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Bulk Scan for Amazon Wholesale: How I Analyze a Supplier Price List (Buy Box, Fees, ROI, Hazmat, Restrictions)

February 11, 2026By Profit Scanner Team
amazon wholesalebulk scanningfba feesroihazmat

I’ve had supplier lists that look amazing at first glance. Then you scan them and realize most of the “profit” was fake. The Buy Box was a spike. The fees were heavier than expected. Or half the catalog is Hazmat and you can’t even send it to FBA.

Bulk scanning fixes the speed problem. It doesn’t fix judgment. That part is still on you.

Step 1: Clean the price list before you scan

I don’t overthink this. I just make sure the file has a barcode column and a cost column. EAN or UPC works. If the supplier uses internal SKUs only, scanning gets messy fast.

Also check pack sizes. One “unit” might be a case of 6. If you miss that, your ROI math will be trash.

Step 2: Run a bulk scan, then filter hard

Bulk tools can scan insanely fast. I’ve seen scans run at about 6 million products per hour. Speed is great. But it also means you’ll get a mountain of results.

So I start with upfront filters. These are my default wholesale filters in 2026:

  • Net profit per unit: at least $2

  • ROI: above 10%

  • Sales rank: 50,000 or lower

  • Competition: Not to many FBA seller many search for 2-3 FBA sellers

That last one surprises people. I like seeing multiple FBA sellers. It usually means the listing is stable. It also means the Buy Box rotates in a predictable way. One-seller listings can be a trap. They can also be fine. But I don’t want to manually review 400 “maybe” items.

Step 3: Don’t trust the current Buy Box without history

The current Buy Box price is a snapshot. Snapshots lie. A random promo can inflate price for a day. Then you buy, send inventory, and the price snaps back down.

I always check Buy Box history after filtering. I’m looking for two things:

  • Price behavior: does it hold a normal range, or does it whip around?

  • Demand consistency: does sales rank stay healthy, or does it spike once?

If the chart looks like a heart monitor, I usually pass. I’m not trying to be a hero.

Step 4: Build profit the way it works in real life

Most bulk scans will calculate Amazon fees and FBA costs. That’s table stakes. The problem is the “other stuff” that eats you alive.

Here’s how I think about the math:

  • Sale proceeds: Buy Box price minus per-item fee and other Amazon fees

  • True profit: sale proceeds minus product cost, inbound shipping, prep cost, and storage

  • ROI: profit divided by cost

  • Margin: profit divided by Buy Box price

Inbound and prep vary a lot. I can’t give you a universal number. But you still need placeholders. If you ignore them, your scan results will look better than reality.

Storage is the silent killer

Storage fees matter more now because holding time can erase your edge. Standard storage runs about $0.75–$2.40 per cubic foot per month. That range is wide for a reason. Size tier changes everything.

Then you’ve got time-based pain:

  • Aged inventory surcharge (271–365 days): $1.50–$4.30 per cubic foot

  • Long-term storage (365+ days): $6.90 per cubic foot or $0.15 per unit

If you’re buying slow movers, those fees turn “$2 profit” into “why did I do this.” Fast.

Step 5: Screen for Hazmat, restrictions, and other landmines

This is where I see new wholesale sellers get wrecked. They scan for profit. They buy. Then Amazon blocks the ASIN. Or it needs Hazmat approval. Or it’s meltable and gets stranded in summer.

During bulk analysis, I want alerts for:

  • Hazmat

  • Restrictions (you can’t list, or you can’t use FBA, or it does need special handling)

  • IP risk

  • Meltable

  • Fragile

  • Heavy or bulky

Even if a tool flags it, I still verify. Bulk scans can be wrong. Amazon can change a restriction overnight. That’s annoying, but it’s normal.

Step 6: Manual validation on the short list

After filtering, I only review the survivors. That’s the whole point. I’ll pull up the Keepa graph and sanity-check the listing.

My quick manual checklist looks like this:

  • Buy Box history looks stable

  • Sales rank history looks steady

  • FBA seller count makes sense for the category

  • No weird variation issues or bundle confusion

  • No obvious restriction or Hazmat headache

If it passes, then I think about negotiation. A 10% ROI filter is fine for first pass. You might improve it with better cost later. But you can’t negotiate your way out of a bad chart.

Where Profit Scanner fits in

I use Profit Scanner to surface signals fast. It helps enrich a supplier sheet with Buy Box data, fees, ROI, competition, and flags. It reduces blind spots. It doesn’t replace the final decision.

Bulk scanning is a funnel. Filter hard. Validate calmly. And don’t buy problems you could’ve spotted in five minutes.