Troubleshooting Imports
The most common problems are listed below.
Improperly Formatted File
Import files must be formatted in our app's format. The easiest way to get our format is to export some or all of your data from the app.
Alternatively, starting from a sample file is also helpful. From the Import tab, select
Shopify format vs. Custom Fields Format
Our format is very similar but not identical to Shopify's format.
If you're importing data for products that do not include variant-level data, then you can start from an export from Shopify, add properly formatted columns and data to it for our app, and import that file.
If you need to import variant-level data, Shopify's format will cause you some problems. In Shopify's exports, the first row for each product contains data from both the product level and the first variant. In our format, those are separate, allowing import on either the product, or the variant, or both.
Missing Required Columns
Title column, Handle column, and one metafield field column are the minimum requirements. All columns must have data, except for titles when importing a variant row, as variants are denoted by a blank title cell.
Improperly Formatted Handles
See below to resolve "Unable to load product" errors in imports.
The importer for Custom Fields does not make any changes to the handles you send it to correct mistakes. Shopify's importer does correct some mistakes for you during import. For this reason, we recommend starting with a complete export file from the app, or from Shopify (mindful of the formatting issue described above).
Make sure your Handle Matches Shopify's
On the edit product screen in Shopify, handles are the end of the URL for that product.
Handle Changed
If the handle changed in Shopify, then CSV data needs to be updated. This can happen for a number of reasons, like changing the title of your product.
The import tool will tell you that the product does not exist. Compare your problem handle to the handle stored in Shopify. Here's an article on how to find that information. https://help.shopify.com/themes/liquid/basics/handle#how-handles-are-created
Special Characters
When initially importing your products into Shopify, Shopify will allow you to import handles with special characters or incorrect formatting and will fix them during their import. Custom Fields does not alter handles on import into the app. This can cause confusion because it will appear like the app is not working correctly. In fact, your handles are bad. Here is an example:
Handle in your original CSV : Alcohol-y-Salud-Pública-en-
Handle stored in Shopify : alcohol-y-salud-
If you took your original CSV and added Custom Field data to it and tried to import it, Custom Fields would reject the bad handles and nothing would be imported.
To fix this problem, export all your products from Shopify and use the corrected handles Shopify assigned, not the handles you have in your original CSV. Import that file into Custom Fields and your data will no longer be rejected and will import as expected.
In general, just make sure you read and follow the rules of handles at all times.
Note, Shopify does allow underscores in handles, although their documentation does not say so.
For detailed information about what characters are allowed and exactly how other characters are handled, see https://stackoverflow.com/questions/37667623/what-characters-are-allowed-in-shopify-product-handles
File Encoding
We recommend using UTF-8 for your CSV encoding.
Characters outside of UTF-8
Use only characters in the UTF-8 character set. Support for characters in other sets is untested. Some customers have had good results importing data in other languages besides English.
Incorrectly Placed Commas or Quotes
A common problem is that a file will have a single row with a comma or quote in the wrong spot. We recommend using csvlint.io to test your file for issues like these. Sometimes their tool can correct the problem for you and provide a fixed CSV file, but it's not a perfect tool and the corrections sometimes need to be made by hand.
Migrating with Mis-matched IDs
If you're migrating data from one store to another, delete the entire ID column from your import file. IDs are different across your stores, which would cause the import to fail.
Fields Not Defined in App
All fields that you want to import should be configured in the app first.
Extra Columns in the CSV
If you're getting the error "Row count does not match header count." check that the headers in your file (title, ID, customfields["your field"]) are all labeled. If a column does not have both a label and data, remove it from your CSV.
Leading or Trailing Spaces in the Handle
If you're certain the handle is accurate, check your CSV file to ensure that there aren't any leading or trailing spaces in the handle.
Unable to Load Variant
The app determines what is a product and what is a variant using the Title column in your file. Products should have some text in the title column, and variants should have a blank cell for the Title.
Still Stuck?
Shoot us a support ticket with your CSV file. We'd be happy to help. :)