How to bulk update cost per item in Shopify
Shopify has two built-in ways to change many costs at once, the bulk editor and a product CSV import. The bulk editor is safest for a few hundred variants; the CSV is faster for thousands and can overwrite more than you intended.
Updated
Method 1: the bulk editor
Best for: up to a few hundred variants, and for filling in gaps.
- In the Shopify admin, go to Products (or Products > Inventory).
- Select the products or variants and open the bulk editor.
- Click Columns and add Cost per item.
- Type or paste the costs into the cells, then Save.
You can paste a column from a spreadsheet if the rows are in the same order. Nothing other than the cells you edit is changed, which makes this the low-risk option.
Method 2: product CSV import
Best for: thousands of variants, when you can prepare the file carefully.
- Go to Products and Export the products you want to change.
- In the file, edit the Cost per item column. Enter numbers only, with no currency symbol.
- Go to Products, click Import, add the file and select Overwrite products with matching handles.
- Review the summary, then Import products.
Three rules from Shopify’s documentation decide whether this goes well:
- A column that is in the file but blank clears the value in Shopify. A column that is absent from the file leaves the existing value alone. So remove the columns you do not mean to change, and keep the required ones (URL handle and Title) and the option columns.
- Variants are identified by their option values. Changing them deletes the existing variants and creates new ones.
- The file cannot exceed 15 MB.
A blank Cost per item cell is the common accident: it removes a cost that was there.
Method 3: an app
Best for: updates keyed by SKU, repeated updates, and anything you want a record of.
Apps write the same field through Shopify’s API. What they add is matching by SKU, a preview, and in some cases a history. In Cogsy, a CSV import needs only sku and amount, shows the current and new cost for each row before saving, and adds to the variant’s history rather than replacing it. Writing the result to Shopify is a separate, deliberate step.
Which to use
| Situation | Method |
|---|---|
| Fill in 40 missing costs | Bulk editor |
| Paste a short price list | Bulk editor |
| Reprice a 5,000-variant catalog from an export | Product CSV |
| Supplier sends a list of SKUs and prices every quarter | App with SKU matching |
| You need to know what a cost was before the change | App with a history |
Before any bulk change
Export your products first. Shopify does not keep the previous cost, so the export is the only copy of what you are about to replace.
Questions
- Can I update cost per item with the inventory CSV?
- No. Shopify's inventory CSV has no cost column. Cost per item is in the product CSV.
- Can I update costs by SKU in Shopify's CSV import?
- Not directly. The product CSV matches products by handle and variants by their option values. A list of SKUs and costs from a supplier has to be joined to an export first, or imported with an app that matches by SKU.
- Will a CSV import delete my variants?
- It can. Shopify warns that changing option values in the file deletes the existing variants and creates new ones, and that leaving the option columns out replaces a product's variants with a single default variant. Keep the option columns exactly as exported.
- Is there an undo?
- Not for cost per item in the Shopify admin. Export your products before a bulk change so you have the previous costs.
Sources
Related
Feature
CSV import with a previewUpload costs by SKU, with a source and a start date if you have them. You see every change before anything is saved.
Guide
Cost per item in Shopify: what it is and what depends on itWhat Shopify's cost per item field holds, how to set it, which reports use it, who can see it, and the four things one static field cannot do.
Guide
Why products are missing from Shopify profit reports, and how to find those with no costShopify leaves variants with no cost out of profit reports. How to see how much revenue is affected, and three ways to list every variant with no cost per item.
Glossary
SKU (stock keeping unit)A SKU is your own code for one sellable variant of a product. What makes a good SKU, how it differs from a barcode, and why costs are matched by SKU.