"Vendor traffic screenshots not matching my own tools — anyone else running into this?"

Ran into something annoying this week - vendor sent me a traffic screenshot that didn't match what I was seeing on my own tools at all. Not even close, off by 3-4x.

Asked for a fresh screenshot with the URL bar and date visible, numbers suddenly changed too.

Not the first time either. Getting to the point where I don't order anything without pulling my own traffic check first, doesn't matter how good the vendor's numbers look on paper.

yeah, vendor screenshots are only useful as a rough filter. i’d trust your own analytics/search console more, and ask for fresh proof with URL, date range, and source visible before ordering again.

If you both use different tools you probably get different different results

That's just the right approach. I'd always treat vendor screenshots as a starting point, not proof. A quick independent check can save you from making a bad purchase, and if someone gets defensive when you ask for verification, that's usually worth paying attention to.

They probably only screenshot every few weeks or so, due to laziness. And of course the screenshot will have been taken when the traffic was at it's highest.

I always check a site's traffic with my own tools before buying anything. Screenshots can be outdated or even manipulated, so I do not rely on them alone. A quick independent check gives me a much clearer picture. It has saved me from making poor decisions more than once. That's now a standard part of my process.