The Bottom Line Up Front
4.5/5 — Recommended for trade professionals, sourcing teams, and market researchers
Volza delivers the most accessible global trade intelligence on the market. 3B+ shipment records, 209 countries, verified buyer/supplier contact data, and real-time alerts — all starting at $1,500/year. For anyone doing cross-border sourcing, competitive analysis, or trade market research, the ROI is clear within the first use.
What it does well
- ✓3B+ records — broadest shipment-level coverage
- ✓209 countries in one subscription
- ✓Verified decision-maker contacts included
- ✓Radical pricing vs. Panjiva/ZoomInfo
- ✓Real-time alerts on trade activity
- ✓20+ search filters for precision targeting
Where it falls short
- ✕Some country data has 3-6 month lag
- ✕Point system can add up for high-volume exports
- ✕UI has a learning curve vs. modern SaaS tools
- ✕Less useful for service businesses (no physical goods)
Why Shipment-Level Data Is Different From Market Reports
Industry reports tell you what happened to a market in aggregate. Bills of lading tell you exactly who bought what from whom, at what price, in what quantity, last month. That's the difference between reading news and reading the actual transaction record.
Volza's core data comes from customs declarations and bills of lading — official government trade records that every import and export generates. This isn't scraped or estimated; it's the actual shipment record showing the buyer, supplier, product (HS code), volume, weight, and value.
3B+
Shipment records in the database
209
Countries covered
$1,500
Starting price per year
The Three Best Use Cases
1. Supplier Discovery & Verification
The most common use case: find new suppliers in a target country, verify their track record, and see who they already sell to. Before you even send an RFQ, you can see a supplier's shipment history, volume trends, existing customers, and price per unit — all from actual trade records. This de-risks sourcing decisions significantly.
2. Competitive Intelligence
See exactly who your competitors are sourcing from. If a competitor is manufacturing in Vietnam but you're stuck in China, you can find their actual supplier, see the pricing, and identify alternatives. This level of supply chain intelligence used to require expensive consultants or industry connections.
3. Market Sizing & Due Diligence
For investors, Volza is a powerful due diligence tool. Validate a company's claimed supplier relationships, size an addressable market from actual trade flows (not TAM slides), and assess competitive dynamics in physical goods markets. Particularly useful for consumer goods, industrials, and cross-border commerce investments.
Volza vs. Panjiva vs. ImportGenius
| Feature | Volza | Panjiva | ImportGenius |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $1,500/year | $5,000+/year | $1,295/year |
| Countries covered | 209 | 100+ | US-focused |
| Shipment records | 3B+ | 1B+ | US/limited |
| Contact data included | Yes | No | No |
| Real-time alerts | Yes | Yes | Limited |
| API access | Enterprise | Yes | Limited |
| Parent company | Independent | S&P Global | Independent |
Panjiva (owned by S&P Global) is the most data-complete option but costs 3-30x more. ImportGenius is US-focused and doesn't include contact data. Volza wins on global coverage and price, and uniquely bundles verified decision-maker contacts — eliminating the need for a second tool.
Pricing: The Point System Explained
Volza uses a point-based system for downloading shipment records. Points are included in your annual plan and are consumed per shipment record downloaded — costs vary by country. US and India shipments cost 1 point each; less-covered markets like Guatemala cost 10 points. The starting plan at $1,500/year covers 90+ countries with a set point allocation.
Key consideration
The point system rewards focused research over bulk data dumps. Teams doing targeted supplier discovery or competitive monitoring will rarely hit limits. High-volume data teams doing bulk exports across many countries should evaluate the enterprise tier for unlimited access.
Final Verdict
Volza earns a 4.5/5. It democratizes a category that was previously available only to large enterprises willing to pay Panjiva prices. For sourcing teams, manufacturers doing competitive intelligence, and investors doing trade-flow due diligence, $1,500/year for 209-country coverage with verified contacts included is a genuinely compelling offer.
The main limitation — data recency lag in some markets — is a structural reality of customs data, not a Volza-specific issue. For strategic decisions (supplier discovery, market entry, competitive analysis), the data is fresh enough to be highly actionable.
See global trade flows firsthand
Get Started with VolzaFor more on building outbound pipelines or finding B2B contacts, see How to Find B2B Contacts and the Lusha overview on Value Add VC Tools.