How our checks work

If you saw RestockFinderChecker in your logs, this page is for you.

Who we are

RestockFinder alerts people when a product they want shows up for store pickup. Our checker names itself in every request as RestockFinderChecker/0.1 (+https://restockfinder.com/about-checks).

What it requests

• Apple's public pickup availability, the same information apple.com shows when you pick a store (the /shop/retail/pickup-message page), for every US Apple Store we cover, whether or not anyone watches it. The stores are listed on Today's stock. Stores in a watch with an active pass are checked more often.
• One request at a time, spaced out under a fixed cap. We never raise the cap or spread requests out to get past a refusal.
• No sign-in, no cookies, no carts, no orders. We never buy, hold or reserve products.

When a site says no

If a request is refused or rate limited, the checker stops all checks and waits before it tries again, for longer each time. When the reply says how long to wait (a Retry-After header), it waits at least that long. It never switches addresses, spreads requests across other servers or disguises itself to get past a refusal.

Ask us to slow down or stop

If you run a site we check and want us to slow down or stop, email support@restockfinder.com. We will reply and act on it.