About Free Trader UK

Who are Free Trader UK

Free Trader UK is the UK’s largest automotive marketplace. We feature more than 450,000 cars on any given day, giving you access to over 80% of the UK’s automotive retailers in one place.

Learn more about Free Trader UK

How do we stack up against other automotive websites?

* Please note this is a non-exhaustive list.

Why Free Trader UK

Unlike digital start-ups, we’ve got decades of insight, data and advice that we can put into your car buying journey.

About us

We started back in 1977, working as a local classified magazine across the UK. Originally called Trader Media Group, we became Free Trader UK in 1988.

Our popularity meant we were regionally circulating over 350,000 copies by 2000, and by this time we’d already future-proofed ourselves by launching our first website back in 1996.

Journey to being a digital business

From here, our journey towards being a digital business steadily took shape, with some big milestones along the way:

We joined social media and launched our upgraded website in 2007.
Our first iPhone app arrived in 2010, followed by Android and iPad apps in 2011.
We decided to focus purely on the UK from 2011 onwards, meaning we’re 100% dedicated to offering British customers the best service.

The last print edition of Free Trader UK’s magazine came out in 2013, though it still feels like yesterday we were out on the shelves.

Fully digital business

Since then, we’ve been a fully digital business and have taken that as opportunity to innovate even further. Since our 35th birthday in 2014, we’ve…

Offered expert valuations, starting in 2015. Using the richest data in the industry, we give you an accurate car valuation every time.
Gained FCA authorisation in 2016, so we can offer you more car finance options to suit your individual circumstances.
Launched a price indicator in 2017, so you know whether a price listed is a fair one.
Started offering you new cars from 2019. Whether you want to buy outright, on finance, or lease – there’s more choice than ever on Free Trader UK.

At every opportunity, we’ve pushed ourselves a bit further to make sure we’re giving you the best experience, and we’re still getting started.

And as a company and employer, we’ve continuously refined our culture and values to ensure we’re inclusive, inventive, and sustainable. You can learn more about working at Free Trader UK here.