How To Build Live Streaming Shopping App Like Whatnot

Introduction: Why build a apps like Whatnot

The rise of live-streaming eCommerce has revolutionized how people buy and sell, offering a unique blend of entertainment, interaction, and convenience. Apps like Whatnot have tapped into this growing trend by combining live auctions with social commerce, creating an engaging platform for buyers and sellers alike. By offering real-time interaction through live streams, Whatnot provides a personalized shopping experience that mimics in-person auctions, making it highly appealing to niche communities, including collectors, hobbyists, and enthusiasts. The platform’s rapid growth highlights the immense potential of blending live video content with eCommerce, presenting a lucrative opportunity for entrepreneurs to enter this evolving market.

Building apps like Whatnot allows businesses to cater to the demand for immersive and interactive shopping experiences. With live auctions, gamified features, and tailored content, such an app fosters strong community engagement and customer loyalty. Additionally, the scalability of the live-streaming model opens avenues for monetization, from transaction fees to premium seller subscriptions and advertising. By leveraging the power of live streaming, social interaction, and AI-driven personalization, a Whatnot-inspired app can create a competitive edge in today’s dynamic eCommerce landscape while addressing the growing expectations of tech-savvy consumers.

As per Tech crunch news, Livestream shopping app Whatnot raises $265M, pinning valuation at nearly $5B

How does a website or apps like Whatnot work?

For buyers, Whatnot is an engaging and dynamic marketplace that offers a seamless shopping experience. The platform features an extensive selection of unique and collectible items, including sports cards, sneakers, luxury handbags and women’s thrift, Pokémon cards and more through live auctions! The platform allows buyers to participate in live auctions, make offers, and purchase items directly from trusted sellers. With a user-friendly interface and secure payment system, Whatnot ensures a convenient and enjoyable buying process.offering a perfect blend of entertainment and reliability.

For sellers, Whatnot offers a vibrant marketplace that offers a seamless platform to  showcase and sell their unique products. Sellers can effortlessly create listings, upload high-quality images, and provide detailed descriptions to attract potential buyers. The platform’s live video streaming feature allows sellers to connect directly with their audience, answer questions in real time, and build authentic relationships. With its intuitive interface and powerful marketing tools, Whatnot empowers sellers to reach a broad audience, boost sales, and cultivate a dedicated customer base.

What is Whatnot’s business model?

Whatnot is a dynamic online marketplace built on a peer-to-peer business model. It enables sellers to create personalized virtual storefronts and list a variety of unique and collectible items, including toys, trading cards, and vintage clothing. Buyers can explore these offerings and enjoy a secure transaction process facilitated by Whatnot’s robust payment system and shipping logistics support.

Whatnot generates revenue through multiple streams. The platform charges sellers a commission fee on every transaction, with a percentage of each sale contributing to Whatnot’s earnings. Additionally, it offers premium services to sellers, including enhanced storefront visibility and promotional tools, available through a subscription-based model. Another significant revenue source is advertising and sponsored content, where brands can promote their products to Whatnot’s large and engaged audience. These diverse income streams enable Whatnot to maintain its operations while delivering a seamless and interactive marketplace experience.

Essential Features For Live Streaming Shopping App like Whatnot

Live Auctions: This feature enables sellers to host live-streaming auctions, creating an engaging and interactive shopping experience for buyers. Sellers can auction off items in real-time, with viewers bidding directly during the stream.

Interactive Live Chat: Buyers can engage with sellers and other participants through live chat, asking questions, sharing opinions, and building a sense of community during live streams.

Buy Now Option: In addition to live auctions, Whatnot offers a “Buy Now” feature, allowing users to purchase items instantly without participating in the bidding process.

Personalized Feed:  The feature offers a personalized feed tailored to each user’s preferences, interests, and past activity. Users can follow their favorite sellers and categories to receive updates on live streams, new listings, and auctions, ensuring they never miss out on items that match their unique tastes.

User-Friendly Interface: A marketplace should have an intuitive and easy-to-navigate platform with search filters, categories, and sorting options to help users quickly find what they need.

Product Listing and Management: Tools for sellers to easily list products by uploading images, writing descriptions, setting prices, managing inventory, and tracking sales.

Secure Payment System: A reliable payment system that integrates with popular gateways or escrow services to ensure secure transactions for both buyers and sellers.

Community Features: A vibrant community where users can build connections with like-minded individuals who share similar interests. It provides an engaging platform for collectors and enthusiasts to interact, participate in conversations, and exchange valuable tips and insights about their favorite items or collections—all within the app.

Communication and Messaging: A built-in messaging system to facilitate communication between buyers and sellers for negotiations, product inquiries, or issue resolution.

Rating and Review System: A feedback mechanism for buyers to rate sellers and share reviews, building trust and credibility within the marketplace.

Push Notifications: Users can set up notifications to get alerts about upcoming live auctions, new products, or when sellers they follow go live, ensuring they never miss an opportunity.

Personalized Recommendations: Whatnot uses algorithms to provide tailored suggestions based on user preferences, previous purchases, and browsing behavior.

Read More: How To Build Marketplace App In 2025

How to create a successful alternative to Whatnot

Identify Gaps and Limitations: Conduct thorough research to uncover Whatnot’s shortcomings and areas for improvement. Understanding these gaps will help you pinpoint opportunities to enhance and differentiate your alternative.

Define Your Target Audience: Clearly identify the specific audience you aim to serve. Analyze their needs, preferences, and pain points to tailor your platform and features to their expectations.

Develop a Unique Value Proposition: Highlight the unique advantages your platform offers over Whatnot. This could include additional features, a superior user experience, enhanced customer support, or any aspect that sets your solution apart.

Build a User-Friendly Platform: Design an intuitive platform that simplifies navigation and interactions. Ensure that users can easily list products, browse items, and communicate within the platform.

Offer Competitive Pricing: Create attractive pricing structures and fees for both buyers and sellers. Research competitor pricing and strike a balance that appeals to users while maintaining business sustainability.

Provide Exceptional Customer Support: Establish a responsive customer support system to address queries and issues promptly. Strong support improves user satisfaction and fosters loyalty.

Execute Effective Marketing Strategies: Develop a robust marketing plan to create awareness and attract users to your alternative. Utilize channels like social media, influencer collaborations, targeted ads, and content marketing to reach your audience effectively.

Foster a Community: Build a sense of community by encouraging user engagement through features like forums, reviews, ratings, and community events or promotions. This strengthens loyalty and interaction on your platform.

Focus on Continuous Improvement: Regularly collect user feedback and monitor market trends. Use this data to implement updates, enhance features, and stay ahead of competitors, ensuring long-term growth and success.

Tech Stack To Build apps like Whatnot

Web Architecture: Front-end Development: React.js, Angular.js, Vue.js

Mobile Architecture: iOS, Android

Cross-Platform Development: React Native, Flutter

Back-end Development: Node.js, Express.js

3rd Party Integrations: Paypal, Stripe, Google Map, Firebase cloud messaging

Conclusion

Live streaming shopping app platforms apps like Whatnot are revolutionizing the shopping experience by offering consumers a more interactive and engaging way to shop. Through features like real-time auctions and live streams, these platforms foster a sense of community and excitement, transforming traditional e-commerce into an immersive social experience. The growing popularity of personalized, dynamic shopping journeys highlights the potential of live commerce to captivate audiences and drive sales.

For businesses, investing in or developing similar platforms presents a lucrative opportunity. Revenue streams such as transaction fees, premium seller features, and even advertising. Additionally, they provide valuable insights into consumer preferences and market trends, enabling businesses to refine their product offerings and marketing strategies. By tapping into this trend, businesses can position themselves at the forefront of a rapidly evolving market and fuel long-term growth.

Looking to Develop a Live Streaming Shopping Platform Like Whatnot?

Developing a live-streaming shopping platform apps like Whatnot offers immense potential to revolutionize the eCommerce landscape by providing an engaging, interactive, and personalized shopping experience. Such platforms combine the power of video streaming, real-time interactions, and a seamless purchasing process, making them ideal for businesses looking to enhance customer engagement and boost sales. From intuitive UI/UX design to robust backend functionality, crafting a feature-rich platform requires the right technology stack and expertise to ensure a scalable and secure solution.

At IT Path Solutions, a leading web & mobile app development company,  we bring extensive experience in building cutting-edge eCommerce platforms tailored to your specific business goals. Our team of expert web and mobile app developers, UI/UX designers, and strategists is well-equipped to deliver a fully customized live-streaming shopping platform that ensures exceptional performance and user satisfaction. Whether you’re an established retailer or a startup aiming to disrupt the market, our innovative solutions can help you capitalize on the growing trend of live commerce and achieve sustainable growth.