---
title: "IronScout Help Center"
description: "Help documentation covering account setup, search, alerts, privacy, retailer data, and troubleshooting for IronScout."
url: "https://www.ironscout.ai/help"
generated_at: "2026-11-12T06:05:02.623Z"
---
# Help Center

## Getting Started

**What is IronScout?** A free ammo search engine and price tracker that
aggregates observed prices across multiple online retailers and presents
historical context.

**Do I need an account?** No — browsing prices is free and does not require
an account. Accounts are only needed for alerts and saved items.

**Is IronScout free?** Yes. There is no paid consumer tier; every user gets the
same search, filtering, price-history and alert capabilities.

## Search & Results

**Why do I see different prices for the "same" product?** Retailers list
the same SKU with slight variations in title, packaging, and stock. IronScout
groups matching products canonically so prices are comparable per-round.

**Why don't you show a "best deal" label?** IronScout is descriptive, not
prescriptive. Best-for-you depends on shipping zones, tax, and retailer
trust — none of which IronScout can fully model. We show data; you decide.

## Alerts & Monitoring

**How do price alerts work?** Save an item, set a threshold, and you will
be notified when observed prices cross it. Alerts fire on observed data
only — no extrapolation or prediction.

**Why didn't my alert fire?** The product may not have been observed at
the threshold during the alert window, or the retailer may be unavailable.
Availability and retailer eligibility affect coverage.

## Account & Privacy

**Does IronScout sell my data?** No. See https://www.ironscout.ai/privacy for details.

**What data does IronScout store?** Email, account credentials, saved
items and alert preferences. IronScout does not collect firearm serial
numbers, purchase history, or payment card data.

## Retailers & Data

**Which retailers does IronScout track?** See https://www.ironscout.ai/retailers for
the current eligible list. Retailer coverage changes over time based on
data quality and availability.

**How fresh is the data?** IronScout checks prices and availability at
tracked retailers once a day, in nightly batches. Each
observation carries a timestamp. Historical data is append-only.