How we verify a markdown
What counts as a sale price, what we drop, and why commission never changes rank.
Guide · updated 2026-09-22
What a markdown needs
Dealzcan prefers a current price and a was-price from the same official source. Percent off is computed from those two numbers. If a retailer only gives a sale badge and no was-price, the card can still appear, but it will not pretend to have a verified discount percentage.
Your minimum-discount filter uses that percentage. Lowest keeps items even when we cannot compute a percent. A high filter, such as 40% off, will hide cards that have no percent to compare.
Sources we trust more
Official product APIs — for example Kroger’s product search or Amazon Creators API when it is connected — score higher on source quality than HTML we read from a retailer savings page. HTML is still the retailer’s own page, not a third-party coupon feed. We use it when it is the honest way to see clearance.
We do not buy a bulk “hot deals” CSV and republish it. We do not rewrite a website sale as a store exclusive. We do not change organic order because one network pays more.
What we drop
Duplicates of the same product at the same store. Items that miss the category you picked. Out-of-stock rows when you asked for in-stock only. Retailers that are not enabled for guests or for your account. Sources that are turned off in admin stay off rather than failing silently into junk.
Ads and affiliates
If a sponsored card ever appears, it is labeled and kept out of the organic score. Affiliate tracking, when a program is approved, is added to the outbound URL after rank is set. Display ads, if Google AdSense or similar is enabled, do not sit inside the scan steps or replace a deal card. Details are on advertising and affiliate disclosure.
More guides
- How a Dealzcan scan works — What happens after you pick store or online, enter a ZIP, and start a scan.
- Store clearance versus online savings — Why a store markdown and a website deal are different, and when to scan each.
- Find Walmart store-level clearance — How to pick a real store number so Dealzcan can read that store’s clearance aisle.