About variations

Learn how to track product differences

Making the same product in multiple sizes, colours, or scents — and struggling to keep stock accurate for each? Variations let you track every version of a product separately while keeping them organised under one roof.

Variations are a way to manage small differences within a single product, such as sizes, colours, or scents. Instead of creating a separate product for every option, you group them together as variations of one product. Each variation can have its own stock level, recipe, sale price, and order history.

In this article:

• What is a variation?
• Variation attributes and values
• Creating variations
• Renaming variations
• Variation base sale price
• Demoting a product to a variation
• Converting a variation to a standalone product

What is a variation?

A variation represents one specific version of a product. For example, if you sell a candle in three sizes — Small, Medium, and Large — each size is a variation of the one candle product.

Each variation tracks its own sales, manufactures, stock levels, and recipes, so you always know exactly how much of each version you have on hand.

Variations can be created manually or imported automatically from a connected integration such as Shopify or Etsy.

All your variations are listed under Products > Variations, where you can search and filter by attribute, and sort by stock level, name, or SKU.

You can drag column headers in the variations list to reorder them to suit your workflow — see Customizing list view columns for details.

Variation attributes and values

Variations are built from a combination of attributes and values.

• Attributes are the categories of difference — for example, "Size" or "Colour".
• Values are the specific options within each attribute — for example, "Small", "Medium", and "Large" for a Size attribute.

When you create a variation, you select one value from each attribute to form a unique combination. For example, a variation might be Size: Small | Colour: Red.

To manage the attributes available for a product, go to the product's Variations page and click Manage Attributes. See Add, edit, or remove variation attributes for full instructions.

Creating variations

To add a variation to a product, go to the product's page and open the Variations tab, then click Add Variation.

You'll be asked to select the attribute values that define this variation. Once saved, the variation is named automatically based on those values.

For a full walkthrough, see Add, edit, or remove a variation.

Renaming variations

Variations are named automatically based on their attribute values. If you need to change the name, you can do so on the variation's Edit page.

1. Go to the product's Variations tab.
2. Click the name of the variation you want to rename.
3. On the variation detail page, click Edit.
4. Update the Name field and click Save.

Variation base sale price

The Base Sale Price is the default price you charge for a specific variation. This price is used when you create a new order for that variation — though you can change the price on an order-by-order basis.

The base sale price is also used in the Pricing Guidance section to help you understand your margins per variation.

To set or update the sale price for a variation, see Add, edit and remove price points.

Demoting a product to a variation

It's not possible to demote a product to a variation. Products and variations are separate record types, and this conversion can't be done automatically.

If you need to reorganise your products and variations, the recommended approach is to create the variation manually under the correct parent product, then transfer any relevant stock and order history.

Converting a variation to a standalone product

It's not possible to convert a variation into a standalone product. Products and variations are separate record types, and this conversion can't be done automatically.

If you need a variation to become its own product, start by creating a new standalone product (see Add, edit, or remove a product) and rebuilding its recipe, pricing, and stock levels there.

If the variation is linked to a connected integration, such as Shopify or Etsy, you don't need to reconnect it manually. Open the variation's listing and click Move to relink it to the new product. For the full steps, see Moving listings in About Listings. This reassigns every order already imported through that listing to the new product automatically.

If a listing is attached to the wrong variation because an imported attribute was mismatched, rather than because you're moving it to a different product, see Switching External Attributes on Variations instead.

Need Help?

Still have questions about variations? Please get in touch, and we'll be happy to help.

• Add, edit, or remove a variation
• Add, edit, or remove variation attributes
• Add, edit, and remove price points