Common questions
How does stock checking work?
We repeatedly check each shop's product pages and record every change. When an item flips from out of stock to in stock, that's a drop, and anyone watching it gets alerted.
What do “verified” and “unconfirmed” mean?
Boutique shops publish live inventory we read straight from their own feed — those are verified. Big-box chains (Target, Walmart, Amazon, Michaels, Barnes & Noble and friends) block direct checks, so we read them through licensed retail data providers; that data is live too, just a step removed, and for marketplaces it is sampled per region rather than nationally. When a listing hasn't been re-checked inside its normal scan window we label it “Unconfirmed” rather than guessing, and stock that's only sitting on a shelf shows as “In store only” instead of in stock.
Can you add a shop that carries squishies?
Yes — send the shop's website and we'll check it. Boutiques that publish a public product feed can go live the same day. Chain stores have to be wired up to a data provider first, so they take a little longer.
How fast are alerts?
On Scout Pro, push alerts fire as soon as a scan detects the change and email follows within a minute. The free plan gets a once-a-day drop digest instead. Boutique drops are usually the fastest because their data is live.
How many squishies can I track?
3 on the free plan, and up to 200 on Scout Pro. Keeping the free list short stops alerts turning into noise.
What does Scout Pro cost, and how do I cancel?
Scout Pro is $9.99/mo or $99/yr. Payments are handled by Paddle, our reseller and merchant of record, so your card statement will show Paddle. You can cancel any time from Settings → Billing and keep Pro until the end of the period you've paid for, and we'll refund a charge in full if you ask within 14 days of it.
How do I get help, and how fast do you reply?
Open a ticket at the top of this page — it's a two-way thread, so replies land right here and you'll see the status change as we work it. You can also email thesquishyscout@gmail.com if you'd rather not sign in.
A listing shows the wrong stock — how do I report it?
Open a ticket with the product name and the store, and include the link if you have it. We re-check that source directly, fix the reader if the shop changed its page, and mark the listing unconfirmed in the meantime so nobody else gets sent on a wasted trip.
How is the list of stores on a product ordered?
Shops that can ship it right now come first, cheapest first, then in-store-only shops, then sold-out and unconfirmed shops greyed at the bottom. Each row shows the price, the stock state and when we last checked that shop, so you can judge the freshness yourself rather than trusting a single “best” pick.
What does the markup badge compare against?
We build a retail baseline for each squishy from the clustered prices across every shop that carries it, ignoring obvious outliers. A listing above that baseline gets a badge with the percentage over retail, and the badge shows how confident the baseline is. It is an estimate of the going retail price, not an official MSRP from the brand.
Why does a store show in stock for someone else but not for me?
Amazon, Walmart and other marketplaces answer stock and price differently by region. We sample four regional hubs instead of one national read and prefer the region closest to the ZIP on your account, so two collectors can honestly see different answers for the same listing.
How do trade offers, verified traders and trust scores work?
Post a Have or ISO listing, then send or receive offers — including multi-item bundles you can negotiate in the thread. Trust scores build from completed swaps, subscribers can earn a verified badge, shipping addresses are only revealed once both sides accept, and tracking plus photo proof is required. If something goes wrong, open a dispute and it lands in our moderation queue. The trade board is 18+.
Can I add my socials to my profile?
Yes. Settings → Profile lets you add TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and other links, and posts can link out to social content elsewhere. Links are screened automatically before they go live, and anything unsafe or off-topic is removed.
Why don't you track Squishmallows, slime or candy?
We'd rather do one thing properly. Every stock check costs us something, so we focus all of it on squishies and squeeze toys. That focus is what lets us re-check hot items every couple of minutes instead of once a day. Plush, slime and candy-style listings are no longer re-checked.
What happened to items you stopped tracking?
They stay reachable at their old link with a note saying we're no longer re-checking them, and anything already in your collection, Squish List or trade listings stays put. They just don't appear in browse, search or the hype board any more. If we widen coverage again — a holiday plush run, say — they come straight back.
Can I hide item types I'm not into?
Yes. Settings → “What I'm into” lets you switch off any item type we track, and those items drop out of your feed, search and alerts. You can also mute individual retailers.
How are reviews and community posts moderated?
Reviews, replies, bios and trade posts are screened automatically before they go live, and we remove anything abusive, unsafe or off-topic. Reviews and collections are open to everyone 13+; public profiles and the trade board are 18+ only. Report anything that slipped through via a support ticket.
What is Safe Mode?
Accounts aged 13–17 run in Safe Mode automatically: stock tracking, alerts, local store lookups and private collections all work, but public collector profiles and community posting are switched off. It flips off on its own when the account turns 18.
Something looks wrong.
Email thesquishyscout@gmail.com with the product and shop and we'll re-check the source.