1. Keepa API Monthly EUR Tiers (€49–€1,699/mo) vs. ShopData API
Keepa sells continuous per-minute token drip rates billed in Euros, whereas ShopData API sells deterministic USD record credits that never expire on Pay-As-You-Go packs.
| Tier / Workload | ShopData API (USD) | Keepa API (EUR / USD Est.) | Max Burst & Expiration Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Developer Sandbox | $0 (12,000 Credits + $2.00 Streak = 32K Credits) | €0 Free API Tier unavailable (Keepa Pro €19/mo = ~1 test tok/min) | ShopData: Instant 30 RPM key · Keepa: Paid subscription required |
| Indie / On-Demand Batch | $9 one-time PAYG (90,000 Credits = 45K search items or 9K ASINs) | €49/mo (~$53/mo) minimum · 20 tokens/min | ShopData: Credits never expire · Keepa: Tokens expire in 60 min |
| Mid-Market Repricer | $19/mo Starter (250K Credits, 120 RPM) or $25 PAYG | €129/mo (~$140/mo) · 60 tokens/min (max 3,600 bucket) | Save 82%–86% + run bursty refreshes at 120 RPM |
| Catalog & BuyBox SaaS | $69/mo Pro (1.2M Credits = $0.115/1K items, 300 RPM) | €459/mo (~$495/mo) · 250 tokens/min (max 15,000 bucket) | Save 86% + clean UTF-8 JSON without CSV integer decoding |
| High-Volume Enterprise | $199/mo Business (5M Credits = $0.08/1K items, 600 RPM) | €879/mo (500 tok/min) to €1,499–€1,699+/mo (1,000+ tok/min) | Save 79%–89% + includes Walmart, Etsy, 1688 & Taobao |
2. Why '20 Tokens/Min' Rarely Means 20 Live ASINs/Min
Developers estimating Keepa API costs often assume 20 tokens/minute (€49/mo) equals 864,000 live product checks per month. In production, two mechanics cut effective yield by 80%–95%:
- 60-Minute Token Evaporation on Cron Workloads: Keepa caps your token bucket at `refillRate × 60`. On the €49/mo plan (20 tokens/min), your bucket maxes out at 1,200 tokens. If your repricer or catalog sync runs every 6 hours, 5 hours of generated tokens (6,000 tokens per window) are discarded unpaid.
- Multi-Token Surcharges for Live BuyBox & Offers: A 1-token Keepa `/product` call only returns Keepa's cached database record without BuyBox seller history or live marketplace offers. Passing `buybox=1` adds +2 tokens, requesting `offers=20` adds +6 tokens per 10 offers (+6 to +12 tokens), and forcing a live Amazon re-scrape (`update=0`) consumes extra live-refresh tokens—turning 1 ASIN lookup into 6–12 tokens.
- FX Exposure & Single-Retailer Lock-In: Keepa bills exclusively in Euros (€) and covers only Amazon (plus limited eBay). Cross-checking Walmart.com Competitive Price Thresholds (CPT) or 1688 wholesale MOQ ladders requires buying separate APIs unless you consolidate onto ShopData API.
| Data Lookup Scenario | ShopData API Cost | Keepa Token Consumption | Effective €49/mo (20 tok/min) Throughput |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keyword / Category Search (48 items) | 2 Credits/item ($0.0002 PAYG · $0.00008 Business) | 10+ tokens per `/search` or `/query` Product Finder call | ~2 searches/min before HTTP 503 throttle |
| Live ASIN BuyBox + Prime + Variations | 10 Credits flat ($0.001 PAYG · $0.0004 Business) | 6–12 tokens (`buybox=1` + `offers=20` + `update=0`) | 1.6 – 3.3 live ASINs/min (max 100–200/hr burst) |
| Verified Customer Review Text (20 reviews) | 2 Credits/review ($0.004 total on PAYG) | Not supported (Keepa tracks rating count/average only) | Requires 2nd scraper subscription on Keepa |
| HTTP 404 / Suppressed ASIN / Empty Search | 0 Credits ($0.00 Charge-Before-Return guarantee) | 1 token minimum check | Drains bucket on delisted catalog SKUs |
3. Replace Token-Throttled Polling with Flat-Rate Live JSON
Skip `tokensLeft` sleep loops, `refillIn` backoff timers, and KeepaTime integer-array decompression. Query live Amazon BuyBox prices, sales velocity, and SKU matrices directly in UTF-8 JSON.
Live Amazon ASIN BuyBox + Keyword Search ($0.20/1K Items)
Standard `x-api-key` authentication—returns clean floats, Prime flags, 30-day sales badges, and variations in one HTTP 200 payload.
# 1. Full live ASIN BuyBox & variation check (10 Credits = $0.0004–$0.001)
curl -sS "https://api.shopdataapi.com/v1/amazon/product?asin=B08N5WRWNW&country=US" \
-H "x-api-key: sd_live_your_api_key"
# 2. High-throughput keyword search (2 Credits/item = $0.08–$0.20/1K items)
curl -sS "https://api.shopdataapi.com/v1/amazon/search?query=espresso+scale&country=US&page=1" \
-H "x-api-key: sd_live_your_api_key"import requests
HEADERS = {"x-api-key": "sd_live_your_api_key"}
# No tokensLeft sleep loops or KeepaTime integer decoding needed
res = requests.get(
"https://api.shopdataapi.com/v1/amazon/product",
params={"asin": "B08N5WRWNW", "country": "US"},
headers=HEADERS,
timeout=25,
)
res.raise_for_status()
payload = res.json()
item = payload["data"]
print(f"ASIN {item['asin']}: ${item['price']} (Prime={item['is_prime']}) · Credits={payload['credits_charged']}")const res = await fetch(
"https://api.shopdataapi.com/v1/amazon/product?asin=B08N5WRWNW&country=US",
{ headers: { "x-api-key": process.env.SHOPDATA_API_KEY! } }
);
const { data, credits_charged } = await res.json();
console.log({
asin: data.asin,
buyBoxUsd: data.price,
isPrime: data.is_prime,
salesVolume: data.sales_volume,
creditsCharged: credits_charged,
});{
"ok": true,
"marketplace": "amazon",
"endpoint": "/v1/amazon/product",
"credits_charged": 10,
"data": {
"asin": "B08N5WRWNW",
"country": "US",
"title": "Hasami Porcelain Matte Black Stackable Ceramic Mug, 13 oz",
"price": 24.99,
"list_price": 32.00,
"currency": "USD",
"is_prime": true,
"rating": 4.8,
"reviews_count": 3412,
"sales_volume": "4K+ bought in past month",
"availability": "In Stock"
}
}Interactive Commerce Terminal · GET /v1/amazon/product
Verify real-time latency, SKU credit math & JSON schema
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Keepa API offer a free tier or pay-as-you-go credits?
- No. Keepa API requires an active monthly subscription paid in advance in Euros starting at €49/mo (20 tokens/min), and unused tokens expire 60 minutes after generation. ShopData API grants 12,000 free Credits ($1.20) immediately at signup plus a $9.00 non-expiring Indie Starter Pack (90,000 Credits).
- When should I keep Keepa vs. switch to ShopData API?
- Keep Keepa if your application specifically needs 3-to-5-year historical BSR/price charts from Keepa's archival database. Switch to ShopData API if you need real-time live BuyBox prices, verified buyer review text, bursty catalog syncs without 60-minute token bucket stalls, or cross-marketplace Walmart, Etsy, 1688, and Taobao data.
- How do I migrate existing Keepa CSV array parsers to ShopData API?
- You can delete KeepaTime (`(keepaMinutes + 21564000) * 60`) and integer-cent conversion helpers completely—ShopData API returns standard JSON floats (`price: 24.99`) and ISO strings. See our companion architectural guide at /guides/keepa-api-alternative.
Zero Monthly Lock-In · 1-Click Google OAuth Sandbox
Run your first live query in 10 seconds with 12,000 free Credits ($1.20).
Test Amazon, Walmart, Etsy, 1688 Wholesale, Taobao, Shopee, and TikTok Shop endpoints in our browser Playground or claim an instant sd_live_... key—backed by a $9.00 non-expiring Indie Starter Pack ($0.08–$0.20 per 1,000 items).