you mark a message as needing no response, which is the right move for a thank-you or a message that only confirms something.

Can I put a link to my own website in a marketplace message? No. eBay bans links in messages, Amazon allows only secure links needed to complete the order, Mercado Libre forbids contact details and external links in answers, and Allegro forbids links and offers that move the sale off Allegro.

Can I answer Amazon messages from another tool or email address? Yes. Add that address under Messaging permissions in Seller Central. Amazon asks you to enable every address your team uses to reply.

Does eBay penalise slow replies? Not your seller rating. Buyers see a "Responds within" badge from 1 to 48 hours, and return requests must be answered within 3 business days or eBay can refund the buyer at your cost.

If you want marketplace questions, your website chat and your support email in one inbox, Shopxare is free to start, with no credit card.