Platform support
Import products into PrestaShop from a file
PrestaShop imports products from a file you match to PrestaShop’s fields on the shop’s import page. The English help center says that page is under Advanced settings, then Import. The PrestaShop 9 guide recommends a semicolon as the field separator and one language per file.
Which product file does the PrestaShop 9 guide describe?
The guide says imports were historically CSV, and that since PrestaShop 1.7 the import also accepts .xls, .xlsx, .xlst, .ods, and .ots. It recommends a semicolon-separated CSV. If a description contains a semicolon, remove that character or choose another field separator. Use UTF-8, or ISO-8859-1 when the file is not UTF-8. Every row needs the same number of columns. The first row can name the columns, and you skip it during import. The price column uses the shop’s default currency. Dates use ISO 8601 without a time zone, and the guide’s example is 2013-06-21 15:07:27.
Categories in the file are existing category IDs, separated with a comma by default, so the guide says to import categories first. An image URL has to be an absolute link. Sample files for each data type are on the import page under Download sample CSV files, and the guide says they are stored in the shop’s /docs/csv_import folder. The demonstration file printed in the guide is explicitly not that optimized sample.
How do you match columns on the PrestaShop import page?
Choose Products under What do you want to import. The guide’s entity list is categories, products, combinations, customers, addresses, brands, suppliers, aliases, store contacts, and supply orders and supply-order details when Advanced Stock Management is enabled. Select the file language. If that language is not installed, the guide says to add it under International, then Translations. The suggested default separators are a semicolon between fields and a comma between multiple values. You can import more than one file when every file has the same type of data.
Next step opens the mapping screen. Match each column with the header dropdown. In the guide’s example, a column marked Enabled is matched to Active (0/1), and a column marked Name is matched to Name *. The screen shows at most 6 columns at once. Enter 1 in Rows to skip when the first row is headers. You can save that matching under a name and load it later. For an Excel import, the guide says you cannot set the separators, and a Features cell is four colon-separated parts: feature name, value, position, and a customized value of 1 or 0. Several features are separated by commas.
Enabled;Name;Categories;Price;Reference
1;Enamel cup;4;24.00;CUP-19How do you upload the file without erasing the catalog?
- Download the products sample from the shop you are importing into, or compare your file with that sample. In Golanto, choose PrestaShop and record the shop and the date.
- Map your columns onto the headers in your file. Keep category values as IDs that already exist. Keep image links absolute.
- Upload the file in the browser, or place it by FTP in /admin-dev/import and choose it from history. The guide also says imported files land in the admin folder’s import subfolder.
- Leave Delete all before import unselected unless you mean to erase every existing entry of the type you are importing. The English help center says a matching ID overwrites the filled fields. Its example is Title tag and Meta description: importing those two for the same ID replaces that content and leaves the other fields unchanged.
- Use product reference as key only when every imported product has a reference. Force all ID numbers either keeps the imported IDs or lets PrestaShop auto-increment them. Click Import and read the progress window. The guide says a finished import should indicate “100% validated” and “100% imported”. If it lists problems, correct the file and review it again.
Worked example
A category name is not a PrestaShop category ID
sku,name,price,category
CUP-19,Enamel cup,24.00,KitchenThese headings are a supplier sketch. The PrestaShop 9 demonstration uses a semicolon and puts existing category IDs in the categories column, separated by commas by default. The number 4 in the mapped sketch stands for an ID that already exists in the shop. Match the name column to Name * on the import screen, and enter 1 in Rows to skip when the first row is headers. Price is the shop’s default currency. Copy the column order from the sample CSV that shop offers to download.
What this check cannot establish
Golanto does not import into PrestaShop, assign category IDs, or decide whether to delete the current catalog. This page uses the PrestaShop 9 import guide and the English help-center article, retrieved on 1 November 2026. The guide spells one accepted extension .xlst. The help center’s entity list is shorter, and its description of Force all identifiers does not match the guide’s split between Force all ID numbers and Use product reference as key. Follow the labels on the import screen in the shop you have open. The guide’s printed product file is a demonstration, not the sample under Download sample CSV files. This page does not copy every available field.
Check your file
Start with a copy. Review changes before downloading your import file.
Open the template mapperOfficial references
Common questions
Can one PrestaShop product file contain two languages?
No. The PrestaShop 9 guide says data can only be imported for a single language at a time. Split each language into its own file. If the target language is missing, install it under International, then Translations, before you import.
Will PrestaShop delete my current products during import?
Only if you select Delete all before import for that data type. The PrestaShop 9 guide says the option erases previously existing entries of the type you are importing. Leave it unselected when you mean to add or update. The English help center says a matching ID overwrites the filled fields in the file.