You’ve heard great things about dropshipping and how profitable it can be. But you’re also aware of the competition you might face because of the low barrier to entry.
With 30.7 million active e-commerce stores, making your store stand out can be a challenge.
One thing that can pull you out of the shadows and into consumers’ minds is finding winning products.
Winning products are items with high demand and low competition. They are highly desirable and can turn a new store (or a struggling one) into a profitable, thriving business venture.
In this post, we’ll walk you through the different methods you can use to do dropshipping product research for finding winning products.
What Is Dropshipping Product Research?
Dropshipping product research is the process of analyzing market trends, consumer demand, and competitor offerings to identify winning products for an online store. It allows you to sell items that have a higher success potential and avoid products that are unlikely to resonate with customers.
Dropshipping product research is most effective when it’s carried out with data-driven tools like ZIK Analytics. Such tools make it easy to evaluate product margins and pinpoint dropshipping suppliers who are the best fit for your store.
Why is Product Research for Dropshipping Important?
Product research is crucial for dropshipping because it lays the foundation for identifying profitable items and staying ahead of market trends. According to the latest product research stats, items chosen via research tools are 50% more likely to become bestsellers in the first 90 days of being listed on a store.
Research helps you identify items with consistent demand, leading to positive revenue and repeat business. Additionally, product research reveals important trends about the way people seek and buy products. For example, nearly 60% of buyers now discover new products through TikTok and Instagram before searching on Amazon.
Insights like these can help you better align with people’s expectations and drive more sales for your store.
Essential Criteria for Winning Dropshipping Products
When it comes to identifying winning dropshipping products, there’s a criterion that you need to follow:
Problem Solving or Wow Factor
Winning dropshipping products often solve a specific, common problem. This might be a daily inconvenience or something that you encounter occasionally. For example, many people aren’t able to easily open jars due to conditions like arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome. Products like ergonomic jar openers solve these problems and make everyday tasks easier.
These products also have a “wow factor” that instantly grabs attention and creates excitement. You’ll find them visually striking whenever you come across them, on social media, a Shopify store, or even a print advert.
Limited Local Availability
Another trait of a winning dropshipping product is limited local availability. In other words, you’re unlikely to find them at your local thrift store or Target outlet. Local retailers don’t stock these items because they cater to niche audiences.
That means customers can’t just run to the nearest store to pick one up. They need to go online and buy from an e-commerce store, giving you a competitive advantage.
Easy to ship
Products that go on to become winners in the dropshipping space are often small and lightweight. You can fit them in a shoebox-sized package and ship them economically to most countries.
Some items are durable and avoid breakage during transit. Examples include silicone phone cases and kitchen tools.
High Profit Margins
Winning products also offer a higher profit margin than other goods. You can typically source them for 30 to 50 percent less than the selling price (or even lower if you’re lucky) and make a good profit for your business.
The items are priced low enough to encourage impulse purchases but high enough to cover costs like shipping and advertising. Make sure you’re calculating the expenses upfront, including supplier fees and advertising costs, to ensure the margins work in your favor. One way is using this free ROAS calculator to make things faster.
5 Proven Methods for Dropshipping Product Research
So how do you go about doing product research for dropshipping? Based on my experience, here are five proven methods that can help you with the process.
Method 1: Analyze Dropshipping Stores’ Best Sellers
One of the best ways to do product research is to see which items are bringing in revenue for other dropshipping stores. It gives you an idea of which items are worth stocking and how you should price them in order to get more orders from customers.
You can use ZIK Analytics’ Shopify Sales Tracker to uncover bestsellers from any Shopify store in minutes. Just drop their store URL into this tool inside ZIK Analytics, and it will instantly show the products, estimated sales, revenue, tech stack, and social and marketing channels for that store.
In the product view, you’ll see three tabs, one of which is for Best Sellers. This gives you an idea of which items are selling well and also shows the estimated revenue they are generating for the store in question. Plus, make sure to see the price so you know how much to charge in your own store.
Since best sellers are already proven to be market-tested and profitable, you might consider adding some to increase the appeal of your catalog.
Method 2: Use ZIK Analytics Product Explorer
Another handy tool for ecommerce product research is ZIK Analytics’ Shopify Product Explorer. This tool lets you analyze the performance of any item based their past sales and estimated revenue.
To use it, get a ZIK Analytics account and choose Shopify as your marketplace. Then choose the Product Explorer tool from the left tab and enter the keyword for the product you want to search. ZIK lets you choose the product type, target country, currency, language, and sales date range you want the data to be based on.
Once you click Search, the Product Explorer will show you a list of products containing around that keyword. You can then analyze their estimated 7-day and 30-day sales, upload date, pricing, and revenue estimate to gauge their potential worth.
ZIK Analytics also lets you match products with Alibaba and AliExpress suppliers using image-based search. To do this, click the AliExpress icon in the box at in the last column and you’ll get this view:
The tool also calculates the profit margin and ROI based on supplier prices. Having this knowledge can go a long way in helping you decide which items to pick for your store.
Method 3: Social Media Trend Analysis
Social media trend analysis involves monitoring platforms like Instagram and TikTok for viral content. Basically, you want to look for videos and images that have received a sudden surge in views and feature a product as the main theme.
You can start by checking the Explore page on Instagram for trending items and seeing which items influencers frequently mention in their Reels and Stories. On TikTok, research hashtags like #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt and scroll the For You Page to train the app to show trending products.
When you’re analyzing social media content, make sure to read comments to understand customer desires and pain points. Plus, see if you can directly engage in discussions with existing buyers to get a deeper look into a niche or general product.
Method 4: Best Performing Ads Analysis
Who knew the ads you see on Facebook and TikTok could become your secret weapon for identifying high-potential dropshipping products? Ads with a high number of comments and shares and long run times indicate that people are interested and buying the featured item.
You can begin by analyzing the ads being run by successful stores in your niche. ZIK Analytics offers a dropshipping ad spy tool that you can use to speed up the process. Our tool lets you use filters like gender, age, country, CTA type, and media format to instantly uncover social media ads tailored to your ideal customer.
You also get the option to preview hundreds of live Instagram and Facebook ads inside a scrollable gallery. This makes it easy to analyze which hooks, creatives, and formats are winning (as well as get inspired to create your own.
And if you want to spy on a competitor’s ads, our Shopify Sales Tracker tool displays their creatives so you can reverse engineer their strategy. Just drop their store URL in the tool, and it will instantly show their ad,s which are currently live on Facebook and Instagram.
Method 5: Trend Forecasting with Exploding Topics
Exploding Topics is a trend forecasting tool that you can combine with other research methods to validate product ideas.
This tool scans millions of web pages across Google, Reddit, Amazon, and other platforms to identify topics that are growing but haven’t yet hit their peak. You can filter the database by category, like fashion or home goods, to see what’s trending in your niche.
For example, if you filter by home goods, the tool might surface trends like “portable air purifiers” or “minimalist desk organizers” along with a graph showing their Google Search volume over time.
This helps you see if a particular item is just a fad or a sustainable trend worth building a store around.
Common Product Research Mistakes to Avoid
Although product research might sound simple, it’s easy to make mistakes that prevent you from getting the most out of this tactic. Common mistakes include:
Jumping On Trends Blindly
Dropshipping trending products without validating their demand is a recipe for wasted ad spend. A product that might be trending today may become irrelevant in a few weeks. Consumer preferences change quickly, and a fading trend could leave you with a store full of listings that nobody checks.
To make sure you’re not wasting time or money, use tools like Google Trends to analyze search interest over time. Consistent growth in search volume indicates a stable, long-term opportunity.
Paying for Shopify Trial Upfront
You might be keen to sign up for a trial on Shopify in order to explore its functionality. However, you should first conduct product research and find at least one or two winning products before subscribing to Shopify.
Many people do the opposite and then end up exhausting their limit because they couldn’t find good products in time. You can avoid this to get more time and start generating revenue to help cover the monthly subscription.
Ignoring Customer Reviews and Feedback
Customer reviews give you the opportunity to learn about a product’s strengths and weaknesses. But not many dropshippers take the time to go through them, missing the chance to learn what customers hate, love, and wish was different about an item.
If you start to take customer feedback seriously, you can identify many pain points and source products that directly address customers’ problems. In doing so, you’ll build a store that highly resonates with shoppers and sets you apart from the competition.
Best Dropshipping Product Research Tools
Finding winning dropshipping products manually can take several weeks with all the scattered info and insights. Fortunately, there are tools that cut down the research time and help you find high-potential products before the market becomes saturated.
Here are some of the best dropshipping product research tools available:
ZIK Analytics
We don’t mean to brag, but ZIK Analytics is a complete solution for finding winning dropshipping products. Our tool gives you real-time data on products, tools to analyze competitor stores, and the latest market insights. We also include a title builder tool for SEO optimization and a supplier finder that matches items to suppliers like Amazon and AliExpress.
Exploding Topics
Exploding Topics is a great tool for identifying trends before your competitors. It uses AI to find new product categories and micro-trends before they become saturated. A dedicated feature within this tool specifically looks at items on marketplaces like TikTok and Amazon, and then offers helpful metrics like growth speed and consumer sentiment to help you make data-driven sourcing decisions.
Google Trends
Google Trends is a free tool that shows you how often people search for specific products over time and by location. For example, people in the US might have a growing interest in standing desks due to the health and wellness movement. Google Trends captures these patterns and helps you identify which markets have the strongest demand for your products.
Trending Dropshipping Product Categories in 2026
We’ve shown you several ways to find winning dropshipping products for your store. But what are the categories you should look into when researching? Here are a few that are expected to perform well throughout 2026:
Apparel & Footwear
This is one dropshipping category that never fails to see consistent demand. According to projections, the global apparel and footwear market is expected to reach USD 3.72 trillion by 2033.
There are plenty of ways you can capitalize on the increased spending, including selling seasonal items like sandals in summer and boots in winter, and offering products that align with the rising athleisure or sustainable fashion trend.
Eco-Conscious Products
The heightened awareness about environmental issues is driving a shift in consumer spending towards sustainable options. Consumers are now actively seeking natural, zero-waste items and even paying premiums for ethical brands.
This trend has created a lucrative opportunity for dropshippers who can offer sustainable packaging and source products ethically. With the climate-conscious products market expected to exceed USD 911 billion by 2034, now is the right time to jump in and carve a space for your business.
Home & Smart Living
As consumers spend more time in their homes, the demand for products that offer convenience and comfort is rising. Devices like smart LED strip lights and voice-controlled plugs are seeing an uptick in sales due to their aesthetics and function.
Based on market projections, the smart home market is expected to reach USD 537.27 billion by 2030. The visual appeal of these products is also contributing to the growing interest, with many items stopping the scroll on TikTok and other platforms.
Pet Supplies
Pet supplies will continue to trend in 2026 due to the booming “pet humanization” concept. The premise of this concept is that pets are family, and owners shouldn’t hesitate to pay more for premium tech and health-focused goods that improve their furbabies’ comfort.
The pet supplies market is also growing, with analysts expecting it to reach USD 369.85 billion by 2030. Additionally, consumable supplies like pet wipes and treats offer high profits while driving repeat sales for merchants.
Health & Wellness
Health and wellness is expected to perform extremely well as consumers shift from reactive health management to proactive improvement and illness prevention.
Fitness influencers on TikTok and Instagram are also expected to drive product discovery and trends, creating an engaged audience that prefers organic and sustainable options.
Yahoo Finance predicts that the global health and wellness market will reach a valuation of USD 8419.1 million by 2030.
From fitness gear to sleep aids to aromatherapy, there’s no shortage of products to dropship in this space.
Find the Best Dropshipping Products with ZIK Analytics
ZIK Analytics has a suite of tools to help Shopify store owners find the best dropshipping products for their store.
However, I specifically want to mention three tools that make product research and validation easier:
- Shopify Product Explorer shows you which products are selling across Shopify stores with real sales data. Search for keywords, filter by sales, and see estimated revenue and upload dates. Match products to suppliers using image search and get automatic profit margin calculations.
- Shopify Sales Tracker lets you monitor any Shopify store’s daily sales, revenue, and top-performing products. Add stores to your Favorites to track trends and spot new product launches over time.
- AdSpy Tool shows you what ads competitors are running on Facebook and Instagram. Search for keywords, filter by platform and date range, and save winning ads to custom folders for reference when creating your own campaigns.
You can also use the Dropshipping Item Finder to match products with suppliers across AliExpress, Alibaba, and CJ Dropshipping.
Get your ZIK Analytics trial and start finding winning dropshipping products backed by real marketplace data.
Frequently Asked Questions about Dropshipping Product Research
In this section, I’ll answer the frequently asked questions about dropshipping product research.
How long does dropshipping product research take?
Dropshipping product research can take anywhere from a few hours to several days or even weeks. Some people spend 4-10 hours per week initially researching trends, validating ideas, and compiling their product list. Others find winning products in 2-4 days using tools like Meta Ads Library and validating potential winners manually. The time varies based on the tools you use and the depth you go to with your research.
How many products should I research before choosing one?
The right number of products to research before choosing depends on where you are in your dropshipping journey. If you’re new to dropshipping,1 to 3 products are ideal for learning the validation process without getting overwhelmed. For experienced sellers, researching 4 to 7 products gives you enough options to compare demand and profit margins while avoiding analysis paralysis.
Can I succeed with dropshipping in 2027?
Yes, you can still succeed with dropshipping in 2027. Dropshipping is a legitimate business that can provide consistent profits when it is approached with the right effort and mindset. Success in dropshipping often comes down to choosing the right niche, finding winning items, partnering with reliable suppliers, and building a unique brand identity.
What’s the best product research tool for beginners?
ZIK Analytics is the best product research tool for beginners. It lets you see which item sold the most in recent times, the estimated revenue it generated, and the potential ROI on its sales. New merchants can use these data points to make informed decisions about their sourcing.
How do I know if a product is oversaturated?
You know a product is saturated when you see no movement in its sales or market share over time. You also see many identical products entering the market and older listings of the item featuring a significantly reduced price. Plus, the profit margin on the item shrinks so much that it becomes unsuitable to dropship it through your store.