Note: This article covers the latest Catalog Machine version 2. For help with the previous version, see this article.

Overview

Catalog Machine's CSV import allows you to:

Import new products and variants from spreadsheets
Update existing product information in bulk
Add products to categories and collections
Import product images from various sources
Extend products with custom fields

Learn more about managing products.

Quick Start Guide

Common Scenarios

Import from Excel
- Open your product spreadsheet
- File → Save As → CSV (UTF-8)
- Import → CSV in Catalog Machine
- Upload file and follow prompts
Import from Google Sheets
- Open your spreadsheet
- File → Download → CSV
- Import → CSV in Catalog Machine
- Upload downloaded file
Update Existing Products
- Export current products as CSV
- Edit in Excel/Google Sheets
- Save as CSV
- Re-import to update

Watch this short 3-minute video for an overview of the steps for importing products from CSV (Excel / Google)

Before You Start

Requirements

CSV file with product data
First row must have field names and these column names must match your category fields (e.g., "Description" column for description field, new fields will be suggested during import)
Name field is required for new products
Use Code field to match and update existing products
Other fields are optional

Important: Code acts as your unique product identifier/key

Best practice: Use your existing product IDs, SKUs, or other stable identifiers
If Code matches an existing product, it will update that product
If no match found, creates new product
If not provided, system will auto-generate (not recommended for future updates)

Data Preparation Tips

Review your product information structure
Prepare high-quality product images
Plan your category and collection structure

Need more options? Check the detailed sections below.

Step-by-Step Import Process

1. Prepare Your File

Use CSV format
Include header row
If Code field is present and matching product is found, it will be updated, Otherwise inserted
Category is required for new products and should be provided before import or as part of CSV
Save with UTF-8 encoding

2. Start Import

Navigate to Import → CSV:

Upload file or paste content
Select default category (optional)
Choose target collection (optional)

3. Review Analysis and Configure Data types

System checks for:

Data structure
New categories/fields
Missing required fields
Potential issues

You can:

Confirm new fields and categories
Set data types for new fields
Map missing required fields
Configure variant options

4. Preview and Import

Review sample records
Verify mappings
Start import
Monitor progress

Technical Reference

CSV File Format Requirements

File Structure

UTF-8 encoded CSV file (supporting international symbols)
First row contains field headers
Each row represents a product or variant
Values separated by commas
Text containing commas should be enclosed in quotes

Tip: Export template with all fields as a starting point

Or use product export to get CSV file for existing products that you can re-import after editing in an external spreadsheet program. You can include variants and collections in this CSV

Working with Spreadsheet Programs

Microsoft Excel

Edit your data in Excel
Save as CSV (Comma delimited):
- Click File → Save As
- Choose "CSV (Comma delimited) (*.csv)"
- For international characters:
  - Save as "CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited) (*.csv)"
  - Or use Unicode text and save as regular CSV

Google Sheets

Edit your data
File → Download → Comma-separated values (.csv)
The file will automatically download in UTF-8 format

Read more about Asian characters import and use.

Header Row Fields

Note: First row contains field headers that correspond to your category fields:

If the column name matches an existing category field, it will be used
If the column name is new, you can add it as a new field during import
Common fields like Code, Name, Price, Description, Category work across all categories and reserved

Standard Fields

Code (optional): Unique product identifier
- Used to match existing products
- Auto-generated if not provided
- Example: PROD-001
Name (required for new products): Product name
- Main product identifier
- Example: Blue Cotton T-Shirt
Category (optional): Product category
- Must match existing category name or will create new
- Example: T-Shirts
- If not provided in CSV, will use default category selected during import
Rank (optional): Display order
- Numeric value for sorting
- Example: 100
Showcase (optional): Visibility for Showroom
- 1 = visible, 0 = hidden
- Example: 1

Collections

Note: Collections specified in CSV will replace existing collections for the product

Collections can be specified in multiple ways:

Single column format:

Collections 
"Best Sellers, New Arrivals/Dresses"

Multiple columns format:

Collections 1, Collections 2 
"Best Sellers", "New Arrivals/Dresses"

Formatting rules:

Separate multiple collections with commas
Use forward slash (/) for hierarchy
Example hierarchies:
- Cars/Ford/Mustang
- Best Sellers/Sport

Working with Images

Image Import Methods

1. Local Images

Go to Image Manager first
Create or select a folder
Upload your images
Use relative paths in CSV. Format:

{Folder}/{image-name.ext}

Example: Products/blue-shirt.jpg

2. Web URLs

Direct links to public images
Format: https://example.com/image.jpg
Supported formats: JPG, PNG, GIF, WEBP
Maximum size: 10MB per image

3. File Sharing Services

Google Drive

Get sharing link
Convert to direct download URL

Example conversion:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/FILEID/view?usp=sharing 
Modified: 
https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=FILEID

Dropbox

Get sharing link
Replace ?dl=0 with ?dl=1

Example conversion:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/file.jpg?dl=0 
Modified: 
https://www.dropbox.com/s/file.jpg?dl=1

Image Field Configuration

Note: Image field names in CSV must exactly match the category's image field names, unless you want to add new image fields to the category

In your CSV, image fields can contain:

Relative Path (for uploaded images):

cover.png
MyFolder/123.png 
Products/product-image.jpg

Absolute URL (for web images):

https://example.com/images/product.jpg 
https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&id=FILEID

Data URL (base64 encoded) - encoded image content in the string
```
data:image/jpeg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZ...
```

You can use Catalog Machine export or tools like https://dopiaza.org/tools/datauri to generate Data url.

Multiple images per product:

Create multiple image fields in category
Name them differently (e.g., Image1, Image2)
Reference in CSV by field name

Special Content Types

Rich Text Fields

Support basic HTML formatting (useful for product descriptions, specifications, etc.)
CSS is not supported

Example format:

<div>Product description with <b>bold</b> and <i>italic</i> text</div>

Variant Fields

Use same product Code to link variants to the parent product (variants appear as options of the main product)
Include variant-specific fields in same row (Variant:*)
Use consistent naming convention

Example structure:

Code,Name,Variant:Size,Variant:Color,Variant:Price 
SHIRT-1,"Blue Shirt","M","Blue",28.99 
SHIRT-1,"Blue Shirt","L","Red",29.99

Tips for Successful Import

Preparing Your File

Start with a template
- Export existing products as template
- Use sample CSV provided
- Match field names exactly
Verify encoding
- Save as UTF-8 CSV
- Check for special character issues
- Test with small sample first

Common Issues and Solutions

Encoding Problems
- Symptoms: Garbled text, missing characters
- Solution: Save as UTF-8 CSV
- Alternative: Copy/paste directly into import
Image Import Failures
- Check URL and image public accessibility
- Verify file size limits
- Confirm image format support
Missing Data
- Required fields not populated
- Category mismatches
- Invalid collection paths

Need Help?

Contact our support team through chat for assistance with:

File preparation
Image importing
Error resolution
Custom requirements

For immediate answers about specific formats or issues, refer to the relevant sections above.