Shuttle can create SKUs for you, so you don't have to type one for every product and variant. The SKUs follow a template you set up, built from parts like the product title, option names, vendor or product type. That means they come out clear and easy to read instead of as random strings.
Your SKUs keep the same format on Etsy and Shopify because every generated SKU follows your template. You choose the template, so the format fits the way you work.
Turn on the SKU generator and set your template
The SKU generator needs two things: the setting turned on and a template filled in. Without both, Shuttle does not create SKUs.
In Shuttle, go to Settings > Products > General.
Find the Automatically generate SKUs section and tick Enable SKU generation.
Fill in the Template. You can also add a Prefix and a Suffix.
To check the result, use Preview on a real product. It shows how the SKUs would look on one of your Shopify products.
Save your changes.
Choose which directions get new SKUs
SKU generation is turned on separately for each direction, so you can generate SKUs one way only or both ways.
To generate SKUs when products go from Etsy to Shopify:
Go to Settings > Products > Etsy → Shopify.
In the SKUs section, tick Automatically generate SKUs from Etsy to Shopify.
Save your changes.
To generate SKUs when products go from Shopify to Etsy:
Go to Settings > Products > Shopify → Etsy.
In the SKUs section, tick Automatically generate SKUs from Shopify to Etsy.
Save your changes.
If Enable SKU generation is off in Settings > Products > General, the SKUs sections show a warning to remind you.
What happens to SKUs during transfers and updates
Once SKU generation is on for a direction, Shuttle uses your template to fill in missing SKUs whenever you transfer or update products in that direction.
From Etsy to Shopify, variants on the Etsy listing that have no SKU get one from your template. Shuttle first adds these SKUs to the Etsy listing, then sends the product to Shopify with them.
From Shopify to Etsy, variants on the Shopify product that have no SKU get one from your template. Shuttle first adds these SKUs to the Shopify product, then sends the product to Etsy with them.
In both directions, a variant that already has a SKU keeps it unless you tick Overwrite existing SKUs when you update the product.
If an Etsy listing shares one stock count across several variations, Shuttle leaves its SKUs as they are so your stock stays correct.
Add SKUs to products you already transferred
Products that are already on both stores can get new SKUs through an update:
Open the Products page in Shuttle.
Find the product. Click Update in Shopify to send SKUs from Etsy to Shopify, or Update in Etsy to send them from Shopify to Etsy. If you see a single Update button, click it and then choose the direction.
In the update window, untick the other fields so that only SKU is ticked.
To replace SKUs that already exist, tick Overwrite existing SKUs. This option only appears when SKU generation is on for that direction.
Click Update Shopify product or Update Etsy product.
The SKU and Overwrite existing SKUs options are also there when you transfer or update many products at once.
Add SKUs to new Shopify products automatically
Shuttle can also add SKUs to products as soon as you create them in Shopify.
To turn this on, go to Settings > Products > General and, under New Shopify products, tick Automatically generate SKUs for new Shopify products. This option only shows once Enable SKU generation is on.
Check your SKUs before you rely on them
A few things help your generated SKUs come out the way you want:
Check your template with Preview on a real product before you turn on SKU generation.
Etsy allows up to 32 characters per SKU. Settings > Products > General shows how long your generated SKUs will be, so keep them short.
Existing SKUs are only replaced when you tick Overwrite existing SKUs.