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Catalog Import & Export
NXCart includes a CSV-based catalog importer and exporter in the admin. Use it to migrate an existing store into NXCart, move products between sites, or keep a catalog in sync from a spreadsheet.
Supported platforms
The importer auto-detects the source format from the CSV header row and maps the columns for you:
| Source | What it reads |
|---|---|
| NXCart (Native) | NXCart's own export format — the round-trip format for backup/restore and site-to-site moves |
| WooCommerce | The standard WooCommerce product CSV export (simple, variable, and variation rows) |
| Shopify | The Shopify products CSV export |
| HikaShop | HikaShop product/variant CSV |
| VirtueMart | VirtueMart product CSV |
Importing a catalog
- Open NXCart → Import / Export in the admin.
- Choose your CSV file. NXCart detects the platform from the header row.
- (Optional) Enable Update existing products — see below.
- Start the import. Progress is shown live and the work runs in batches, so large files don't time out.
What gets imported
- Products with titles, descriptions, and images
- Categories, including nested category trees and products that belong to more than one category
- Variants with prices, SKUs, stock, weight, and options/attributes
- Sale prices and sale windows where the source provides them
- Digital vs physical product type (downloadable/virtual products import as digital)
Update existing products (catalog sync)
By default the importer only ever adds products, and it blocks re-importing the exact same file. Turn on Update existing products to keep a catalog in sync instead:
- A product is matched by its source identity (the platform it came from plus its original ID); a variant by its original ID, then SKU.
- A matched product is updated in place rather than duplicated; only genuinely new rows are inserted.
- The product's URL slug is left untouched, so existing links don't break.
- A hand-set primary category is preserved; category links are added, never removed.
- Fields cleared in the source are cleared in NXCart too, so a re-import faithfully reflects the file.
Leave the toggle off for a one-time migration. Turn it on when you re-import an updated export of the same catalog.
Large files: progress, cancel & resume
Imports and exports run in small batches driven from the browser, not in one long request:
- The progress bar reflects real work as each batch completes.
- Cancel takes effect between batches.
- An interrupted job (a timeout or a closed tab) resumes from where it stopped instead of starting over or getting stuck.
- A product's variant rows are never split across a batch boundary, so grouped variants always import as a single product.
File format notes
- CSV files exported from WooCommerce or saved by Excel often begin with a hidden byte-order mark (BOM). NXCart handles these transparently, so the first column is always read correctly.
- Each platform's column layout is mapped automatically — you don't need to rearrange columns before importing.
Exporting a catalog
- Open NXCart → Import / Export.
- Choose the NXCart (Native) export and start it.
- The catalog is written to a CSV file in batches; download it once the job completes.
The native export is the same format the importer reads back, so it round-trips cleanly for backups and site-to-site moves. It carries full category paths (Parent > Child trees) and per-variant pricing and stock.
Tips
- Take a database backup before a large import or a sync run.
- Try a trial import on a staging site first to confirm category and variant mapping for your source.
- Migrating from a live store? Export fresh from the source platform right before importing so stock and prices are current.