In what year was eBay founded?

eBay was founded in 1995.

Pierre Omidyar launched the service in California on September 3, 1995, originally calling it AuctionWeb. The site began as an online auction service that let people buy and sell directly with one another. One famous early sale was a broken laser pointer, purchased for $14.83 by a collector who specifically wanted it.

The company did not officially use the eBay name from the beginning. In 1997, the service changed its name from AuctionWeb to eBay, derived from Echo Bay Technology Group, Omidyar’s consulting business. eBay later expanded beyond person-to-person auctions, adding fixed-price listings and attracting professional merchants. That history is why eBay is often associated with both online auctions and broader marketplace retail.