Merge Products together making one product with Variants

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

A Shopify merchant seeks to consolidate multiple standalone products into single products with variants (e.g., merging “2 oz Ink Set” and “4 oz Ink Set” into one product with size variants). Future needs may involve products with 40-50+ variants.

Proposed Solutions:

  • Manual CSV method: Export products to CSV, manipulate data in Excel, then re-import
  • Easify Product Options app: Create a main product and link existing products as selectable options (not true variants)
  • Merges app (https://apps.shopify.com/merges): Dedicated tool allowing selection of up to 100 products to merge in a few steps, preserving SKU, barcodes, and inventory data

Key Limitations:

  • Shopify currently restricts products to 100 variants maximum
  • This prevents merging extensive product lines (e.g., multiple clothing types with many colors/sizes)
  • Shopify’s promised expansion to 2,000 variants, initially expected “early 2025,” has not yet materialized

Related Questions:

  • Compatibility with dropshipping platforms (Printful, TeeLaunch)
  • Bundle apps vs. product merging for different use cases
  • Inventory syncing concerns when using bundle solutions

The discussion remains open, with the 100-variant ceiling being the primary unresolved constraint for users with complex product catalogs.

Summarized with AI on October 26. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
15

Hi Uni-Trend,

Great questions! Let me break down each one for you:

  1. How do monthly merge credits work?

Each month, your subscription provides a specific number of merge credits. A credit is used for each product variant merged. For example, if you merge Product A (which has 3 variants) with Product B (as a new variant), you’ll use 4 credits in total. This system allows for flexibility, letting you manage your merges according to your plan’s allowance.

  1. Why would you want to archive your old products?

Archiving old products can help maintain accurate inventory counts. When you have the same product listed multiple times, each instance has its own unique inventory count, which can lead to discrepancies. By archiving old products after merging them into a single product with variants, you ensure that your stock levels are accurately tracked.

Even after merging, you can still display individual products on a collection page with some theme modifications.

  1. Front-end demo and individual product visibility:

We don’t have a frontend demo available, as this always depends on the theme used. However, we offer free trial credits so you can try the app and see how it works for your specific needs. For manufacturers like yourself who need to export product information for distributors, you won’t lose the individual product data. The merged product will include all the variants, allowing you to present a single model with options to choose different parameters, like speed or number of channels.

If you have any further questions or need more detailed information, feel free to reach out.

Best regards