Skip to main content

How to Import Products

Updated

Import products into Pulse Commerce to add new items or update existing product information in bulk using a CSV file.

Quick Access: Navigate to Import/Export → Import → Product Import

These 11 fields are required for product import:

  • Product Name - Product title (max 255 characters)
  • SKU - Unique product identifier (format as Text in Excel to preserve leading zeros)
  • Category - Format: Category1;SubCat1^Yes^1 (CategoryPath^FeaturedStatus^SortOrder)
  • Cost - Product cost (numeric value only)
  • Weight Unit - lbs, kgs, or ounces
  • Minimum Quantity - Minimum purchase quantity (numeric)
  • Commit Option - Required inventory tracking setting
  • Product Type - Required product classification
  • Backorder Option - Required backorder behavior
  • Costing Method - Required cost calculation method
  • Action - I = Insert (new product), U = Update (existing product)
Critical: Leaving any required field empty will cause import failure with specific error messages for each missing field.
Download Import Legend:

Right-click and "Save As" if the file opens in your browser instead of downloading.

Recommended Workflow for First-Time Import:

1Create your first product manually in the admin panel (Products → Product Catalog Manager → Add New Product)

2Fill in the product details through the admin panel

3Export this product: Import/Export → Export → Product Export

4Use this exported CSV as your template - all required fields will be properly filled with values

5Add new product rows and copy down values from the exported product for fields that will use the same settings (Costing Method, Weight Unit, etc.)

6Update only the fields that differ between products (Product Name, SKU, Category, Cost, etc.)

This approach ensures all required fields are correctly formatted and prevents import errors.

Option 2: Download Default Template

  • Go to Import/Export → Import → Product Import
  • Click Download Template
  • Manually fill in all 11 required fields for each product

Option 3: Updating Existing Products:

  • Go to Import/Export → Export → Product Export
  • Download your current product data
  • Edit only the fields you want to update

Download Default Import Template (with placeholders):

Right-click and "Save As" if the file opens in your browser instead of downloading.

Data Loss Warning: When updating products, ALWAYS start with an export. Empty cells in your CSV will overwrite existing data with blank values. If you leave image fields empty, all product images will be deleted.

1Open the CSV file in Excel

Excel Issues - Fix Before Entering Data:

  • SKU column: Format as "Text" before entering data (Right-click column → Format Cells → Text). This prevents Excel from converting SKUs like 0123456789 to 123456789 or 810098572774 to scientific notation (8.10099E+11)
  • UPC/Barcode columns: Also format as "Text"

2Fill in all 11 required fields for each product

3Add optional fields as needed (images, descriptions, pricing, etc.)

4Set the Action field:

  • I = Insert (creates new product)
  • U = Update (modifies existing product matched by SKU)

5Save as CSV with UTF-8 encoding

1Go to Import/Export → Import → Product Import

2Click Choose File and select your CSV

3Click Import

4Stay on the page until the import completes

5Review the import log for any errors or warnings

Large Import Tips:

  • Max import: smaller of 5MB or 250,000 cells.

Error: "Commit Option is empty | Product Type is empty | Backorder Option is empty | Costing Method is empty"

Cause: These 4 fields are required but were left blank

Solution: Fill in all 11 required fields listed above

Error: "SKU already exists" or "Duplicate SKU"

Cause: Using Action = "I" (Insert) for a product that already exists

Solution: Change Action to "U" (Update) for existing products, or use a different SKU for the new product

Error: SKU displays as scientific notation (e.g., 8.10099E+11)

Cause: Excel auto-formatted the SKU column as a number

Solution: Format SKU column as "Text" before entering data. If data is already entered, you may need to retype the SKUs after formatting.

Error: "Invalid Category Format"

Cause: Category field not using required format

Solution: Use format: Category1;SubCat1^Yes^1 where ^Yes^ indicates featured status and ^1^ is sort order

Data Loss: Product descriptions or images disappeared after update

Cause: Empty cells in CSV overwrote existing data

Solution: Always start with a Product Export when updating. Never use the blank template for updates.

Import Timeout or 500 Internal Server Error

Cause: File size exceeds 15MB or contains complex data (many images, long descriptions, advanced features)

Solution: Split your import into batches of 500-750 products

Category Field Format

Categories use a special pipe-separated format:

Category1;SubCat1^Yes^1|Category2^No^2

  • ; separates category levels (Category Subcategory)
  • ^Yes^ or ^No^ = Featured status on category page
  • ^1^ = Sort order within category
  • | separates multiple category assignments

Example: Home;Living Room^Yes^1|New Arrivals^No^5

Image Fields

For each of 4 possible images, you can specify:

  • Image URL: Full URL to the image file
  • Image Alt Text: Alternative text for accessibility
  • Small Image: Thumbnail version URL
  • Large Image: Full-size version URL

Product Options

Format: OptionName1:Value1,Value2|OptionName2:ValueA,ValueB

Example: Size:Small,Medium,Large|Color:Red,Blue,Green

Related Products

Enter SKUs separated by pipes: SKU123|SKU456|SKU789

 

 

 

 

Related articles