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Catalog import

Overview​

The importer lets you load products, variants, categories, and properties in bulk, without creating them one by one. The flow uses an Excel (XLSX) template: you choose a template, download a .xlsx file already built with your columns, fill it in, upload it, and go through a staging editor — an intermediate view where you review the content, fix errors, and exclude rows before committing the changes to the catalog. The final commit runs in the background with a progress modal you can close and keep working.

Today the available format is the XLSX template. Two other methods — Excel/CSV with manual mapping and PDF, Word, or image with AI — appear on the screen marked as Coming soon.

How to Access​

  • Navigate to Sales Catalog > Products and click New import (/sales/imports/new).
  • Required role: Administrator.

Interface Overview​

The import has three visible stages:

  1. Choose the method — Three cards: Template (available), Excel / CSV, and PDF, Word, or image (both Coming soon).
  2. Configure, download, and upload — A three-step wizard: you choose the template, download the XLSX, fill it in, and upload it.
  3. Staging editor (/sales/imports/:id) — A table with every row of the file, errors highlighted, and actions to edit values, exclude rows, or accept them as-is.

When you confirm, a progress modal appears with two phases (products and media). You can close it and go back to the list; the top progress chip keeps the status visible. When it finishes, you'll see a summary with how many products were created, how many were updated, and how many rows failed.

The XLSX template flow​

Step 1 — Choose a template​

A template defines which columns your file has (product and variant fields, custom properties, images). The default one works for most catalogs; create a custom one if you need more columns. See Import templates to design them.

Step 2 — Download the XLSX template​

The Download XLSX template button generates a file with headers in your language, the required columns marked, dropdown menus, and per-column comments with the expected format. Fill it in in Excel or Google Sheets.

Step 3 — Upload your file​

Upload the filled-in .xlsx. Aurora validates each cell and takes you to the staging editor. Only .xlsx files are accepted; other formats are rejected.

The staging editor​

After uploading the file, Aurora takes you to the staging editor. Here:

  • Every row in the file becomes an editable row in the table.
  • Rows with errors are highlighted: duplicate SKU, invalid price, nonexistent category, required column empty. You can edit the value directly in the cell.
  • You can exclude rows you don't want to import.
  • The top counter shows how many rows are valid, how many have errors, and how many are excluded.
  • If a row was an already-existing product (same SKU), the importer treats it as an update instead of a creation.

Once the file is clean (or you decide to accept the errors as failed rows), you click Confirm import and the process moves to the progress modal.

Columns and format​

Each row needs at least Name, SKU, Price, and Currency; the other columns are optional. Some useful formats:

  • Price accepts $100.00, 100,00, or 1,234.56.
  • Currency is an ISO 4217 code (MXN, USD, EUR).
  • For variants (size, color), use the same Product handle (ProductHandle) in all rows of the same product; leave it blank if the product has a single variant.

Image import​

When your template includes image URL columns, Aurora downloads the images from those URLs during the import and stores them in your account. Identical images (same content) are deduplicated automatically — storage isn't duplicated if the same image appears across multiple products or variants.

Important notes:

  • URLs must be public and reachable (the importer cannot authenticate).
  • If a URL fails (404, timeout), the product is created anyway, but without that image. The error is recorded in the per-row failure report.
  • For large imports (thousands of images), validate the URLs beforehand and split the file into batches (see "Large imports").

Features & Actions​

Start an import​

What it does: Opens the wizard to choose a template and upload the file.

Steps:

  1. In the products list, click New import.
  2. Choose the Template card.
  3. Select the template, download the XLSX, fill it in, and upload it.

Edit rows in staging​

What it does: Fixes errors or adjusts values before committing.

Steps:

  1. In the staging editor, click a cell with an error (or any editable cell).
  2. Modify the value; the validation errors update automatically.

Exclude rows​

What it does: Marks rows so they won't be imported.

Steps:

  1. Check the rows you want to exclude.
  2. They remain visible but dimmed and aren't counted in the total to import.

Confirm the import​

What it does: Commits the changes to the catalog in the background.

Steps:

  1. Once the rows are reviewed, click Confirm import.
  2. The progress modal appears with two phases: Products (creates and updates) and Media (downloads images).
  3. You can close the modal and keep working; the top progress chip notifies you when it finishes.

Cancel an import in progress​

What it does: Stops the import. Already-processed rows are kept (it's safe to resume later).

Steps:

  1. In the progress modal, click Cancel and confirm.
  2. The import is marked as cancelled in history.

Review per-row errors​

What it does: See which rows failed and why.

Steps:

  1. Once finished, open the progress modal's results panel.
  2. The list shows each failed row with the reason (unreachable image URL, duplicate SKU, invalid data, etc.).
  3. You can also access history from Sales Catalog > Settings > Import history.

Large imports (thousands of products and images)​

  • Split the file into batches of about 5,000 products. Each batch is an independent import.
  • Validate image URLs before importing. Down URLs make individual images fail — each failure is recorded but the product is still created without an image.
  • Wait for the semantic-search cycle. For the AI agent to search semantically across freshly imported products, Aurora processes each product in the background. On a large import, full semantic search may take a few hours to stabilize — meanwhile, keyword search and structured filters already work at 100%.

Fields Reference (summary)​

FieldDescriptionRequiredNotes
NameProduct nameYesRequired in every row
SKUUnique variant identifierYesUnique in your account; if it already exists = update
PricePrice per unit of the variantYesAccepts $100.00, 100,00, or 1,234.56
CurrencyISO 4217 codeYesMXN, USD, EUR, etc.
Product handleGroups variants of the same productNoSame value in all rows of a multi-variant product
CategoryProduct categoryNoResolved by name; created if missing
BrandProduct brandNoFree text
StatusDraft / Active / Discontinued / ArchivedNoDefault: Draft
Image URLsOne or more columns with public URLsNoPublic and reachable
Custom propertiesOne column per defined propertyNoThe value respects the property's type

Important Notes​

  • Only .xlsx files. CSV is no longer uploaded directly; download the XLSX template and fill it in.
  • Maximum 10,000 rows per file. For larger volumes, split into several files.
  • The import is resumable: if the process is interrupted (you close the browser, the connection drops), the work continues in the background — no need to re-upload the file.
  • Created products land in Draft status unless the import specifies otherwise, so your team can review them before exposing them to the AI agent.
  • The full history is kept under Settings > Import history — including the per-row error files.

FAQ​

Q: What formats can I upload? A: For now, .xlsx generated from a template. Manual Excel/CSV mapping and AI extraction from PDF/Word/image appear as Coming soon.

Q: What happens if a row has a SKU that already exists? A: It's treated as an update to the existing product/variant, not as a duplicate.

Q: Why didn't some images appear after the import? A: Most likely the URLs returned an error or took too long. Check the per-row failure report and fix the URLs or upload them manually to the product.

Q: Can I undo an import? A: There's no automatic "undo" button. To minimize risk, new products default to Draft; if you need to revert, archive them or run a corrective second import.

Q: Does the import keep running if I close the browser? A: Yes. Once confirmed, it runs in the background. Come back to Aurora and you'll see the progress chip or the final summary.