Negative gross margin
Plain meaning: The product costs more than it sells for.
Technical signal: Negative gross margin / loss-making SKU.
Next action: Confirm the unit cost, then review the current catalog price or supplier cost.
Sample proof
Sample Shopify SKU margin scan
This is the plain-English version of what Margin Sentinel shows: which variants have negative or weak catalog gross margin at the current price, which SKUs have missing costs, and which fixes matter first because stock is still on hand.
Check your own Shopify product CSV in this browser. No install or upload is required for the preview.
Install free; your first read-only scan starts automaticallyOpen Margin Sentinel once to get your own fix list for missing cost per item and weak catalog gross margin. Free for up to 100 variants. No price changes. No card.Install free and scan
29variants checked
1negative gross-margin variant
3low-margin products
$5,904inventory dollars at risk
What this means in normal words
The scan does not say "change every price now." It says: start with the few products where cost, price, and inventory create the biggest risk. For a merchant, that is easier to act on than a full profit dashboard.
Sample findings
Low margin
Plain meaning: The product still makes money, but not enough to hit the target margin.
Technical signal: Margin gap below target margin threshold.
Next action: Confirm the unit cost, then review the current catalog price or watch it weekly.
Inventory risk
Plain meaning: There is stock on hand, so the margin issue can still cost real money.
Technical signal: Margin gap multiplied by inventory quantity.
Next action: Fix high-stock issues before low-stock cleanup rows.
Missing cost
Plain meaning: Shopify does not have enough cost data to trust the margin number.
Technical signal: Missing COGS, missing unit cost, or unmatched supplier cost.
Next action: Import supplier costs by SKU, variant ID, or inventory item ID.
Quick glossary
- SKU: the product code used to identify a variant, such as a size, color, part, or model.
- Cost per item: the current unit cost stored in Shopify or supplied by your import.
- Catalog gross margin: the percentage left after unit cost is removed from the current catalog price. It does not include orders, discounts, shipping, returns, ad spend, or fees.
- Margin gap: how far the product is below the target margin.
- Inventory risk: the money tied up in stock that is attached to a margin issue.
How Margin Sentinel uses this
Margin Sentinel scans Shopify product variants, SKU data, Shopify unit costs, imported supplier costs, current catalog prices, and inventory quantity. It turns those rows into a short fix list: negative or weak catalog gross margin, missing cost, inventory risk, and suggested minimum price. It is read-only and does not automatically change prices.
Use this on your own catalogStart with the free scan, one guided supplier CSV import, and a discount test. Upgrade only when the store needs larger scans, recurring supplier CSV imports, or weekly alerts.Install Margin Sentinel free