Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about ISK Scout — covering general usage, trade routes, hauling, courier contracts, reprocessing, manufacturing, and market analysis. Each section corresponds to one tool page.
General
- Is ISK Scout really free?
- Yes — every feature is free, with no paid tier. The site is supported by a small amount of unobtrusive advertising. Routes, couriers, reprocessing, and manufacturing analysis are fully usable without an account. EVE SSO login is optional and only enables personalized features like My Orders tracking and skill-based auto-fill.
- Is connecting my EVE account safe?
- We use the standard EVE SSO OAuth2 with PKCE — your password never reaches us, only the access tokens CCP issues. Tokens are stored encrypted, scoped to the minimum ESI permissions needed (wallet, orders, skills, ship, assets). You can revoke access anytime via the official EVE Third-Party Applications page.
- How is ISK Scout different from evetrade.space or Adam4EVE?
- Existing tools compare prices between hubs at the top-of-book or median level. ISK Scout simulates the full order book to exclude loss zones automatically, and weighs reliability grades, gatecamp risk, and cargo efficiency together — so displayed profit is closer to what you can actually take home. Couriers, reprocessing, manufacturing, and technical analysis are also handled in one tool.
- How often is the data updated?
- Market orders refresh every 5 minutes, matching ESI's cache window. Trade history refreshes hourly. All analyses (routes, couriers, reprocessing, manufacturing) are precomputed every 5 minutes in the background and served from cache for instant response.
- Which trade hubs are supported?
- All five majors: Jita 4-4 (The Forge), Amarr VIII (Domain), Dodixie IX (Sinq Laison), Rens VI (Heimatar), and Hek VIII (Metropolis). Active remote stations are auto-discovered and analyzed alongside.
Trade Routes
- Is ISK Scout free to use?
- Yes. ISK Scout is free for all EVE Online players. You can browse routes, run reprocessing and manufacturing analysis, and use the cargo optimizer without an account. Logging in with EVE SSO unlocks personalized features like My Orders tracking and skill-based tax/fee auto-fill.
- How is this different from evetrade.space?
- evetrade.space compares prices between hubs based on top-of-book or median values. ISK Scout simulates order matching across the full order book, so it excludes trades where the destination buy orders lack depth or where you'd enter a loss zone partway through — the displayed profit is closer to what you can realistically take home.
- How often is the market data updated?
- Market data refreshes every 5 minutes from CCP's ESI API. Route summaries, courier routes, reprocessing, and manufacturing analyses are precomputed every 5 minutes and served from cache for instant response.
- What does the reliability grade mean?
- A through F. A = deep order book, top order represents under 30% of volume, prices within historical range. F = thin book, single dominant order, or out-of-range prices. Grade C and above is usually safe for normal trading.
- Which trade hubs are supported?
- Major hubs: Jita 4-4 (The Forge), Amarr VIII (Domain), Dodixie IX (Sinq Laison), Rens VI (Heimatar), and Hek VIII (Metropolis). Auto-discovered remote stations with active markets are also covered.
Synergy & Round Trip Hauling
- Round trip vs one way — what's the difference?
- One way is A→B and stop. Round trip means A→B then B→A with trades both ways — double the volume for the same jump count. ISK Scout automatically adds forward-leg profit to the return-leg budget so capital compounds.
- When should I use chain mode?
- A→B→C→A loops. Useful when good margins are scattered across multiple pairs rather than concentrated on a single round trip. The downside is longer routes mean more risk exposure — the tool factors gatecamp detection into the score.
- How is the score calculated?
- Jump efficiency (35%) + total profit (25%) + ISK per hour (25%) + mode bonus (round trip +10%, chain +15%) − risk penalty. The balanced weighting recommends routes by time/risk efficiency, not just raw profit.
- Can I run round trips with limited capital?
- Yes. The tool selects forward-leg items that fit your budget, then expands the return-leg budget by adding forward-leg profit. Start with 100M ISK; if you net 50M forward, the return leg loads with 150M.
Courier Contracts
- How are shipping costs calculated?
- The configured shipping fee rate is applied to the purchase value. Check an actual courier quote and whether the contract will be accepted separately.
- Is failure probability a measured statistic?
- It is a heuristic estimate mapped from route danger bands, not the measured failure rate of a particular ship or courier.
- What do collateral and contract splits mean?
- Collateral is a planning value based on the cargo value. Splits are suggested using risk and collateral size. The tool does not create or issue contracts.
Reprocessing
- Which skills matter most for reprocessing profit?
- Reprocessing (+3%/level, all materials), Reprocessing Efficiency (+2%/level, all materials), and Scrapmetal Processing (+2%/level, modules and ammo only). If you're focused on module/ammo reprocessing, Scrapmetal Processing V is the highest-leverage skill to train first.
- What does 50% station yield mean?
- The base reprocessing efficiency at NPC stations. Process 100 units of ore, get back 50 units of refined minerals. High-sec citadels usually offer 50–52%, low-sec NPC stations 50%, null-sec citadels up to 56%.
- Which item types are usually profitable to reprocess?
- T1 modules, ships, and ammo frequently exceed their market price as recovered minerals. T2 modules vary based on small morphite (T2 byproduct) yields. Ore prices fluctuate daily with mining activity.
- When does Scrapmetal Processing apply?
- Only when reprocessing modules, ammo, and items (excluding ore and ice). Ore and ice use Reprocessing plus the type-specific skill (e.g., Veldspar Processing).
Manufacturing
- How much does ME (Material Efficiency) affect profit?
- 1% material cost reduction per ME level (ME 10 = −10% materials). For ships and structures where material cost dominates, the gap between ME 0 and ME 10 often crosses the break-even line — it's worth researching BPCs or your BPO before producing.
- How is job cost calculated?
- Job cost = estimated value × system cost index × 1.0 (NPC station) or with citadel bonus applied. The system cost index fluctuates with manufacturing activity in that system — Jita is expensive, outer systems are cheap.
- Are taxes and fees applied automatically?
- When logged in via EVE SSO, your character's Accounting and Broker Relations skill levels apply automatically. Without login, you can adjust defaults (3.6% sales tax, 3% broker fee) manually.
- Which items are most profitable to manufacture?
- T1 ships, drones, and launchers usually have stable margins. T2 modules and ships swing more due to invention costs. Margins also shift seasonally — monitor the 5-minute updates daily for entries and exits.
Price alerts
- When will I receive a Discord notification?
- Connect Discord and enable DMs to receive one notification per target. Prices are checked about every five minutes; API and delivery delays may apply. Quiet hours, muted items and daily DM limits apply. Notifications also stay in your site inbox.
- Why does the chart differ from my alert price?
- The chart shows daily average trades across the entire region. Alerts use orders listed at your chosen station. Prices are before tax and fees; check available quantity and minimum order size before trading.
- Can I watch the same item at different stations?
- Yes. Set separate buy and sell targets for each station. Reached targets can be enabled again; alerts can also be paused or deleted.
LP Store
- Can I sell immediately at the displayed ISK/LP?
- ISK/LP is an estimate based on historical average transactions. Check current order prices, available quantity and minimum volume before redeeming.
- Why are some offers missing?
- Offers are excluded when a required input price is missing or no valid transaction history is available in any of the five hub regions.
- How is the BEST hub selected?
- It has the highest estimated ISK/LP among regions with valid history. Current orders and transport costs can change which selling location is worthwhile.
- How are taxes and sale time handled?
- Calculations use 3.6% sales tax and 3% broker fee; your actual rates may differ. Output divided by regional daily volume measures the size of an offer relative to demand, not how long your items will take to sell.