Bulk-importing products via CSV file on PrestaShop
The native import tool sits under Advanced Parameters > Import in the back office: it accepts a CSV file, offers column mapping, and works well for a one-off import. Blockers almost always come from the same three places: file encoding, the column separator, or a duplicate reference that overwrites an existing product instead of creating a new one.
What most commonly breaks a CSV import
PrestaShop’s import tool expects a UTF-8 encoded file. A file exported from Excel in Windows-1252 keeps its accented characters on screen but breaks them on import: special characters turn into unreadable symbols in the resulting product records.
Second friction point: the column separator. PrestaShop tries to detect it automatically, but a file with commas inside description fields can throw off that detection and shift every following column.
Third, quieter point: the Reference column acts as the matching key. If a row carries a reference already present in the database, the import doesn’t create a duplicate, it overwrites the existing product with that row’s data. On a large file, this can silently change hundreds of records with no error shown.
The import screen then offers a mapping step, where each file column is matched to a PrestaShop field: name, price, category, quantity, description. That mapping can be saved and reused on a future file with the same structure, avoiding the need to redo it every time for a given supplier.
Related pages
-
Exporting the catalogue or orders to CSV
The reverse operation, with its own limits on what the back office can output in one click.
-
Internal search not finding certain products
A large import is often what makes a search re-index necessary.
-
Custom PrestaShop module development
For an automated, recurring import beyond the manual back-office screen.
Describe your need in one minute
A few targeted questions so I can reply with an estimate rather than another questionnaire.