Guide to Amazon Best Sellers and Sales Rank

What is Amazon Best Sellers Rank?

Here’s how BSR works on Amazon and how you can use it to drive ecommerce sales.

Amazon Best Sellers Rank (BSR) is a metric that appears on an item’s product page and indicates how it’s selling compared to other items within the same product category in the Amazon store. Amazon’s Best Sellers list showcases the top selling products within featured categories near real-time based on BSR scores, which are updated several times a day.

Amazon BSR scores go up and down based on sales, with a lower score typically indicating a higher Amazon sales rank. For example, if a satin sheet set ranks #4 in the Home & Kitchen category, it’s the fourth best selling product among active Home & Kitchen listings.

In this post, we’ll cover how you can keep an eye on BSR and track changes over time to gauge sales performance, make decisions about what products you want to sell, and grow online sales.

How to find Best Seller Rank on Amazon

You can view a product detail page and scroll down to the Product Information section, where you’ll see the item’s Best Seller Rank. (However, Best Seller Rank is not always available on all product detail pages.) Look at an item’s ranking in one or more categories by checking the information box to the right.

How is Amazon Best Sellers Rank calculated?

Amazon calculates Best Seller Rankings using data about sales volume over time. Recent sales and all-time sales factor into BSR, with recent sales counting more than older sales.

Note that BSR ranking is not influenced by page view data or customer reviews. So sales rank doesn’t necessarily indicate quality—or tell you what customers think of products they purchase.

A product can have more than one BSR number if it falls under more than one category, and the BSR can be different for each. For example, a kitchen scale might rank #14 in Kitchen & Dining, and rank #2 in the Digital Kitchen Scales subcategory. The same item might only rank #2056 (or not rank at all) in the Health & Household category.

The ranking information can also vary depending on the Amazon store. For example, an item ranked at #1 in the U.S. might rank #23 in the Amazon UK or Japan stores.

What’s the difference between BSR and search ranking?

When you type a phrase into Amazon search, the results you see appear based on its search ranking. You can improve the search ranking by using SEO practices to optimize product listings so they’ll rank higher in search results.

Best Seller Rank, on the other hand, indicates how a product ranks within the product category. If the BSR is high enough, the product will appear in the Best Sellers list.

A top BSR will not necessarily translate into a high organic ranking, and a high organic ranking isn’t guaranteed to translate into a high BSR score. However, both ranking systems are related to sales volume. So an item that’s selling well has a better chance of ranking higher, both in organic search and on the Amazon Best Sellers Rank list.

How do you improve a BSR score? You have some options—let’s explore them, next.

5 tactics to improve BSR

Because BSR is directly tied to sales volume, improve sales to improve BSR scores. Here are some top tactics.

1. Select product categories with care

Because Amazon sales rank scores rise and fall relative to other items in the same product category, it’s very important to choose the product category carefully when you list a product.

Familiarize yourself with your options for categories and subcategories by exploring the Best Sellers list. Then choose the most relevant and accurate category, based on the products you want to sell.

If you offer variations of a product, be sure to assign the parent ASIN and all child ASINs within the same category. Learn more about BSR classification and ASINs.

2. Optimize listings to rank in search

Help increase visibility for products in organic search by optimizing product titles, product photos, product descriptions, bulleted lists of key features and benefits, and more.

Try these optimization tools and techniques:

• Amazon SEO: Target specific keywords to rank better in organic search.
• A/B Testing: Run experiments to compare two versions of a product title, photo, or another element to see which option results in more purchases.
• A+ Content: Use this tool to add your own branding to listings and create compelling visuals, informational materials, and more.

3. Set competitive prices

Perform some pricing research and experiment with price points to figure out what amounts might result in greater sales, or use the Automate Pricing tool to automatically adjust prices in response to trends.

4. Leverage advertising and marketing tactics

You can increase sales with ecommerce marketing methods through social media, blogging, affiliate marketing, and more. Try out cost-per-click (CPC) ads, subscription boxes, bundles, and other tactics for getting more ecommerce orders. You can also take advantage of advertising options exclusively available to Amazon sellers.

5. Focus on customer engagement

Build strong relationships with customers by providing a great shopping experience from beginning to end. Answer customer questions, follow up after purchases, and use other best practices for selling online to get great reviews and encourage buyers to return.

Amazon sales rank tracking: how to use BSR to drive sales

Amazon Best Sellers Rank is a reflection of sales, so you can’t use BSR scores to drive sales directly. As we covered in the last section, it works the other way around—you can help increase sales to improve your rank. That said, BSR scores can be a great starting point to get product ideas to sell online. You can track sales trends and apply what you learn to make adjustments to your selling strategy. Here’s how.

Conduct product research

The Amazon Best Sellers list is where you can see BSRs in action, along with the Movers & Shakers list, which showcases the biggest gainers in sales rank over the past 24 hours. Explore the rankings for the categories that matter to your business, and take note of trends over time. Are certain items gaining popularity—or on the way out?

To dig deeper, take a look at the reviews of high ranking products. Are customers satisfied, or do they have common complaints? If you notice a theme, can you come up with an alternative product or a design improvement as a solution?

Consult this product ideas guide for an in-depth look at how to choose products for your portfolio based on sales performance.

Track sales metrics

Analyze key performance indicators alongside BSR scores to get an overall view of how sales are doing. Some numbers you can monitor with an Amazon store are:

• Impressions
• Clicks
• Click through rates
• Purchases
• Return buyers

Viewing these metrics side-by-side with BSR scores can give insights to help you source products, manage inventory, and expand your reach. Positive increases in both areas might indicate hot products to lean into, while declining numbers might lead you to make cuts from your catalog.

Use Brand Analytics

What keywords are customers using to find products? Who’s returning again and again to place purchases? A suite of data tools available through Brand Analytics can give you the answer to these and other questions. Try it out to gain access to reports on audience demographics, search catalog performance, and more. To unlock Brand Analytics, sign up for a Professional selling plan and enroll in Brand Registry.

How do you rank?

Amazon Best Sellers Rank is a powerful tool you can use to see how sales are performing and make decisions about the products you want to sell. Track product rankings over time to see what products are on the way up, and what trends are on the way out.

Combined with information like sales volumes and customer satisfaction levels, BSRs can help you shape a more effective sales strategy and make money in ecommerce.

Some product categories are open to all sellers, while others require a Professional selling account. To get started, become an Amazon seller and if you have a brand, enroll it in Brand Registry. If you’d like to start a brand, but don’t have an active or pending trademark, check out IP Accelerator as a way to speed up the process.

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