Import Products Tool for BigCommerce
🔧 Quick Info: You can import products from a file, that will update or create products.
What it does
Import Products lets you bulk update your existing BigCommerce catalog or add brand-new products from a single spreadsheet. You upload a CSV or Excel file, match its columns to BigCommerce product fields, and the tool applies the changes to your store. Products are matched by SKU: if a SKU already exists it is updated, and if it doesn’t exist you can optionally have a new product created. The work runs in the background, so you can close the page and get an email when it finishes.
When to use it
Use it whenever you need to change many products at once instead of editing them one by one in BigCommerce, for example updating prices, inventory levels, descriptions, images, categories, or adding a batch of new products.
Before you start
- A connected BigCommerce store.
- A CSV or Excel file whose first row contains the column headers.
- A SKU column is required, and every row must have a SKU. SKUs are how products are matched (and created).
- Permission to manage products on the connected store (the tool writes to your store through the BigCommerce API).
Step-by-step
1 Open the Import Products tool for your BigCommerce store.
2 Upload Products step. Read the on-screen note: your file’s first row must contain the column names and must include a SKU column.
3 Decide whether to turn on “Create New Products, if SKU doesn’t exist.” When on, any SKU not found in your store is created as a new product. When off, rows with unknown SKUs are skipped and reported as errors.
4 Upload your CSV or Excel file.
5 Once the file is uploaded, the Match your file’s columns screen appears, listing every column in your file with a sample value. Most columns are matched automatically; pick the BigCommerce product field for any that aren’t, or choose Don’t import this column. Columns that aren’t matched are ignored.
6 Email Delivery step. Choose whether you’d like an email when the import completes, and confirm the email address to notify.
7 Submit. The import runs in the background. You can leave the page, and if you chose email delivery you’ll be notified when it’s done. Any rows that couldn’t be imported are collected in an error report so you can fix and re-upload them.
File / field reference
You only need the columns you actually want to change, plus SKU. Use the value delete in an optional text or list column to clear that value on the product. The most commonly used columns:
| Column | Required? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sku | Yes | Used to match an existing product or create a new one. Up to 255 characters. |
| Name | No | Up to 255 characters. |
| Price | Required when updating an existing product | Numeric. |
| Sale Price / Cost Price / Retail Price / Map Price | No | Numeric. |
| Type | No | physical or digital (also accepts p/d). Defaults to physical. |
| Description | No | Text. |
| Upc | No | Up to 32 characters. |
| Mpn / Gtin / Bin Picking Number | No | Optional text. |
| Categories | No | Comma-separated category IDs. |
| Channels | No | Comma-separated channel IDs to assign the product to. |
| Brand | No | Brand name. (Use either Brand or Brand Id, not both.) |
| Brand Id | No | Numeric brand ID. |
| Related Products | No | Comma-separated. |
| Product Image URL – 1…10 | Required when the matching Image ID is provided | Must be a valid, reachable URL. Each image also has an optional Image ID and Image Alt column. |
| What image should be used as the product thumbnail? | No | The image number (1–10) to use as the thumbnail. |
| Video | No | A YouTube video ID. |
| Purchasability (availability) | No | available, disabled, or preorder (also accepts a/d/p). |
| Availability Description | No | Text. |
| Minimum / Maximum Purchase Quantity | No | Whole numbers. |
| Preorder Message / Preorder Release Date | No | Text. |
| Condition | No | new, used, or refurbished (also accepts n/u/r). |
| Weight | No | Numeric. Defaults to 0. |
| Width / Height / Depth | No | Numeric. |
| Fixed Cost Shipping Price | No | Numeric. |
| Inventory Level / Inventory Warning Level | No | Whole numbers. |
| Inventory Tracking | No | none, product, or variant (also accepts n/p/v). |
| Is Visible / Is Featured / Is Free Shipping / Is Condition Shown | No | Yes/no (true/false) values. |
| Show “Call for pricing” message instead of the price | No | Yes/no value. Use with the Call for pricing Label column. |
| Tax Class Id / Product Tax Code | No | Tax settings. |
| Warranty | No | Text. |
| Sort Order | No | Whole number. |
| Page Title / Meta Keywords / Meta Description / Search Keywords | No | SEO fields. Meta Keywords is comma-separated. |
| Layout File | No | Advanced/template setting. |
Troubleshooting / FAQ
A SKU was skipped with “does not exist.”
That SKU isn’t in your store and “Create New Products” was off. Turn the toggle on and re-import to create those products.
My file wasn’t accepted or columns looked wrong.
Make sure the very first row contains the column names and that a SKU column is present.
An image didn’t import.
Image URLs must be valid and publicly reachable, and an Image URL is required whenever you provide its matching Image ID.