Comparison
AutoRelay vs Autotrader
Autotrader charges $25-$50 per shared lead on top of subscription fees. AutoRelay delivers exclusive leads from your own service lane for a flat monthly fee — no per-lead charges.
Autotrader is a listing marketplace owned by the same parent company as KBB — and it shares the same pool of shoppers. By the time a lead reaches your CRM, the customer has already submitted inquiries to multiple dealers. AutoRelay targets a completely different audience: your service lane customers who already trust your dealership, whose vehicles are already on your lot, and who aren't shopping competitors.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Lead Exclusivity
AutoRelay
Exclusive — your own service customers
Autotrader
Shared marketplace leads (same pool as KBB)
Cost Per Lead
AutoRelay
Flat monthly fee — unlimited leads
Autotrader
$25-$50 per lead + monthly subscription
Monthly Cost (100 leads)
AutoRelay
Same flat fee
Autotrader
$2,500-$5,000 + subscription
Lead Source
AutoRelay
Your service lane (customers you already know)
Autotrader
Anonymous shoppers browsing listings
AI Follow-Up
AutoRelay
AI replies in under 5 seconds, 24/7
Autotrader
No dealer-side AI — manual BDC follow-up
Campaign Automation
AutoRelay
Service reminders, recall notices, trade-in offers with DMS data
Autotrader
No outbound campaign tools
Channel
AutoRelay
SMS (98% open rate)
Autotrader
Email + phone leads (20% open rate)
Overlap with Other Providers
AutoRelay
Unique channel — no overlap with listing sites
Autotrader
Same shoppers already on KBB, Cars.com, CarGurus
Contract
AutoRelay
Month-to-month, cancel anytime
Autotrader
Annual contracts common
Why Dealers Switch to AutoRelay
- 1
Autotrader and KBB are owned by the same company — you're often paying twice for access to the same pool of shoppers who are contacting every dealer in your market.
- 2
Your service lane is the one acquisition channel your competitors can't access. Those 1,500+ vehicles per month represent customers who already trust your brand.
- 3
AutoRelay costs a fraction of Autotrader's combined subscription + per-lead fees — and every lead is exclusively yours.
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