Methodology

Demand score

The average of up to four public signals, each a % change capped at −100 to +200: English Wikipedia pageviews (28 days vs prior 28, Wikimedia API); Google Trends interest (last 4 weeks vs prior 4, via SerpApi); new YouTube videos (28 days vs prior 28, YouTube Data API, which reports estimated counts); and eBay US active listings vs the previous issue (eBay Browse API). Each product page lists which signals were available. These signals measure interest, not sales.

Supplier quote ranges

Public search pages on Made-in-China.com, fetched where robots.txt allows and at a low rate. We store only aggregates: the 25th percentile, median and 75th percentile of the lowest listed unit price, the number of quotes and the median MOQ. We do not copy listing text, photos or supplier names. Where configured, we also show the AliExpress Affiliate API single-unit price range as a dropship/retail reference. Alibaba.com and 1688.com are not sampled: their pages are script-rendered and access-controlled, and their official APIs need approved business accounts. We do not verify suppliers.

Duties

HS classification is our indicative choice; confirm it with a licensed broker. US: the general rate comes from the USITC HTS REST API, and Section 301 coverage from the USITC "China Tariffs" reference list, with the rate taken from the applicable chapter 99 heading. IEEPA, Section 232, anti-dumping duties and MPF/HMF are not included. UK: the third-country rate comes from the UK Trade Tariff API. EU: the Common External Tariff comes from the same service's Northern Ireland (XI) tariff. If a rate varies across codes or is not ad valorem, the field is left empty. We don't have an AU source yet (no free official API).

Freight and landed cost (estimates)

Ocean freight per unit = the Freightos Baltic Index lane rate per 40ft container (FBX01 China→US West Coast; FBX11 China→North Europe) ÷ 58 m³ (assumed usable volume) × the assumed packed volume per unit. This is an FCL spot rate; small or LCL shipments cost considerably more. US landed = FOB + freight + duty on FOB. UK/EU landed = CIF + duty on CIF. VAT/GST, brokerage, inland delivery and fees are excluded. This is not customs advice.

Retail and margin

Retail is the median price of new Buy-It-Now eBay US listings located in the US (eBay Browse API). These are asking prices, not sold prices. Margin = (retail − US landed) / retail, before marketplace fees, ads and returns. If retail data is unavailable, margin is left empty.

Missing data

If a source cannot be fetched, the field stays empty. We never invent figures. Any illustrative data is labelled SAMPLE.