Custom price monitoring software
Appfront builds custom software for monitoring external prices: tracking the prices of competitors and marketplaces, recording price changes and stock signals, matching your products to those of other suppliers, and receiving an alert as soon as someone undercuts you. With historical price trends, clear dashboards and export to your own systems, always respecting the terms of each source. For e-commerce, retail, brands and wholesalers who want to know how their prices compare with the market.
What is price monitoring software?
Price monitoring software collects and tracks the prices that competitors and marketplaces charge for comparable products. The software links your items to those of other suppliers, records price changes and stock signals over time, and brings everything together in dashboards with historical trends. This lets you see at a glance how your prices compare with the market, and get a signal when a supplier undercuts you or prices above you. This is also known as price intelligence or price monitoring.
An important distinction: this software is solely about observing external prices. Deciding on or automatically adjusting your own selling prices is a separate discipline we call price optimisation. If you want to take that step, with pricing rules, margins and strategy, see our price optimisation software. This page stays focused on collecting and making the market visible.
Many businesses still do this by hand, searching manually and maintaining loose spreadsheets. That takes a lot of time, goes out of date quickly and covers only a fraction of the range. Custom price monitoring software takes over that work, keeps the data current and scales as you add new markets, channels or sources. Read more about our broader approach to custom software development.
The market at a glance
Your prices alongside those of competitors and marketplaces, per product and per channel. You see at once where you are ahead or behind, without clicking through dozens of tabs or maintaining loose spreadsheets.
Alerts for undercutting
A notification as soon as a competitor drops below your price, changes a price or runs low on stock. You set the thresholds yourself, so nobody has to check manually anymore and you can respond faster.
Reliable and traceable
Every observation is recorded with its timestamp and source, so you can substantiate price trends and know where a figure comes from. We access sources in line with their terms and at a reasonable frequency.
How we build your price monitoring software
We work step by step and involve your e-commerce, purchasing and category management teams early in the process. From a clear exploration of your range, your competitors and the sources you want to track, through to go-live and ongoing management. Every step is aimed at software your team can trust, delivering reliable, up-to-date price data.
We map out which products you want to track, which competitors and marketplaces are relevant, and which sources are available and permitted. Together we determine the desired frequency, the matching approach and how you intend to use the results.
We design the data collection for each source, the matching model for range matching, the data model for price history and the dashboards. Respect for source terms and a sensible request frequency are built in from the outset.
We build in short iterations with automated tests, structured logging and monitoring of the sources. You see working versions along the way and help steer priorities, match quality and how notifications are set up.
Controlled go-live with validation of the first observations, followed by ongoing management. We keep an eye on sources, adjust when a source changes, and expand to new markets or channels as your needs grow.
What price monitoring software actually does
We tailor each application specifically to your range, your competitors and the sources you want to track. Below are the features we most often deliver for businesses that want to monitor competitor and market prices.
Tracking competitors and marketplaces
You decide which competitors, webshops and marketplaces to follow and for which products. The software retrieves current prices via the most suitable source and keeps them updated at the frequency you specify.
Range matching
Your products are matched to the right products from other sellers, where possible by EAN or GTIN, and otherwise by brand, model and attributes. Uncertain matches are flagged by the software, your team confirms them, and that decision is remembered.
Historical price trends
Every observation is recorded with its timestamp, so you can look back at how prices in your market have moved over days, weeks and seasons. This helps you spot patterns, competitor campaigns and structural shifts rather than isolated snapshots.
Price and stock signals
The software records not only the price but also when it changes and whether a product is in stock. You can see when a competitor sells out or restocks, which is often just as telling as the price itself.
Notifications and thresholds
You set when you want an alert: when a competitor undercuts you, when a price changes by more than a set percentage, or when a price falls outside a set range. Alerts arrive by email, on the dashboard, or through an integration with your own systems.
Dashboards and export
Clear dashboards by category, brand or competitor, plus export to CSV, Excel or via an API to your data warehouse or BI tool. Your analysts and buyers can then use the price data in the environment they already work in.
Who we build price monitoring software for
Insight into market prices is valuable for a wide range of businesses, each with its own angle. For each of them, we tailor the sources, the matching and the reporting to their range and their market.
E-commerce and online shops
Online shops that want to stay sharp against marketplaces and competitors. They track the prices of a selected group of sellers and receive an alert as soon as they are undercut, so they can decide deliberately how to respond.
Retailers with a broad range
Retailers with thousands of items that are impossible to track manually. Automated monitoring and matching keep the overview up to date per category and brand, so category managers can focus their attention on the products that matter.
Brands and manufacturers
Brands and manufacturers who want to see the prices at which their products are offered in the market, across different sellers and channels. This gives them insight into how their range is positioned with retailers and on marketplaces.
Wholesale and distribution
Wholesalers and distributors that track prices across their supply chain to position their offering to buyers effectively. An integration with their CRM software brings market insight and customer contact together.
Test your idea first: a working prototype in 1 day
With OneDayBuild, we turn your idea into something tangible in one day for €1,150, so you can see whether further development is worth the investment. Decide to go ahead with the full build? Then we credit the full cost.
Explore OneDayBuild →Technology and integrations
We build with a modern, maintainable web stack and integrate with the sources and systems that matter to you. On the market side, that means marketplace APIs such as bol and Amazon, price comparison sites and Google Shopping feeds and, where permitted, reading publicly displayed prices. On your side, we connect to your PIM, ERP or webshop platform and deliver results through dashboards and export. We approach every source in line with its terms and at a reasonable request frequency.
Why choose Appfront for your price monitoring software?
Appfront builds custom software and always begins with a thorough analysis of your range, your competitors and the sources you want to track. Price monitoring should not only work technically, but also deliver reliable data that your buyers and analysts can confidently act on. That is why we pay close attention to the quality of the matching and to accessing every source responsibly.
We write clear documentation so that your own team or a future supplier can understand and manage the software. No black box, but transparent code and clear agreements on sources, frequencies, data storage and management. If a source changes or you want to add a new market, the software grows with you without starting over.
You work with a dedicated point of contact who understands both the technical and the commercial side of pricing. This keeps lines of communication short, prevents misunderstandings and speeds up decisions when choices need to be made during the build.
Want to move from monitoring to setting your own prices? Then take a look at our price optimisation software. Do you have questions about your situation? Get in touch with us.
- Custom software, tailored to your range and market
- Reliable range matching on EAN, GTIN and attributes
- Respect for source terms and a sensible request frequency
- Historical price trends instead of isolated snapshots
- Alerts for undercutting, price changes and stock signals
- Integration with marketplaces, feeds, PIM, ERP and webshop
- Export to CSV, Excel, data warehouse or BI tool
- Clear documentation your team can read and manage
- A fixed point of contact, no account managers passed around
- Ongoing management as your sources or needs change
Careful collection, secure storage
In price monitoring, responsible practice comes down mainly to how data is collected. We respect the terms of every source: where a provider offers an official integration, we prefer to use it, and where we read publicly displayed prices, we do so within the applicable terms, paying attention to robots instructions and a reasonable request frequency so that we do not overload sources. We advise you in advance on what is permitted for each source and build the software transparently around that.
We store the collected price data securely and clearly, with encryption in transit and at rest, role-based access and logging of what was retrieved and when. Market price data is generally not personal data, but where it is, or where you connect your own business data, we apply the strict requirements we follow for sensitive sectors and process data in line with GDPR.
This gives you a reliable, traceable source of market insight without taking on unnecessary risk. Discuss your situation without obligation via our contact form.
- Respect for terms of use and robots.txt instructions per source
- Official APIs where available
- Reasonable request frequency so sources are not overloaded
- Every observation recorded with timestamp and origin
- Encryption in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest
- Role-based access and least-privilege principles
- Logging of retrieved data and system access
- GDPR-compliant processing wherever personal data is involved
Frequently asked questions about price monitoring software
Answers to the questions we are asked most often about custom software for monitoring competitor and market prices.
Price monitoring software collects and tracks the prices that competitors and marketplaces charge for comparable products. The software matches your items to those of other providers, records price changes and stock signals over time, and presents everything in dashboards with historical trends. You can see how your prices compare with the market and receive an alert when a provider undercuts you. Price monitoring is solely about observing external prices, not about setting your own. The latter is called price optimisation, which is a separate discipline.
Price monitoring collects and displays external market data: which prices competitors and marketplaces are asking, how they move over time, and where you are being undercut. It is an observation tool. Price optimisation then uses that data to set your own selling prices, with rules, margins and strategy. This page is only about monitoring and collecting competitor and market prices. If you want to take the step towards determining or automating your own prices, see our price optimisation software.
Price data comes from several sources: official marketplace APIs, price comparison sites and product feeds and, where permitted, reading publicly displayed web pages. We set up each source carefully and respect its terms, such as terms of use, robots instructions and reasonable request frequencies, so that we do not overload sources. Where a provider offers an official integration, we prefer to use it. We advise you in advance on what is permitted for each source and build the software transparently around that.
To compare prices fairly, your product must be matched to the right product at a competitor. Where a unique code is available, such as an EAN or GTIN, we match on that. Where it is missing, we use brand, model, attributes and title recognition to suggest candidates. Your team confirms or corrects doubtful cases, after which the software remembers that choice. This builds a reliable match table and prevents you from comparing apples with oranges.
Yes. You decide when you want an alert: on every price change by a competitor you follow, when a seller drops below your price, when a product sells out or comes back into stock, or when a price falls outside a range you set. Alerts can be sent by email, to a dashboard or via an integration with your own systems. That way nobody has to check prices manually and you can respond faster to market movements.
We integrate with marketplaces such as bol and Amazon through their APIs, with price comparison sites and Google Shopping feeds, and with your own webshop and product information. On your side, we connect to your PIM, ERP or webshop platform such as Shopify, WooCommerce or Magento, so that your range and the monitored prices come together. We deliver results in dashboards and as exports to CSV, Excel or, via an API, to your own data warehouse or BI tool.
We build bespoke software. Off-the-shelf price monitoring tools often only cover the most common marketplaces and force you into their matching logic and reporting. Custom software fits your range, your specific sources and the way your team works with prices, and it can grow with you as you add new markets or channels. After an initial consultation, we agree together which sources and features matter most and in what order we build them.
We build for webshops and e-commerce businesses that want to stay sharp against marketplaces and competitors, for retailers with a broad range, for brands and manufacturers who want to track how their products are priced in the market, and for wholesalers and distributors who need to keep an eye on prices across their chain. For each of these, we tailor the sources, matching and reporting to their range and their market.
Ready to build your price monitoring software?
Tell us which products you want to track, which competitors and marketplaces matter, and how you want to use the results. We are happy to think along about sources, range matching, alerts and the integration with your own systems. In a no-obligation first conversation you will get a clear picture of what custom software can do to make your market transparent.