CopyCat Category Duplicator – Multi Storefront
🔧 Quick Info: CopyCat Category Duplicator lets BigCommerce Multi-Storefront users copy or synchronize categories within the same storefront or across different storefronts. Copies can include products, product sort order, category details, images, meta information, banners, and complete subcategory structures.
What It Does
CopyCat creates a copy of an existing BigCommerce category. You select the storefront and category where the original is located, choose where the new category should be created, and CopyCat builds the duplicate in the background.
The copied category can be placed within the same storefront or on a different storefront. You can place it under an existing parent category or leave the parent blank to create it at the destination storefront’s root level.
Multi-Storefront Guide: This guide is for stores using BigCommerce Multi-Storefront. If your store only has one storefront, see the standard CopyCat Category Duplicator guide.
When CopyCat duplicates a category, it can bring across:
- Category details, including the name, URL, description, page title, meta description, and meta keywords.
- Products assigned to the source category, so the new category is not empty.
- Destination storefront channel assignments when copying products to a different storefront.
- Product sort order for categories that are kept synchronized.
- The category image, when you choose to copy it.
- The category page banner, when one exists and banner copying is enabled.
Single Category or Complete Category Branch
CopyCat provides two ways to duplicate categories:
- Copy a single category – Duplicates only the category you select and gives you control over the new category’s name, URL, description, and meta details.
- Bulk copy a category and all of its subcategories – Duplicates an entire category branch, including the selected parent category and everything below it. CopyCat preserves the parent and child category structure.
Sync or One-Time Copy
You can also decide how the copied category behaves after it is created:
- Yes, sync with original category – Creates a mirrored category. CopyCat checks it daily and updates it when the original category changes. Synced categories also preserve the source category’s product sort order.
- No, just copy the category – Creates a one-time duplicate. CopyCat does not update the category again after it is created.
CopyCat performs the work in the background. After submitting the form, you’ll see a confirmation that the category is being created. The new category appears on the destination storefront shortly afterward.
Use the View Categories button to review everything CopyCat has created and view the history for each category.
When Should You Use This?
- You want the same category and its products available on another storefront without rebuilding everything manually.
- You want a category on one storefront to remain synchronized with the original category.
- You need to duplicate an entire category branch, including all subcategories, onto another storefront.
- You want to create a seasonal or promotional version of an existing category, such as creating a Summer Sale category from Clearance.
- You want to duplicate a category without manually assigning every product again.
Before You Get Started
- Make sure your CopyCat subscription is active. CopyCat is a paid add-on. If the launch button reads Subscribe To CopyCat, subscribe before continuing.
- Know which storefront contains the original category.
- Decide which category you want to duplicate and whether you want to include its complete subcategory structure.
- Choose the destination storefront and decide whether the copied category should be placed under a parent category or at the storefront root.
- Decide whether the new category should remain synchronized with the original or be created as a one-time copy.
- Decide whether to copy the original category image, upload a different image, or leave the new category without an image.
- Decide whether to copy the category page banner.
Banner Permission: Copying category page banners requires your BigCommerce store connection to have the Marketing permission.
How to Use It
1 Open CopyCat
Open the CopyCat Category Duplicator tool from your Your Store Wizards dashboard and select Launch CopyCat.
2 Choose What You Want to Copy
Under What would you like to do?, choose one of the following:
- Copy a single category
- Bulk copy a category and all of its subcategories
3 Select the Source Storefront
Select the storefront where the original category is located. The category picker and remaining form fields stay hidden until a source storefront is selected.
Category names are displayed with their storefront and category tree location so you can identify the correct category. Changing the source storefront later resets the form.
4 Select the Category
Use the searchable category tree to select the category you want to copy or synchronize. You can expand and collapse sections of the category tree to find the correct category.
In bulk mode, the field changes to Select the parent categories to bulk copy (with all subcategories). You can select more than one parent category, and every subcategory beneath each selected parent is included.
A preview displays the categories that will be copied before you continue.
5 Choose Sync or Copy
Under Do you want to keep this category in sync with the original category or just copy it?, choose one of the following:
- Yes, sync with original category – The copied category is checked and updated daily.
- No, just copy the category – The category is copied once and is not updated again.
6 Choose the Destination
Under CopyCat Category Settings, use Select storefront to copy category into to choose the destination storefront.
You can select the same storefront for a same-storefront copy or choose a different storefront for a cross-storefront copy. The available parent categories update to match the destination storefront.
7 Choose a Parent Category
Choose an existing parent category on the destination storefront. Leave the field blank to place the copied category at the storefront root.
8 Review the Category Details
When copying a single category, review the category’s Name, URL, and Description.
For a copy within the same storefront, CopyCat appends a number to the name and URL, such as Shoes 2 and /shoes-2/, to prevent a conflict with the original category.
When copying to a different storefront, the copy retains the original category name and URL because there is no conflict on the destination storefront.
The Description uses an HTML editor by default. You can switch to a plain text editor in Sync Settings.
9 Set Additional Category Details
When copying a single category, review the options under Set Additional Category Details:
- Meta Title and Meta Description, which are filled in from the original category.
- Meta Keywords, which are available for one-time copies only.
- Would you like to copy the category image? Choose Yes to copy the existing image or No to reveal the Upload Category Image field.
- Would you like to copy the category page banner? Enable this option if the original category has a banner you want to copy.
10 Submit the Copy
Submit the form. You’ll see a confirmation stating, Created Category Mirror. In process of creating category in the store.
The category is created as a background job. Bulk copies show how many categories were queued and create the categories parents-first so the hierarchy remains intact.
11 Review the Created Category
Open View Categories to see everything CopyCat has created. From there, you can review an item’s history or open the copied category directly in BigCommerce.
Field Reference
| Field | Required? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| What would you like to do? | Yes | Choose Copy a single category or Bulk copy a category and all of its subcategories. |
| Select Storefront (Source) | Yes | The storefront where the original category is located. Changing it resets the form. |
| Select the Category to Be Copied or Synced | Yes | A searchable category tree. In bulk mode, select one or more parent categories and all subcategories are included. |
| Sync With Original or Just Copy? | Yes | Choose sync for daily updates and product sort order synchronization. Choose copy for a one-time duplicate. |
| Select Storefront to Copy Category Into | Yes | The destination storefront. This may be the same storefront or a different one. |
| Choose a Parent Category | No | Choose a destination parent category or leave the field blank to create the copy at the storefront root. |
| Name | Yes, Single Mode | Filled in from the source. Same-storefront copies receive a number to keep the name unique. Cross-storefront copies retain the original name. |
| URL | Yes, Single Mode | Filled in from the source. CopyCat adds a number for same-storefront copies and retains the original URL for cross-storefront copies. |
| Description | No, Single Mode | Uses the HTML editor by default. A plain text editor can be selected in Sync Settings. |
| Meta Title and Meta Description | No, Single Mode | Filled in from the original category. |
| Meta Keywords | No, Single Copy Mode | Editable for one-time copies only. Synced categories manage this automatically. |
| Copy the Category Image? | No | Choose Yes to copy the original image. Choose No to upload a different category image. |
| Copy the Category Page Banner? | No | Copies the source category banner when one exists. Requires the BigCommerce Marketing permission. |
Keeping Copies in Sync
Categories created with Yes, sync with original category are checked on a daily schedule and updated to match the original category.
Synchronization can update:
- Category details
- Product assignments
- Product sort order
Sync Settings
Use the Sync Settings button to configure:
- Sync Daily At – Sets the time of day when the daily synchronization runs.
- Select Category Description Editor – Choose the HTML Editor or Text Editor for category descriptions in the CopyCat form.
SEO Protection: A synchronized copy created within the same storefront receives a canonical meta keyword that points to the original category URL. This helps prevent search engines from treating the original and copied categories as duplicate content.
The Meta Keywords field is only editable for one-time copies because CopyCat automatically manages the canonical information for synchronized categories.
Categories created using No, just copy the category are not changed again after they are created.
The View Categories List
View Categories opens a table showing everything CopyCat has created.
| Column | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Name | The name of the copied category. |
| Original Category ID | The BigCommerce ID of the source category. |
| Copied/Synced Category ID | The BigCommerce ID of the category CopyCat created. |
| Type | Displays Copy for a one-time duplicate or Sync for a category mirrored daily. |
| Last Synced At | The most recent time CopyCat created or synchronized the category. |
The action menu for each category includes:
- Edit – Reopens the category in the CopyCat form.
- History – Displays the background-job history for the copied category.
- Links to edit the original or copied category in BigCommerce.
- A link to view the copied category on the storefront.
- Delete – Removes the entry from CopyCat and stops future synchronization.
Deleting a CopyCat Entry: Deleting an entry from CopyCat does not delete the category from BigCommerce. It only removes the CopyCat record and stops future synchronization.
Troubleshooting and FAQ
I see “Subscribe To CopyCat” instead of “Launch CopyCat”
CopyCat is a paid add-on and your subscription is not active. Subscribe to CopyCat, then return to the tool and launch it.
The new category didn’t appear right away
CopyCat creates categories in the background, so there may be a short delay. Bulk copies can take longer because categories are created one at a time, with parent categories created before their subcategories. Open View Categories and check the item’s History.
The name or URL of my copy is slightly different
When copying within the same storefront, the original name and URL already exist. CopyCat appends a number to keep the copied category unique. If another conflict exists, CopyCat continues increasing the number until it finds an available name and URL. Cross-storefront copies retain the original name and URL.
My bulk copy stopped partway through
Bulk category copies run as a chain, with parent categories created first. If one category fails, such as when a source category is deleted while the process is running, CopyCat stops the chain to avoid creating orphaned subcategories. Check the failed item’s History, correct the issue, and run the bulk copy again.
My copy isn’t updating after I changed the original
Only categories created with the sync option update automatically. Synchronization runs once per day at the time configured in Sync Settings. Categories created as one-time copies never update automatically.
If a synchronized category appears inactive, the original or copied category may have been deleted from BigCommerce.
The category image or banner didn’t copy
The image only copies when the image-copy option is enabled. You can also choose to upload a different image. A banner only copies when the source category has a banner, the banner-copy option is enabled, and the BigCommerce store connection has the required Marketing permission.
Products appear on one storefront but not another
When copying categories across storefronts, CopyCat automatically assigns the products to the destination channel. If a product is still not visible, check the product’s channel assignment and storefront visibility settings in BigCommerce.