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Reports API FAQ

Frequently asked questions about the Reports API.

What report types are available within the Reports API?

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The API provides reports for a variety of use cases, such as monitoring inventory, tracking order fulfillment, getting tax information, tracking returns, seller performance, and managing a selling business with Fulfillment by Amazon. For details about Reports API operations, data types, and schemas, refer to the Reports API Reference.

For details about available report types, refer to Report Type Values.

Can I manually request reports?

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Yes.

Why was my report cancelled?

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There are three possible reasons a report is cancelled:

  • The report was manually cancelled through the API before processing started.
  • No data can be found for the report.
  • You can request some reports (for example, FBA reports) only once within a specified time period. Any subsequent requests that you make for that report type within that period are cancelled. Check the documentation for each report to verify the request type.

You can select the appropriate report for the data that you need. For example, different reports are available for order returns depending on whether you use FBA.

Where can I find a report's attribute?

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Refer to a report's documentation for a list of the available attributes. To find a report that contains specific data, use the search bar on the documentation page.

Why do I encounter an error when I request some of the reports as a vendor?

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Not all reports are available to vendors. However, some reports are exclusive to vendors. For more information about vendor report availability, refer to SP-API Vendor Use Cases.

Do Seller Central and the Reports API offer the same reports?

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No. Seller Central provides additional reports that you can't access using the Reports API. Additionally, some reports can be similar but do not contain the same attributes or data. To find all available reports, refer to Report Type Values or use the search function to locate reports that contain the specific data that you need.

Why do some reports take so long to generate?

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Report generation can take longer depending on the report size, current system load, and the number of processed or queued reports. Use the Notifications API to receive a notification after the report you requested is ready for download.

Why am I no longer able to request a specific report?

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Report types can be deprecated. Check the changelogs of the SP-API regularly or subscribe to our RSS feed for updates.

Can I modify a report's content?

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No. You can't modify the content of the report. For some reports, you can specify start and end dates to filter results and for others, you can specify a start or end date to select the data for the report.
Additionally, refer to the Data Kiosk API, which enables you to build customized reports. Currently, the available dataset is limited compared to the Reports API.

What does a deprecated column mean in a report?

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Deprecated columns are retained to maintain the original column order, which might impact dependencies. There are no options to remove these columns when you request reports programmatically. Ensure that you comply with best practices to avoid any issues.

What does "Access to the resource is forbidden" mean?

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Reports require specific roles based on their content. You receive this error when you lack the appropriate roles to request a report. For more information on roles in the SP-API, visit Roles in the Selling Partner API.

How can a seller use the API to download reports?

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To download reports by using the SP-API, register as a developer and build your own integration. You can also use one of the available partner apps, which are available in the Selling Partner Appstore on Seller Central.

What does "Merchant is not registered in marketplace is invalid" mean?

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You must be registered with specific marketplaces to request reports. Without registration, you cannot access reports for those marketplaces.

Why does the report that I download contain cryptic content and is not human readable?

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Some reports are compressed when you download them. To correctly process reports, you must decompress them. You can find instructions and sample code in Retrieve a report.