Bonhams vs Invaluable Auctions
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Bonhams
Explore and bid on fine art, antiques, collectables, and motor cars from a global auction house. Discover valuations and sales advice across 60 specialist areas worldwide.
- Fine art auctions
- Antique auctions
- Collectables auctions
- Motor car auctions
- Valuation services
- Global sales network
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Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers: auctioneers of art, pictures, collectables and motor cars. Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America. Today, Bonhams offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street and Knightsbridge; and a further three in the UK regions and Scotland. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Carmel, New York and Connecticut in the USA; and Germany, France, Monaco, Hong Kong and Australia. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 60 specialist areas.
Invaluable Auctions
Participate in live auctions for fine art, antiques, and collectibles from premier auction houses worldwide. Discover unique items, receive personalized recommendations, and bid in real-time or leave absentee bids.
- Live bidding with swipe-to-bid technology
- Discover rare and unique items
- Personalized daily recommendations
- Browse hundreds of auction categories
- Participate from anywhere globally
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Participate in premier auctions happening around the globe from your mobile device. Invaluable is the leading online auction marketplace for fine art, antiques, and collectibles. We work with premier auction houses worldwide to bring you online auctions across diverse categories, including master paintings, decorative art, watches, fine jewelry, Hollywood collectibles, sports memorabilia, antique firearms, Asian art, exquisite ceramics, pottery, and more. LIVE BIDDING Feel the thrill of participating in an auction in real-time from anywhere in the world. With Invaluable's exclusive 'swipe-to-bid' technology, you can bid live or leave absentee bids in advance. UNIQUE ITEMS Discover rare and unique items when you explore artist pages or search by keyword, category, or auction house. CURATED RECOMMENDATIONS Receive personalized daily recommendations for one-of-a-kind treasures that you're passionate about. Whether you're hunting for baseball cards, Japanese netsuke, classic comics, you'll be expanding your collection in no time. HUNDREDS OF CATEGORIES Browse hundreds of online auction categories now and start transforming your home and collection with art and objects you're most passionate about: - Evocative contemporary art, one of the hottest categories in the art market today, ranging from works on paper to paintings to sculpture. - Old Master paintings that exude timeless beauty and sophistication. - Exquisite Asian art of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Southeast, and South Asian origins. Porcelain, figurines, paintings, scrolls, military artifacts like katana swords, and more ornate objects reflect their craftsmen's unparalleled skill. - Classic jewelry staple pieces like gold and diamond rings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, pins, and brooches with precious stones from Tiffany's and other premier brands. - Military and historical artifacts spanning centuries – from the American Civil War to World War I and World War II, on through the Space Race. - Collectibles from Hollywood stars and the movie theater blockbusters that helped shape the cultural zeitgeist – Star Wars memorabilia, classic movie posters, movie-worn costumes and accessories, and autographs. - Sports memorabilia from the greatest names in sports history, including baseball, basketball, golf and football cards, autographs, and more. - Photography, lithographs, and prints that capture history – in both black and white and vivid color. - Modern and antique furniture for every room in your home: beds, cabinets, and dressers from American, English, and European classics to mid-century modern and Art Deco styles. - A wide array of fine art, including Impressionist art, mixed-media art, abstract art, and sculptures. - Women's and men's wristwatches, vintage timepieces, and pocket watches from classic and contemporary designers like Rolex, Omega, Breitling, Elgin, and more. - Collectibles from rock and roll royalty – including guitars, stage-worn clothing, albums, photographs, autographs, and concert posters. - Vintage spirits and fine wines from Bordeaux to Bourbon whiskey. FEEDBACK Your feedback is important to us. Please contact us with any questions at appfeedback@invaluable.com.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Invaluable Auctions at 4.8 against Bonhams's 3.1. Invaluable Auctions also leads on ratings volume (6.2K vs 150) and review sentiment (37% vs 18%). Bonhams's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Invaluable Auctions holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Invaluable Auctions has 6.2K ratings behind it against 150, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 18% of Bonhams's written reviews are positive against 37% of Invaluable Auctions's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Bonhams | Invaluable Auctions |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.1 (150 ratings) | 4.8 (6.2K ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 18.5% of reviews | 37.2% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 150 | 6.2K — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 15.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 162 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ | 12+ |
| Developer | Bonhams 1793 Limited | Invaluable LLC |
Customer experience
Bonhams
Invaluable Auctions
User reviews
Bonhams
From 150 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Great UI (mentioned once)
- 👍 Great images (older review)
- 👍 Easy to navigate (older review)
- 👍 Good entry to art world (older review)
Room to improve
- 🐛 App fails constantly
- 🐛 Does not connect with website
- 🐛 Requires constant re-login
- 🐛 Does not work with facial recognition
- 🐛 Lost connection frequently
Invaluable Auctions
From 6.2K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Great variety of auctions
- 🚀 Smooth transactions
- 👍 Fantastic auctions
Room to improve
- 💰 High fees and shipping costs
- 🐛 Buggy and glitchy app
- 🔒 Lack of customer support and transparency
- 🔍 Poor search and filtering options
- ⚠️ Unreliable bidding and auction process
Bugs and requests
Bonhams
Reported bugs
72 issues- App fails constantly
- Does not connect with website
- Requires constant re-login
- Does not work with facial recognition
- Lost connection frequently
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- Missed lots due to poor UX
- Hard to follow items
- Logged out everyday
- Not showing historical bids
- Constantly 'unable to connect'
- Photos not loading
- App keeps trying to load after update
- Error loading more auctions
- Spinning progress arrows annoying
- Laggy and unstable
- Impossible to follow lots
- Every lot shown from beginning of time
- Forces email account for condition report
- App doesn't update with upcoming auctions
- No customer service responses
- No invoice available on app
- Tedious scrolling for auctions
- No way to search auction location
- No filter for item category
- App is unusable
- Many functions unusable
- Get stuck in search screen
- Login difficult
- Requires re-creating account
- Cannot enter app with iOS 17.4.1
- Rubbish app
- Never get reply
- No longer select sales by location
- No Italian language option
- Bad customer support replies
- High user charge (28%)
- Telephone support on hold/hangs up
- No digital payment interface
- Icons too small
- Bidding not fit for purpose
- Fails to send bids
- Cannot save favorite artists
- No notification for favorite artists
- Malfunctioning watch sold
- App does not show current bid
- Not notified when outbid
- No filter to exclude US auctions
- Insensitive customer service for pickup
- No obvious way to sort auctions by location
- Location not shown upfront
- Cannot create account on iPhone (button hidden)
- App initializing for over a month
- Constantly crashing and unreliable
- Can't find specific auctions (NY, type)
- Outrageous buyer's premium (30%)
- Difficulty changing password/account issues
- Wrong descriptions and bottles shown
- Slide bar wouldn't work for bidding
- Always lag, lose for the lot
- Misrepresented lot with wrong registration mark
- Difficult to navigate
- Impossible to sign off
- Keeps asking to sign up for newsletter
- No one responds to email
- Password doesn't work / account doesn't exist
- Unorganized and poorly run business
- Terrible, temperamental, unreliable, confusing
- Not user friendly
- Browsing auctions almost impossible
- No search function
- Cannot access today's sale results
- Cannot get auction details
Requested features
17 requests- Most recent followed lots on top
- Embed condition report in app
- Search for auction location
- Filter by item category
- Sort auctions by location
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- Save favorite artists and get notifications
- Filter available auctions to exclude specific regions
- Italian language option
- Ability to sort auctions by location
- Display auction location upfront
- Functionality to register for auction via app
- Functionality to bid through the app
- Load online auctions onto the app
- Search function for artists
- Improved UI for viewing artworks (like Christie's)
- Dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard
Invaluable Auctions
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent app crashes and freezes
- Login and password issues
- Incorrect bid information and notifications
- Inability to see past auction results
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to filter and block auction houses
- Improved search functionality
- Better notification and bid tracking system
- Two-factor authentication
- Ability to leave reviews on auction houses
In-app purchases
Bonhams
No in-app purchases
Invaluable Auctions
No in-app purchases








