How to Check Seller Ratings on Amazon

Not all Amazon sellers are created equal. With over 9.7 million third-party sellers on the platform โ€” and new accounts opening daily โ€” knowing how to evaluate a seller before you buy is one of the most effective ways to avoid scams, counterfeits, and disappointing purchases.

This step-by-step guide shows you exactly where to find seller ratings, what metrics actually matter, how to spot fake or disposable seller accounts, and how AI tools like FakeScan add an extra layer of protection in 2026.

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Step-by-Step: Checking Seller Ratings

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Find the seller name on the product page. On any Amazon product listing, look below the 'Add to Cart' button for the 'Sold by' or 'Ships from and sold by' line. Click the seller's name (it's a hyperlink) to visit their storefront page. If it says 'Ships from and sold by Amazon.com,' the product is sold directly by Amazon.
2
Review the seller's overall rating percentage. On the seller's profile page, you'll see their overall positive feedback percentage (e.g., '94% positive in the last 12 months'). This percentage is based on buyer feedback โ€” not product reviews. A rating below 90% is a yellow flag, and below 85% is a significant warning sign.
3
Check the feedback breakdown by time period. Amazon shows seller feedback across four time windows: 30 days, 90 days, 12 months, and lifetime. Pay attention to recent trends โ€” a seller with 98% lifetime positive but 82% in the last 30 days may be declining in quality or service.
4
Read recent seller feedback comments. Scroll through actual buyer feedback comments on the seller profile. Look for patterns: repeated complaints about counterfeit goods, wrong items shipped, or no-response customer service are serious red flags, even if the overall percentage looks acceptable.
5
Verify the seller's business information. On the seller profile, click 'Detailed Seller Information' (or 'Business Details'). Legitimate sellers display a business name, address, and phone number. If this information is missing, vague, or shows only a foreign address for a supposedly domestic product, exercise caution.
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Check how long the seller has been active. The seller profile shows when they first started selling on Amazon. Newer sellers (under 6 months) have less track record. While new sellers aren't automatically untrustworthy, combine this with other signals โ€” a 2-month-old account with 5,000 reviews should raise questions.
7
Cross-reference with FakeScan. Paste the product URL into FakeScan to get an AI-powered analysis of the product's review patterns. FakeScan detects signs of review manipulation that manual checking would miss, including timing anomalies, language patterns, and reviewer profile suspicious activity.

๐Ÿ“Š Seller Metrics That Actually Matter

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Positive Feedback %. The single most important seller metric. Look for 95%+ across the 12-month window. Top-tier sellers maintain 97-99%. Anything below 90% means 1 in 10 buyers had a negative experience.
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Total Feedback Count. More feedback means more data points. A seller with 98% positive on 10,000 ratings is far more reliable than 100% positive on 15 ratings. Volume matters for statistical confidence.
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Recent Feedback Trend. Compare the 30-day rating to the 12-month rating. If the 30-day number is significantly lower, the seller may be experiencing issues with supply quality, shipping, or customer service โ€” problems that affect your order.
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Response Time. While not always visible, some seller profiles indicate how quickly they respond to buyer messages. Quick response times (under 24 hours) correlate with better dispute resolution and overall buyer satisfaction.
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Return Policy Details. Check the seller's return policy on their storefront. Legitimate sellers offer clear return windows. Some scam sellers have no return policy or state 'all sales final' โ€” a major red flag for marketplace purchases.
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Product Range Coherence. Browse the seller's storefront. Legitimate sellers usually specialize in related categories. A seller offering electronics, pet food, fashion, and furniture simultaneously may be a drop-shipping operation or disposable account.

๐Ÿšฉ Signs of a Fake or Scam Seller

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Brand-new account with massive inventory. Legitimate Amazon sellers typically start small and grow. An account created 45 days ago with 2,000+ product listings across diverse categories is almost certainly a scam operation that will disappear after collecting enough orders.
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Prices significantly below all competitors. If a seller offers a $120 product for $35 while ten other sellers price it at $110-130, the product is likely counterfeit, the listing is a scam, or you'll receive a completely different item than pictured.
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No detailed seller information. Clicking 'Detailed Seller Information' should reveal a business name, address, and contact information. Sellers who hide or omit this information are making it difficult for you to seek recourse if something goes wrong.
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Feedback mostly about different products. If a seller's feedback comments reference products in completely different categories than what you're buying, the seller may have pivoted from legitimate products to scam listings while retaining old positive feedback.
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Only offering Fulfilled by Merchant shipping. While FBM is legitimate, scam sellers specifically avoid FBA because Amazon can inspect and verify FBA inventory. If a high-value product from an unknown seller is FBM-only, apply extra scrutiny โ€” you lose Amazon's hands-on quality layer.
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Duplicate or near-identical listings. Some scam sellers create 5-10 nearly identical listings for the same product with slight title variations to increase visibility. This technique violates Amazon's policies and indicates a seller willing to game the system.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I find seller ratings on Amazon?

On any product page, look for the 'Sold by [Seller Name]' text below the Add to Cart button. Click the seller's name to visit their profile where you'll see their positive feedback percentage, feedback count, time periods breakdown, business details, and individual buyer comments.

What is a good Amazon seller rating?

A good seller rating is 95% positive or higher across the 12-month window with at least 100+ total feedback entries. Elite sellers typically maintain 97-99% positive ratings. Ratings below 90% indicate meaningful quality or service issues, and below 85% is a strong warning to buy elsewhere.

Is seller feedback the same as product reviews?

No. Seller feedback rates the buying experience (shipping speed, packaging, communication, accuracy of product description), while product reviews rate the product itself. A product with great reviews but a seller with poor feedback means the product is good but that particular seller may deliver poorly.

Can seller ratings be faked on Amazon?

Yes, though it's less common than product review manipulation. Some sellers use 'brush' transactions โ€” purchasing low-cost items from themselves via fake buyer accounts and leaving positive seller feedback. Others buy established seller accounts with good ratings from account brokers, then use them to sell scam products.

What does 'Fulfilled by Amazon' mean for seller trust?

Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) means the product is stored, packed, and shipped from Amazon's warehouse. Amazon inspects FBA inventory and handles returns. FBA products are generally safer because Amazon has physical custody of the items, though counterfeits can still enter FBA warehouses through commingled inventory.

Should I only buy from Amazon directly?

Not necessarily. Many excellent third-party sellers offer competitive prices and quality products. The key is evaluating the seller properly: check their feedback percentage, read recent comments, verify business information, and compare prices. Third-party sellers with 97%+ ratings and years of history can be as reliable as Amazon direct.

How do I report a suspicious Amazon seller?

On the seller's profile page, you can click 'Report abuse' or contact Amazon customer service directly. You can also report from the product listing page via the 'Report incorrect product information' link. Amazon investigates and can suspend seller accounts, though the process can take weeks.

How does FakeScan help evaluate Amazon sellers?

While FakeScan primarily analyzes product reviews, the patterns it detects โ€” like coordinated review campaigns, suspicious timing, and AI-generated review text โ€” often point back to untrustworthy sellers. A product with a low FakeScan trust score from a seller with mediocre ratings is a strong signal to avoid that purchase.