Import Products Via CSV
This guide will give you a step-by-step process on how to import new products to your Shift4Shop store.
Import Products
To import product information, we will first download a copy of the sample CSV file that you will populate with your new products. To begin:
Log into your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager.
Go to Products > Product List.
Once there, look towards the top right of the page and click on the Export/Import button.
Look on the right side of the next page for the "Import" half of the page and click on the + icon for Products.
Click the link that says Sample File to download the sample CSV.
Click Open.
You may now begin adding product information to the appropriate columns.
Below, you will find a brief description of each field. We will mark which of these is required and which are optional.
id
This field is required. It is the unique product id (SKU or Part Number) of the product. This can be any combination of letters and numbers you choose. The system will assign a separate database ID that will be used to keep track of each product in the backend of the system. This is called the CATALOGID and will only show in a product export. The CATALOGID is not included since it is not needed for importing new products.mfgid
This is the unique manufacturer id that may be provided by the manufacturer of the product, or you can assign this on your own. This is an optional field.name
This is the name of the product. This is a required field.manufacturer
This is the name of the Manufacturer this product is associated with. This field is optional.
categories
This will assign the product to a particular category. The field refers to the Path of the category, and it allows one to set one product in multiple categories. This field is optional.To add the product to a Main Category put in the Main Category name. Any new category entered in the CSV file will be automatically created in the system.
To add a product to a Sub Category, use the / character, i.e., "Category 1/Sub Category 1"
To add a product to multiple categories at once, use the @ character: "Category 1@Category 2" or for sub-categories, "Category 1/Sub Category 1@Category 2/Sub Category 2"
cost
This is the base cost of your product. It's for internal use and won't be displayed to the customer. This is an optional field.price
This is the price of the product that you want to charge the customer. Use only numbers; do not enter the currency sign. It's a required field that cannot be left blank for any product.price2
This is the MSRP or Retail Price of the product. If this is added to the product, then the Savings will be displayed to the customer. This is an optional field.stock
This is the stock (Quantity On Hand) of the product. It's required when Inventory Control is enabled. This is a numeric field.weight
This is the weight of the product. This is an optional field, but it is required for Real-Time Shipping Calculation.
free_shipping
This will mark the product as free shipping. If free shipping is checked, Free Shipping will show during the checkout process as an option. Insert 1 to mark as Free Shipping. Insert 0 if you would not like this product to be marked as Free Shipping. This is an optional field.date_created
This is a field that the system will assign once the product is added to the database. This is an optional field.description
This is a short description of the product. This should be a short text description (less than 250 characters); this is typically displayed on the Search Results page by default. This is an optional field.extended_description
This is the Description of the product, there is no size limit in this field, and HTML is allowed. This is an optional field.keywords
These are additional keywords used by the Internal Search of the site, you don't need to add any keywords that are already part of the name or description of the product. These keywords do not show on the website to the customer. This is an optional field.
hide
This will hide the product from the website. Insert 1 to hide. Insert 0 to keep the product visible. This is an optional field.sorting
This is a legacy column held over from previous versions of Shift4Shop and may be left blank. Sorting of products is now determined on a per-category basis in your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager by going to Products >Sorting.thumbnail
This is the path to your product's thumbnail image. This is an optional field.image1
This is the path to your product's main image. This is an optional field.image2
This is the path to your product's second image. This is an optional field.image3
This is the path to your product's third image. This is an optional field.image4
This is the path to your product's fourth image. This is an optional field.
related
This column will define the related products for this product. To assign related products, insert the related product's ids separated by commas. (Example. related1, related2, related3.) This is an optional field. The system also allows to use Random Related products from the Shift4Shop Online Store Manager under Settings > General > Store Settings.distributor
This is the name of the Distributor this product is associated with. This is an optional field. The list of Distributors can be managed in the Shift4Shop Online Store Manager by going to Settings >General >Distributors. Any new distributor entered in the CSV file will be automatically created in the system.shipcost
This will add a shipping markup fee to the product. This fee will be added to any shipping methods that you have set. This is an optional field.homespecial
This will mark this product as a home special which means that the system will place this product on your home page. Insert 1 to mark as a home special. Leave it blank to not mark it as a home special. This is an optional field.categoryspecial
This will mark this product as a category special which means that the system will place this product on top of the Category that it is in. This is an optional field.title
This will define the title of this product in the web browser. By default the system will use the product name. This is an optional field.metatags
This field is for more advanced users that know how to properly format Meta Tags. If you are unfamiliar with how to set up Meta Tags properly, the best thing to do is leave this field blank and use the Tag Wizard in your Shift4Shop Online Store Manager. This is an optional field.
8. Once you have filled in your information, save the file to your computer.
9. Go to Products > Product List.
10. Look on the right side of the next page for the "Import" half of the page and click on the + icon for Products.
11. Browse to your edited CSV file and click Import Data.
12. Choose your import option and proceed with your product import.
When importing your file, you will be given the following options:
Insert Only
This will insert any new products that are not currently in the database. It will not update any product information.Update Only
This will update any information that is currently in the database. The information in this CSV file will override what is in the database.Insert + Update
This is a combination of inserting and updating. The system will insert any new information and update any existing information.Erase All products, then insert
This will completely remove all the product information from your database and then insert the information. Please read the warning and make sure that this is what you want to do before using this option.Erase All Products and Categories, then Insert
This will completely remove all product and category information from your database, then insert the information on your spreadsheet. Please read the warning and make sure this is what you want to do before using this option.
Be aware that this product import does not allow for importing Product Options (Sizes, Colors, etc.) with these products. The options import is a separate import. All products must be imported prior to importing any options.