How to Clean Product Catalog CSV Columns for Shopify, WooCommerce or Etsy

E-commerce platforms are strict about product CSV imports. Shopify, WooCommerce, and Etsy all have specific column names, required fields, and column order requirements. When you are importing a product catalog — especially one exported from a different platform — the column structure almost never matches out of the box.

A free browser column editor lets you fix the headers, remove columns you do not need, and get the file into the exact shape the platform expects before you even open the import wizard.

Why Product CSV Imports Fail on the First Try

• Column names do not match the platform's expected field names
• The CSV has extra columns that the importer does not recognize, causing warnings or errors
• Required fields are missing or in the wrong format
• Columns from one platform use different naming conventions than another (e.g., "Product Title" vs "Title" vs "Name")

Shopify Product CSV — Key Column Names

Shopify's product import uses specific column names. Core ones include:

• Handle (unique product identifier)
• Title
• Body (HTML)
• Vendor
• Type
• Tags
• Published
• Variant Price
• Variant SKU
• Variant Inventory Qty
• Image Src

Download Shopify's sample CSV template from their help docs to get the full list of expected column names. Then use the column editor to rename your source file's headers to match.

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WooCommerce Product CSV — Key Column Names

WooCommerce uses different column names for similar fields:

• ID
• Type
• SKU
• Name
• Description
• Short description
• Regular price
• Stock
• Images
• Categories

Note that Shopify uses "Title" while WooCommerce uses "Name" for the product name. If you are migrating between platforms, these are the columns that need renaming.

The Column Cleanup Workflow for Product Catalogs

1. Download the target platform's sample CSV or check their import documentation for expected column names.
2. Export your current product data as a CSV.
3. Open the free column editor and upload your export.
4. Delete columns the target platform does not use.
5. Rename remaining columns to match what the platform expects.
6. Reorder columns to match the platform's template if needed.
7. Download and import.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use this to migrate products from Shopify to WooCommerce?

The column editor can help you rename and restructure the column headers to match WooCommerce's expected format. But a full platform migration also involves data format differences (image URLs, category structures, variant handling) that go beyond column names alone.

Does this work for large product catalogs with thousands of SKUs?

Yes. The column operations work regardless of how many rows (products) are in the file. A file with 10,000 SKUs will have the same column editing experience as one with 100.

My product export has variant columns that repeat (Size 1, Size 2...). Can I handle those?

The column editor works on all columns present in the file, including repeating variant columns. You can rename, delete, or reorder them. However, restructuring the data format of variants (e.g., converting from rows to columns or vice versa) requires a more specialized tool.

Is this tool free?

Yes. No account, no cost, no server upload.