How to Convert Any Supplier Spreadsheet to Shopify or WooCommerce Format

Supplier spreadsheets come in every possible format — different column names, different structures, different conventions for handling variants and pricing. Converting them to a format that Shopify or WooCommerce can actually import is one of the most time-consuming tasks in ecommerce catalog management.

Step 1: Identify what you have — Open the supplier file and identify which columns map to which product attributes. Most supplier files contain some version of a product name, SKU or product code, price, stock level, and image reference — but labeled differently every time.

Step 2: Check the data before you do anything else — Before spending time reformatting, check the file for issues that will cause your import to fail regardless of how well you format it. Duplicate SKUs, missing required fields, and invalid image URLs will cause problems whether you're importing to Shopify or WooCommerce.

Step 3: Map columns to the target platform's format — For Shopify, the minimum required columns are Handle, Title, Variant SKU, Variant Price, and Published. For WooCommerce, the minimum is Type, SKU, Name, Regular price, and Published.

Step 4: Generate and validate the output — After converting the file, spot-check a sample of rows before importing. Verify prices look correct, image URLs are complete, and SKU values are unique. ClearCatalogue automates all four steps — column mapping, health checking, normalization, and export — so you spend your time reviewing a health report rather than manually reformatting spreadsheet columns.