How to read the custom product reports

A discovery sample, not a market census

The reports reproduce stored Shopify merchant records grouped into product categories. A merchant can appear in more than one category, so category counts must not be added together to estimate unique merchants. The original discovery sources, inclusion rules, category verification and complete deduplication procedure are not documented in the released dataset. We therefore cannot claim representative coverage of Shopify, quantify sampling error, or infer the size of the entire market.

Use the linked stores as starting points for research. Confirm that each store still operates on Shopify and that the linked product belongs in the category before using it as an example.

What tool detection means

A recorded tool name is a historical detection signal. Options apps, visual customization apps and fulfillment services serve different purposes. For example, a Printful detection concerns fulfillment, while an options-app detection alone does not establish that a live preview feature was purchased, configured or enabled.

“Tool detected” uses the stored report count divided by the report sample size, rounded to a whole percentage. “Not detected / unknown” means the dataset has no recorded match; it does not mean the store has no custom code, no app or only text fields. Detection signatures and their false-positive and false-negative rates are not available for independent verification.

We do not publish a visual-preview adoption rate from these records. That would require checking the actual product-page workflow and recording the date and evidence for every classified store.

Revenue bands are unverified estimates

Revenue bands are retained as historical estimates from the stored records, not merchant-reported sales. The source model and its inputs are not available here, so these bands cannot be independently reproduced. They should not be used to value a business, calculate market size, establish market share or claim a revenue threshold for success.

Recorded prices and product counts

Product counts and price fields reproduce the original snapshot. The dataset does not establish a consistent price currency, exchange-rate date, or whether every price is a category-specific product price rather than a catalog average. Prices are displayed without an assumed dollar currency, and we no longer present an aggregate median as a comparable market benchmark. Check the merchant’s current product page for price and currency.

Download and reproduce the stored summaries

Each report links to its historical store records as JSON. The summary below includes the reported category sample size, stored row count and tool-detection numerator and denominator. It helps check arithmetic and coverage within the released snapshot; it cannot validate the upstream collection or estimation methods.

Product-category evidence review

The tools report records a decision for every historical row: category supported, outside the stated scope, or unverified. Decisions refer to the linked product, not the merchant’s whole catalog. A successful retrieval must identify the product through the merchant’s title or description; a brand name or a word in a URL is not enough. Failed retrieval and ambiguous products remain unverified, without treating that as proof of closure.

Retrieved pages can be cached. The review records retrieval date and available source snapshot ages separately from the March sample date. Category support does not verify current stock, Shopify usage, installed apps, personalization functionality or checkout. Supported entries are displayed alphabetically, and every original record remains in the annotated archive. Mixed-sample totals are not republished as validated tools-market statistics.

Version history and corrections

• September 18, 2026: expanded the tools category review to all 295 stored rows. Supported references, outside-scope products and unresolved entries are separated; original records remain downloadable. The tools page no longer presents the mixed sample’s aggregate charts as tools-market findings.
• March 2026: historical store snapshot used by the reports.
• September 13, 2026: clarified sampling and measurement limits; removed claims equating detected tools with enabled visual preview, unverified market-share conclusions and normalized price benchmarks. Added downloadable records.

There is no automatic collection schedule promised for this snapshot. To report an incorrect store classification or measurement, contact Podifai with the report URL, merchant URL and evidence.