FAQ
Common questions about Pull Rank. Don't see yours? Email us.
Getting started
What is Pull Rank?
Pull Rank is a free tool that monitors your Amazon bestseller rankings every hour and sends you email alerts when something notable happens — like hitting a threshold rank, setting a personal best, or returning to a list after a long absence.
How does it work?
Pull Rank generates a pre-configured Google Sheet with a script that runs inside your own Google account. The script checks Amazon every hour using Google's servers and emails you via your Google account's mail service. No data passes through Pull Rank's servers after the initial setup.
Is it really free?
Yes, completely. There's an optional tip jar if you find it useful, but there's no free trial, no premium tier, and no credit card required.
Do I need technical knowledge to set it up?
No. The setup form walks you through everything. The only slightly technical step is authorizing the Google Script — there's a scary-looking OAuth screen, but it's completely safe and expected.
Alerts & monitoring
How often does Pull Rank check my ranking?
Every hour. Amazon updates most bestseller lists approximately every hour, so this is the natural cadence.
What's a threshold alert?
A threshold alert fires once when your rank enters the zone you set (e.g., top 100). It resets when your rank drops below the threshold, and fires again the next time you re-enter. It doesn't spam you with alerts for every small improvement while you're already ranked.
What's a personal best alert?
This fires any time your book beats its all-time best rank on a given list. Useful if you don't have a specific threshold in mind but want to know about new records.
What are digest emails?
A digest is a weekly or monthly summary showing your peak rank for the period, number of appearances, and any milestones — even if you never hit your threshold. Useful for staying informed without real-time alerts.
Can I monitor multiple lists for one book?
Yes — add the same book with different list URLs. Each combination is tracked independently.
Can I monitor books on different Amazon marketplaces?
Yes — amazon.com, .co.uk, .com.au, .de, .ca, .co.jp, and more. The marketplace is detected automatically from the URL.
Privacy & data
Where is my data stored?
Your book data, rankings history, and alert settings are stored entirely in a Google Sheet in your own Google Drive. Pull Rank's servers are only used to create the initial sheet and send magic-link emails.
Does Pull Rank scrape Amazon?
Yes — it fetches publicly accessible Amazon bestseller list pages, the same pages any browser can visit. This is how it reads your ranking.
Can Pull Rank read or modify my Google account?
The script only has access to the single Google Sheet it creates. It can't access any other files in your Drive.
Troubleshooting
I'm not getting alerts. What's wrong?
First, check that your triggers are set up: open the sheet, click Pull Rank → Set Up Triggers. If triggers are already active, check the script logs (in the Google Apps Script editor, click Executions). Common causes: the Amazon URL has changed, or your book isn't currently on the list.
My Amazon URL stopped working.
Amazon occasionally restructures list URLs. Visit Amazon, find the list again, and paste the new URL into column D of your Rankings sheet.
How do I add a new book to an existing tracker?
Open your Pull Rank Google Sheet and add a new row in the Rankings tab, following the same format as existing rows.
How do I stop getting alerts?
Open your Google Sheet and set the Alert columns (F, H, I) to FALSE for any book you want to silence. To stop all monitoring, delete the triggers: in the Apps Script editor, go to Triggers and delete them.