Let AutoDS pick top-selling products for your dropshipping store with AutoDS Finder, instead of searching for product links yourself. This article explains what AutoDS Finder is and how it differs from other ways to add products, how AutoDS Finder categories and credits work, which suppliers you can use, how to import products once or on a recurring schedule, and what to do when AutoDS Finder shows no products.
Key points about AutoDS Finder
AutoDS Finder picks products for you. You choose a sales category, a supplier, and a warehouse region, and AutoDS Finder selects products from the AutoDS top sellers database. You do not need a product link, ID, or CSV file, which is what sets AutoDS Finder apart from the other ways to add products to your store.
Each product uses AutoDS Finder credits based on its category. Basic (3+ sales per month) uses 1 AutoDS Finder credit, Popular (5+ sales per month) uses 2, and Best Sellers (8+ sales per month) uses 4 per product. Every AutoDS account starts with 400 free AutoDS Finder credits.
AutoDS Finder credits are deducted only when a draft is created or an upload is scheduled. If AutoDS Finder finds no products that match your criteria, or if an AutoDS Finder import does not create drafts, your AutoDS Finder credits return to your balance automatically.
AutoDS Finder works with the suppliers supported for product uploads, except Chinabrands and Gearbest. The warehouse regions available in Ship From Warehouse depend on the supplier you select in Supplier Source.
Recurring imports add new products to your store every day at the time you choose. You can review, pause, or edit them in Drafts → Recurring.
AutoDS Finder imports products to every supported selling channel except Amazon stores. Amazon is still available as a supplier in AutoDS Finder.
Tax may apply to AutoDS Finder credit purchases depending on your billing location. Learn more about taxes on AutoDS purchases.
What is AutoDS Finder
AutoDS Finder is a product research and import tool that selects top-selling products for your dropshipping store from the AutoDS top sellers database. AutoDS Finder scans selling platforms for products with a sales history, then finds the same or similar products from suppliers supported by AutoDS, so you can import them to your store without researching products manually.
With AutoDS Finder, you can:
Choose products by sales performance, using the Basic, Popular, and Best Sellers AutoDS Finder categories.
Import several products at once to the stores selected in Publish to.
Save the products as drafts, publish them right away, schedule them for a later date, or set them to publish every day.
How AutoDS Finder differs from other ways to add products
AutoDS Finder is one of several options in the "Add Products" menu. The main difference between AutoDS Finder and the other options is who chooses the product:
AutoDS Finder: AutoDS chooses the products for you, based on the AutoDS Finder category, supplier, and warehouse region you select.
Single Product and Multiple Products / Stores: You choose the product yourself and import it with a product link, ID, or CSV file. Learn how here.
Hand-Picked Products: verified bestsellers selected for you, available through the AutoDS Product Finding Hub add-on.
Untracked Products: products that already exist on your store but are not yet monitored by AutoDS, connected through Untracked products.
Note: AutoDS Finder and the AutoDS Product Finding Hub are separate features. The Product Finding Hub is a paid add-on for product research, while AutoDS Finder works with AutoDS Finder credits. To import a product in one click while you browse a supplier website, use the AutoDS Helper Chrome Extension.
How to open AutoDS Finder
To open AutoDS Finder, click "Add Products" in the left menu of your AutoDS account → "AutoDS Finder". The Add Products window opens on the AutoDS Finder tab, next to the URL's or ID's and Upload CSV tabs.
AutoDS Finder categories and credits
AutoDS Finder sorts products into three AutoDS Finder categories, based on how many sales each product has per month. Each AutoDS Finder category uses a different number of AutoDS Finder credits per product:
Basic: products with 3+ sales per month, 1 AutoDS Finder credit per product.
Popular: products with 5+ sales per month, 2 AutoDS Finder credits per product.
Best Sellers: products with 8+ sales per month, 4 AutoDS Finder credits per product.
The higher the AutoDS Finder category, the stronger the sales performance and the more AutoDS Finder credits each product uses. Before you import, the Total cost at the bottom of the AutoDS Finder tab shows how many AutoDS Finder credits your selection uses. For example, importing 10 Basic products and 5 Best Sellers products uses 30 AutoDS Finder credits (10 × 1 + 5 × 4).
How AutoDS Finder credits work
AutoDS Finder credits are the credits you use to import products with AutoDS Finder. AutoDS Finder credits are separate from Auto-Order credits and AI credits. Learn more about AutoDS credits.
Free AutoDS Finder credits: Every AutoDS account starts with 400 free AutoDS Finder credits.
AutoDS Finder credit balance: Your current balance appears next to Your Credits in the top-right corner of the AutoDS Finder tab.
Buying more AutoDS Finder credits: Click "Buy more" next to your balance. Larger AutoDS Finder credit packages reduce the cost per credit.
When AutoDS Finder credits are deducted: only when a draft is created, or a product is successfully scheduled for upload.
When AutoDS Finder credits return to your balance: If AutoDS Finder finds no products that match your criteria, or if an AutoDS Finder import does not create drafts, your AutoDS Finder credits return to your balance automatically.
Important: AutoDS Finder credits can be refunded only if the request is made within 24 hours of purchase and the credits have not been used. After that window, or once used, AutoDS Finder credits are non-refundable, even if supplier conditions (price, stock, or shipping) change or do not match your preferences, or if you later decide to use a similar product from another supplier.
Note: Tax may apply to your AutoDS Finder credits purchase depending on your billing location. Learn more about taxes on AutoDS purchases.
Supported suppliers for AutoDS Finder
AutoDS Finder works with the suppliers supported for product uploads in AutoDS, such as AliExpress, Amazon, Walmart, Banggood, and Costco. All suppliers supported for product uploads are available in AutoDS Finder, except Chinabrands and Gearbest. You choose the supplier in Supplier Source on the AutoDS Finder tab. See the full list of suppliers and their supported warehouse regions here.
Amazon is available as a supplier in AutoDS Finder, which means AutoDS Finder can source products from Amazon. Amazon as a selling channel is not supported. To add products to an Amazon store, use a product link, ID, or CSV file instead, as explained here.
AutoDS Finder warehouse regions
The warehouse regions available in Ship From Warehouse depend on the supplier you select in Supplier Source. When you change the supplier, the list of warehouse regions changes to the regions AutoDS supports for that supplier.
Tip: Choose a warehouse region in or near the country you ship to. A closer warehouse region means faster delivery and lower shipping costs for your buyers.
How to import products with AutoDS Finder
Before importing products through AutoDS Finder, make sure you are using a supported selling channel (Amazon stores are not supported by this tool). To import products with AutoDS Finder:
In the left menu of your AutoDS account, click "Add Products" → "AutoDS Finder".
In the Add Products window, select the store next to Publish to by clicking the pencil icon. Learn more about choosing the right store here.
Under each AutoDS Finder category (Basic, Popular, or Best Sellers), use the "+" and "-" buttons in Select amount to choose how many products you want to import.
In Supplier Source, select the supplier you want AutoDS Finder to source products from.
In Ship From Warehouse, select the warehouse region. The warehouse regions available depend on the supplier you selected in Supplier Source.
Check the Total cost, which shows how many AutoDS Finder credits the import uses.
Click "Add As draft", or click the arrow next to "Add As draft" to choose a different AutoDS Finder upload option.
AutoDS Finder upload options
The arrow next to "Add As draft" opens the AutoDS Finder upload options, so you can decide when and how the products reach your store:
Add As draft: AutoDS Finder saves the products to your Drafts page, so you can review them before publishing them to your store.
Create and Publish: AutoDS Finder publishes the products to your store right away.
Schedule for later: You select the date and time when AutoDS Finder publishes the products to your store. Scheduled AutoDS Finder uploads appear in the Scheduled tab of the Drafts page, separate from recurring imports.
Publish recurring: You select a time, and AutoDS Finder publishes new products to your store every day at that time.
Edit Upload Settings: You review and adjust your upload settings before AutoDS Finder lists the products. Learn how to configure your upload settings here.
How to set up a recurring import with AutoDS Finder
A recurring import with AutoDS Finder publishes new products to your store every day at the time you choose, on any supported selling channel except Amazon stores, so your store keeps receiving fresh products.
To set up a recurring import:
Follow steps 1 to 6 of the AutoDS Finder import steps above.
Click the arrow next to "Add As draft" and select "Publish recurring".
Choose the daily time you want the upload to run, then click "Next".
A confirmation notification appears.
Important: The time you select for a recurring import is based on the local time zone shown in your AutoDS account. If a Virtual Assistant (VA) sets up recurring imports from their own AutoDS access, AutoDS Finder shows the VA's local time zone. Convert the upload time so products are published at the correct time for your store.
How to manage recurring imports from AutoDS Finder
You can review, edit, pause, or delete recurring imports created by AutoDS Finder in Drafts → Recurring. The Recurring tab shows only recurring imports: uploads set with Schedule for later appear in the Scheduled tab and do not merge into an existing recurring import. Each number in the screenshot below matches a column of the Recurring page, described in the table.
The table below describes each column of the Recurring page.
# | Column | Description |
1 | Date | The next upload date. |
2 | Store | The store where the recurring import is set. |
3 | Quantity | The total number of products in the recurring import. |
4 | Products Category | The AutoDS Finder category you selected is based on sales per month. |
5 | Supplier | The supplier selected for the recurring import. |
6 | Upload time | The scheduled hour of the upload. |
7 | Edit | Click the pencil icon to edit the recurring import: AutoDS Finder category, daily quantity, supplier, warehouse region, and upload time. |
8 | Pause | Click the pause icon to pause the recurring import. Click it again to reactivate the recurring import. |
9 | Delete | Permanently removes the recurring import. |
Note: Recurring imports created by AutoDS Finder do not send email notifications. Check Drafts → Recurring to follow your recurring import activity.
Troubleshooting for AutoDS Finder
Troubleshooting for AutoDS Finder covers what to do when AutoDS Finder returns no products for your criteria, or when AutoDS Finder credits are deducted but no products appear on your Drafts page.
AutoDS Finder shows "Finder cannot find any product according to your criteria"
AutoDS Finder shows the message "Finder cannot find any product according to your criteria. Credits will be returned soon." after you select an AutoDS Finder category, a supplier in Supplier Source, and a warehouse region in Ship From Warehouse.
Why this happens: AutoDS Finder searches for products that match all of your criteria at once: AutoDS Finder category, supplier, warehouse region, and sales performance. When no products match every criterion at the time of your search, AutoDS Finder shows this message. Common reasons include:
The selected supplier and warehouse region have no products in the chosen AutoDS Finder category at the moment.
Products in the selected AutoDS Finder category are temporarily unavailable.
The supplier's inventory has changed since the last AutoDS Finder update.
What happens to your AutoDS Finder credits: When AutoDS Finder finds no products that match your criteria, your AutoDS Finder credits return to your balance automatically.
To resolve it, try different criteria in the AutoDS Finder tab:
Select a lower AutoDS Finder category: For example, Basic (3+ sales per month) instead of Best Sellers (8+ sales per month). Lower AutoDS Finder categories have more products available.
Select a different supplier: Choose another supplier in Supplier Source. Some suppliers have larger product catalogs than others.
Select a different warehouse region: Choose another option in Ship From Warehouse for the same supplier. Broader warehouse regions usually have more products available.
Try again later: Product availability changes often, so check AutoDS Finder again later the same day or the next day.
If AutoDS Finder still shows no products, you can import products from any supported supplier with a product link, ID, or CSV file. Learn how here.
AutoDS Finder credits were deducted, but no products appear in Drafts
After you click "Add As draft" or another AutoDS Finder upload option, your AutoDS Finder credit balance goes down, but no new products appear on your Drafts page.
Why this happens: The AutoDS Finder import did not complete, so no drafts were created from that import.
What happens to your AutoDS Finder credits: When an AutoDS Finder import does not create drafts, your AutoDS Finder credits return to your balance automatically.
To resolve it:
Check your AutoDS Finder credit balance next to Your Credits in the top-right corner of the AutoDS Finder tab.
If the balance still shows the deducted AutoDS Finder credits, log out of your AutoDS account and log back in to refresh the balance.
Run the AutoDS Finder import again. If AutoDS Finder shows "Finder cannot find any product according to your criteria", follow the steps in the section above.
If your AutoDS Finder credits still do not appear in your balance after you log back in, please let us know by sharing the date of the AutoDS Finder import, the AutoDS Finder category, and the number of AutoDS Finder credits deducted.