The one-line difference
Feed Doctor installs in your Shopify admin, and with your permission reads your catalogue and your Merchant Center account, then proposes fixes you approve inside Shopify. Shipwork never touches your store: you paste a URL, it reads your public catalogue and product pages from outside your network the way a crawler does, and hands you the full report free. Installed insider versus outside inspector. Everything below follows from that choice.
| Shipwork | Feed Doctor | |
|---|---|---|
| Access | No install, no signup, store URL only | Shopify app install; optional Merchant Center connection |
| Sees feed-only fields (GTIN, shipping config) | No, and says so openly | Yes, when Merchant Center is connected |
| Sees landing pages as a crawler does | Yes: the core of every check | Yes: landing-page issues listed |
| Applies fixes in your store | No: guides + checks, you fix | Yes: reviewable fixes with merchant approval |
| Beyond the feed (AI crawlers, schema, sitemap) | Yes: 50+ checks across the whole site | No: feed and landing pages |
| Starting price | Free full report; Unlimited (daily watch, deep crawl) from $7.17/mo billed yearly, or $12/mo | Free scan (limited offer); then from $9.99/mo |
What each one can see
Feed Doctor's insider position is a genuine advantage where it matters: GTINs, identifier_exists, shipping and tax configuration live inside Merchant Center and no outside tool can validate them. Shipwork deliberately refuses to guess at them. Shipwork's outsider position is the advantage everywhere else: bot protection that 403s crawlers, 500s on cold paths, redirect chains and slow pages are visible only from outside your network, and an installed app shares your network's blind spot. Neither view is complete; together they cover the whole failure surface.
Run the outside check first (two minutes, nothing to install). Fix what it finds. Then use the insider view for the feed-only fields it alone can reach. The order matters: landing-page blocks make feed data irrelevant until fixed.
What each one costs
Shipwork's report is free and complete, up to a generous weekly limit. The paid Unlimited plan (from $7.17/month billed yearly, or $12/month monthly, and credit packs from $5 for a one-off job) adds a credit allowance that covers the daily watch (1 credit per run), deep crawls, image audits and full sitemap sweeps, which exist because no free check can tell you about the day something breaks. Feed Doctor's public scan was advertised free until 30 August 2026; its plans start at $9.99/mo (Starter) and $19.90/mo (AI) with a trial. Check current pricing before deciding.
Which store each fits
- Pick Shipwork first if: you want an answer in two minutes with no install, you suspect crawl or landing-page problems, or you want AI-crawler, schema and sitemap coverage in the same pass.
- Pick Feed Doctor if: you want fixes applied inside Shopify with approval clicks, or your Diagnostics are dominated by identifier and shipping-config issues that need Merchant Center data.
- Use both if: rejections persist after the first pass: outside view for pages, insider view for feed-only fields.
Related: Merchant Center requirements pillar · landing-page requirements · feed vs page mismatch
Shipwork reads your entire public Shopify catalogue from outside your network and flags every product that breaks the data-level rules: the same outside view this comparison recommends starting with. Free, no account, no signup. Paste your store address.
Run the free checkQuestions
Can I use both Shipwork and Feed Doctor?
Why does Shipwork not check GTINs?
Does Feed Doctor require installing an app?
Which is better for landing-page problems?
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