CSV Product files

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

A user is struggling to export their Shopify product catalog for filtering and analysis, finding that Excel and Google Sheets exports don’t align properly and are unusable.

Suggested Solutions:

  • Import method matters: Instead of opening CSV files directly, use the import function in Google Sheets (File → Import → Upload → “Detect automatically”) or Excel to maintain proper column alignment
  • Understanding CSV format: CSV files are comma-separated values that need to be opened properly in Excel to display correctly in rows and columns
  • API/Bulk Operations: Use Shopify’s GraphQL API or Bulk Operations feature to fetch catalog data in a more structured format
  • Airtable integration: Multiple users recommend connecting Shopify to Airtable (either through custom integration or the SyncBase app) for easier data viewing, filtering, and real-time editing
  • Data cleaning tools: Use Excel’s Power Query or Google Sheets’ Split Text to Columns for quick cleanup

Status: One experienced user reports successfully managing 9,000 SKUs monthly using proper CSV import methods, suggesting the issue is likely related to file handling rather than Shopify’s export functionality. The discussion remains open with various workflow options presented.

Summarized with AI on October 24. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
1

Hello!

We’ve been trying to export our entire catalog to be able to filter through it, see where changes need to be made, and a bunch of other things we’d like to look at.

Exporting to excel or google sheets is terrible, never lines up properly, and is unusable.

Any tips on what can be used aside from a 3rd party app to get this done? It’s quite frustrating.

Thanks!

2

Exporting product data can be a real pain! One approach is to use Shopify’s GraphQL API or Bulk Operations feature to fetch your catalog data. You can then format the data into a more usable spreadsheet or table. Alternatively, you can try using a CSV export tool built into Shopify or explore other native features like product collections or metafields to organize your data. Sometimes, a bit of creative problem-solving can solve you get the data you need!

1 Like
3

Hi!

Totally understand how frustrating that can be. One option you might try without using a third-party app is exporting your catalog as a CSV and then importing it directly into Google Sheets or Excel using the import function instead of opening it directly. This usually keeps the columns properly aligned. You could also clean up the file quickly using Excel’s Power Query or Google Sheets Split Text to Columns.

Hope this helps!

1 Like
4

Hello,

Any bulk operations in Shopify are absolutely a nightmare. I actually integrated my storefront with Airtable and was not able to export all my products directly by also update stuff directly from Airtable to Shopify. Wayy easier to do because I can run queries in Airtable. Let me know if you need help.

1 Like
5

It’s a third party app so maybe not exactly what you’re looking for but I strongly recommend the shopify app SyncBase for this. It plugs your entire shop to an airtable base and allows you to view & edit all the data directly from airtable in real time.

6

export from Shopify with the default CSV, then import to Google Sheets through File → Import → Upload → “Detect automatically” rather than opening it directly that way the columns stay aligned. Keep columns aligned. For advanced filtering paste Shopify data into Google Sheets; Get connected to Shopify through the Shopify API (using Google Apps Script), rather than third party apps.

7

I do this once a month with 9k SKUs and match up with other sheets from suppliers and build pivot tables. works perfect. everything lines up like it should. what are you doing wrong?

8

you need to understand these are CSV files, not Excel files. when you open a CSV file in Excel it needs to be done properly. CSV stands for comma-separated values. in basic form they are just letter and numbers separated by commas. Excel needs to know it is a CSV to open it properly so it falls into the rows and columns you see in Excel. hope that helps.