Mastering Shopify: How to Easily Find Your Product ID

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. What is a Shopify Product ID?
  3. Method 1: The Shopify Admin URL
  4. Method 2: Product JSON Data
  5. Method 3: Shopify Admin Variants JSON Data
  6. Bonus Methods
  7. FAQs
  8. Conclusion

When managing an online store on Shopify, understanding how to locate your product ID can streamline various tasks, from adjusting inventory to enhancing your store’s SEO. This detailed guide will unravel the method to find your Shopify product ID, ensuring you can navigate through your store backend with ease.

Introduction

Have you ever found yourself lost in the backend of your Shopify store, trying to pinpoint the ID number of a specific product? Knowing how to locate this seemingly elusive number is crucial for efficiently managing your shop. Whether you're aiming to customize your store's layout, link products, or troubleshoot issues, the product ID is a key piece of information you'll frequently need.

This blog post will not only demonstrate how to find a Shopify product ID but also offer insights into utilizing these IDs to enhance your store's functionality. By the end, you'll have a solid understanding of different methods to locate product IDs and how they can serve your business needs.

What is a Shopify Product ID?

Before diving into the 'how-to', let's decode what a Shopify product ID is. Every product in your Shopify store is assigned a unique numerical identifier, known as the product ID. This ID is an integral part of Shopify's database, allowing the platform and its users to track and manage inventory accurately. Think of it as a digital fingerprint for your products, distinguishing each item in your inventory from the rest.

Method 1: The Shopify Admin URL

The easiest and most direct method to find a product ID is by navigating through your Shopify admin dashboard:

  1. Login to your Shopify admin account and go to the ‘Products’ section.
  2. Select the product whose ID you wish to know.
  3. Once the product page opens, look at the URL in your browser's address bar. The product ID is typically the long string of numbers at the end of the URL. For example, in the URL ‘https://yourstore.shopify.com/admin/products/*1234567890*’, ‘1234567890’ is your product ID.

This method is straightforward and requires no additional tools or software, making it the go-to option for most Shopify store owners.

Method 2: Product JSON Data

For those who need to access the product ID without admin privileges or for developers looking to extract ID data programmatically, the product’s JSON data can be a goldmine:

  1. Navigate to your product page on the front end of your Shopify store.
  2. Add ‘.json’ to the end of the product URL and press Enter. The URL should now look something like ‘https://yourstore.shopify.com/products/product-name.json’.
  3. Once loaded, you will see a page filled with product data in JSON format. Here, you can find your product ID listed as ‘"id": 1234567890’.

This method is especially useful for gathering product IDs in bulk or for technical adjustments requiring product data in a structured format.

Method 3: Shopify Admin Variants JSON Data

If you’re looking for a bird's-eye view of all product and variant IDs, Shopify’s Admin Variants JSON Data can come to the rescue:

  1. Log into your Shopify admin and adjust the URL to ‘https://yourstore.shopify.com/admin/variants.json’.
  2. The loaded page will display a JSON response listing all variant IDs and their associated product IDs.
  3. To make the data manageable, you can add parameters to the URL like ‘?limit=250’ to specify how many variants to display at a time.

This method is particularly beneficial for stores with a vast inventory, allowing for an efficient way to gather both product and variant IDs.

Bonus Methods

Utilizing Shopify Apps

For those preferring a more user-friendly approach without delving into URLs and JSON, several Shopify apps automate the process of finding product IDs. Apps like Excelify and EZ Exporter allow you to export your product data to CSV files, where you can easily find product and variant IDs.

Shopify APIs

If you’re comfortable with a bit more technicality, Shopify’s REST and GraphQL APIs offer methods to retrieve product IDs programmatically, fitting perfectly into automated workflows or custom app developments.

FAQs

Can I Change the Shopify Product or Variant ID?

No, these IDs are immutable and serve as a unique identifier for each product or variant in Shopify’s system.

Is the Product ID different from the SKU?

Yes, the SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) is a store- or warehouse-specific identifier that you can set and edit, whereas the product ID is a unique identifier set by Shopify and cannot be changed.

How can Product IDs improve my Shopify store management?

Knowing how to quickly find product IDs can help in various tasks such as inventory management, product linking in marketing campaigns, and custom development work to enhance your store’s functionalities.

Conclusion

Understanding how to locate Shopify product IDs is a fundamental skill that enhances your ability to manage your online store effectively. Whether you prefer the simplicity of the Shopify admin URL, the thoroughness of JSON data, the assistance of Shopify apps, or the precision of Shopify’s APIs, multiple pathways lead to the same destination. Incorporating these methods into your daily operations will streamline tasks, allowing you to focus more on growing your business.

By mastering the art of finding Shopify product IDs, you empower yourself with the knowledge to navigate your digital storefront's backend confidently. This skill not only simplifies management tasks but also opens up a world of possibilities for store customization and optimization, setting the stage for your business's success in the competitive e-commerce landscape.

App Stack