Product Import & Export

Bulk import and export products to efficiently manage large catalogs, update inventory, sync with external systems, or migrate from other platforms.

Overview

Available import/export operations:

Operation	Purpose
Products	Full product data including variations
Prices	Bulk price updates
Inventory	Stock levels and quantities
Categories	Category assignments
Specifications	Product specifications
License Codes	Digital product license codes

Exporting Products

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Export.

Export Options

1. Export Type:

   • All products
   • Selected products only
   • Filter by category, brand, status

2. Export Format:

   • CSV (Recommended for Excel)
   • XLSX (Excel format)

3. Include Variations:

   • Check to export product variations
   • Uncheck for parent products only

4. Click Export

Export File Structure

Product Row (import_type = product):

id,name,description,slug,sku,categories,status,is_featured,brand,price,...
123,Product Name,Description,product-slug,SKU123,Category1,publish,1,BrandName,99.99,...

Variation Row (import_type = variation):

id,name,description,slug,sku,product_attributes,import_type,price,quantity,...
,Product Name,,,VAR-SKU,Size:Large|Color:Red,variation,109.99,50,...

TIP

Variations reference parent product by name or slug. Leave parent product fields empty for variations except name.

Importing Products

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Import.

Import Process

1. Download Template:

   • Click Download Template
   • Review example data

2. Prepare Data:

   • Fill in your product data
   • Follow format requirements

3. Upload File:

   • Select CSV or Excel file
   • Configure import options

4. Validation:

   • System validates data
   • Shows errors if any

5. Import:

   • Click Import
   • Monitor progress

Import Options

Option	Description
Update existing products	Update products with matching SKU or ID
Skip existing products	Only import new products (default)
Generate SKU automatically	Auto-create SKUs if missing

Required Columns

For Products:

• name - Product name (required)
• status - publish, draft, pending
• stock_status - in_stock, out_of_stock

For Variations:

• name or slug - Parent product identifier
• product_attributes - Attribute combinations
• import_type - Must be variation
• sku - Variation SKU

Optional Columns

Column	Format	Example
id	Integer or UUID	123
description	Text	Product description
slug	URL-friendly	product-slug
url	Custom URL	/custom-url
sku	Alphanumeric	PROD-123
categories	Comma-separated	Electronics,Phones
brand	Brand name	Apple
product_collections	Comma-separated	New Arrivals,Featured
labels	Comma-separated	Hot,Sale
taxes	Comma-separated tax titles	VAT,GST
image	Image URL or path	products/image.jpg
images	Comma-separated URLs	image1.jpg,image2.jpg
price	Decimal	99.99
sale_price	Decimal	79.99
start_date	Date	2024-01-01
end_date	Date	2024-12-31
quantity	Integer	100
weight	Decimal	0.5
length	Decimal	10
wide	Decimal	5
height	Decimal	2
cost_per_item	Decimal	50.00
barcode	Alphanumeric	123456789012
content	HTML or text	Product details
tags	Comma-separated	electronics,smartphone
product_type	physical or digital	physical
with_storehouse_management	0 or 1	1
is_featured	0 or 1	1
auto_generate_sku	0 or 1	1
generate_license_code	0 or 1	0
minimum_order_quantity	Integer	1
maximum_order_quantity	Integer	10
order	Integer	0

SEO Columns

Column	Example
seo_title	Product SEO Title
seo_description	Meta description for search engines
seo_index	index or noindex

Multi-language Columns

If multi-language is enabled:

Column	Example
name_(fr)	French product name
description_(fr)	French description
content_(fr)	French content

Replace (fr) with your language code.

Product Attributes in Import

For Parent Products

product_attributes column lists attribute set names:

product_attributes
Size,Color,Material

Creates attribute sets for the product.

For Variations

product_attributes column specifies attribute combination:

product_attributes
Size:Large|Color:Red|Material:Cotton

Format: AttributeSet:Value|AttributeSet:Value

WARNING

Attribute sets and values must exist before import. Create them in Ecommerce -> Attributes.

Handling Images

Image Formats

Option 1: Relative Paths

image
products/phone.jpg

File must exist in storage/app/public/products/

Option 2: Full URLs

image
https://example.com/images/phone.jpg

System downloads and stores image.

Multiple Images

Comma-separated in images column:

images
products/image1.jpg,products/image2.jpg,https://example.com/image3.jpg

TIP

For large imports with images, upload images to storage/app/public/products/ first, then use relative paths in CSV.

Importing Variations

Step-by-Step Process

1. Prepare parent products - Import parent products first
2. Create attribute sets - Ensure attributes exist in Ecommerce -> Attributes
3. Prepare variation rows - Format variation data
4. Import - Upload CSV with variations

Variation CSV Example

name,slug,sku,product_attributes,import_type,price,quantity,is_variation_default
T-Shirt,,TSHIRT-001,Size|Color,product,20.00,0,0
T-Shirt,,TSHIRT-RED-S,Size:Small|Color:Red,variation,20.00,50,1
T-Shirt,,TSHIRT-RED-M,Size:Medium|Color:Red,variation,20.00,30,0
T-Shirt,,TSHIRT-BLUE-S,Size:Small|Color:Blue,variation,22.00,40,0

Explanation:

• Row 1: Parent product with Size and Color attribute sets
• Row 2: Small/Red variation (default)
• Row 3: Medium/Red variation
• Row 4: Small/Blue variation (higher price)

Auto-Generate Variation SKUs

Enable auto_generate_sku for variations:

name,product_attributes,import_type,auto_generate_sku
T-Shirt,Size:Small|Color:Red,variation,1

Generated SKU format: {parent_sku}-{attribute1}-{attribute2} Result: TSHIRT-001-SMALL-RED

Importing Prices Only

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Import Prices.

Price Import Format

id,sku,name,price,sale_price
123,SKU-123,Product Name,99.99,79.99
,SKU-VAR-1,,109.99,89.99

Columns:

• id or sku or name - Product identifier (at least one required)
• price - New base price
• sale_price - New sale price (optional)

TIP

Use price import for quick price updates without modifying other product data.

Importing Inventory Only

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Import Inventory.

Inventory Import Format

sku,name,quantity,stock_status,with_storehouse_management
SKU-123,Product Name,100,in_stock,1
SKU-VAR-1,Variation Name,50,in_stock,1

Columns:

• sku or name - Product identifier
• quantity - New stock level
• stock_status - in_stock or out_of_stock
• with_storehouse_management - Enable/disable inventory tracking

Importing Categories

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Import Categories.

Category Import Format

product_id,product_sku,product_name,categories
123,SKU-123,Product Name,Electronics|Smartphones|Samsung

Categories:

• Pipe-separated: Category1|Category2|Category3
• Or comma-separated: Category1,Category2,Category3

Categories must exist before import.

Importing Specifications

Navigate to Ecommerce -> Products -> Import Specifications.

Specification Import Format

product_id,specification_table,Screen Size,Resolution,Processor
123,Smartphone Specs,6.1 inches,2532x1170,A15 Bionic

Columns:

• product_id or product_name - Product identifier
• specification_table - Specification table name (optional)
• Dynamic columns for each specification attribute

Common Import Errors

"Product name is required"

• Ensure name column has values
• Check for empty rows

"Invalid status value"

• Status must be: publish, draft, or pending
• Check spelling

"SKU already exists"

• SKU must be unique
• Enable "Update existing products" to overwrite

"Category not found"

• Create categories before import
• Check category names match exactly (case-sensitive)

"Attribute not found"

• Create attribute sets and attributes first
• Verify attribute names match exactly

"Invalid product_attributes format"

• Use format: AttributeSet:Value|AttributeSet:Value
• Check for typos in attribute names

"Image not found"

• Verify image paths are correct
• Upload images to server first
• Or use full URLs

"Barcode already exists"

• Barcode must be unique
• Enable "Update existing products" or change barcodes

Best Practices

Before Import

1. Backup database - Create backup before large imports
2. Test with small batch - Import 5-10 products first
3. Validate data - Check for required fields, formats
4. Create dependencies - Add categories, brands, attributes first
5. Prepare images - Upload images before import

During Import

1. Monitor progress - Watch for validation errors
2. Check logs - Review Laravel logs for detailed errors
3. Don't refresh - Wait for import to complete
4. Handle errors - Fix errors and re-import failed rows

After Import

1. Verify data - Check imported products
2. Review variations - Ensure variations link correctly
3. Check images - Verify images display
4. Test pricing - Confirm prices and sales
5. Clear cache - Run php artisan cache:clear
6. Reindex search - If using search plugin

Performance Tips

Large Imports (1000+ products)

1. Split files - Import in batches of 500-1000 rows
2. Increase timeouts - Adjust max_execution_time in php.ini
3. Disable emails - Temporarily disable notification emails
4. Use CLI - Import via command line for better performance
5. Schedule imports - Run during low-traffic periods

Import Speed Optimization

# Increase PHP memory limit
php -d memory_limit=512M artisan import:products file.csv

# Disable query logging
DB_LOG_QUERIES=false

# Use queue for large imports
php artisan queue:work

Troubleshooting

Import stuck or times out

1. Check PHP settings - Increase max_execution_time, memory_limit
2. Reduce batch size - Split into smaller files
3. Check server resources - Monitor CPU, memory usage
4. Review logs - Check storage/logs/laravel.log

Variations not linking to parent

1. Verify parent exists - Import parent product first
2. Check name/slug match - Variation must reference correct parent
3. Validate attributes - Ensure attribute sets exist on parent

Prices not updating

1. Enable "Update existing" - Check update option
2. Verify identifier - Use correct SKU or ID
3. Check number format - Use decimal format (99.99, not 99,99)

Export/Import Workflow Example

Scenario: Update prices and inventory for 500 products

1. Export current products - Get latest data
2. Open in Excel - Edit price and quantity columns
3. Save as CSV - Maintain proper encoding (UTF-8)
4. Import prices - Use "Import Prices" for speed
5. Import inventory - Use "Import Inventory" separately
6. Verify changes - Spot-check updated products

Advanced: API Import

For programmatic imports:

POST /api/v1/products/import
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

file: products.csv
update_existing: true

See API documentation for details.