When transferring products from Etsy to Shopify, there might be certain variations you prefer not to include. This could be due to your business needs, inventory considerations, or Shopify’s variation limits. Shuttle provides flexible options to exclude variations—by variation type, specific variation names, or Etsy variation visibility settings.
All settings mentioned in this article can be found under the Product Variations section on the Etsy to Shopify settings page.
This article explains how to effectively use these methods to precisely control which Etsy product variations Shuttle transfers or updates on Shopify.
1. Exclude Specific Variation Types
Sometimes you may want to exclude an entire variation type (option) from transferring. Excluding a variation type will exclude all variations under that type across all transferred products.
Example:
Let’s say you sell T-shirts on Etsy that come in two variation types: Color (Blue, Green, Red) and Size (Small, Medium, Large). If you decide that you don’t want to offer different sizes on Shopify, you can exclude the entire “Size” variation type.
To exclude, simply enter the exact variation type name as it appears on Etsy: Size
If you want to exclude multiple variation types at once, separate each type name with a pipe character (|): Pattern|Size
Shuttle will then transfer products excluding these specified variation types.
2. Exclude Variations by Name (with Wildcard Support)
In other scenarios, you might prefer excluding only specific variations, not entire variation types. Shuttle allows you to list individual variation names, ensuring only the desired variations are transferred.
Example:
You have T-shirts listed with these variations:
Color: Blue, Green, Red
Size: Small, Medium, Large, Extra Large
Suppose you’d like to exclude only specific variations—such as the "Red" T-shirt, and also exclude the larger sizes ("Large" and "Extra Large") due to inventory or Shopify’s limits.
To explicitly exclude the “Red” variation, simply enter: Red.
To exclude multiple variations easily using wildcards, Shuttle supports an asterisk (*) at the end of the variation name. For example, to exclude both "Large" and "Extra Large", enter: Large*
Combining both cases above, your final exclusion list would be: Red, Large* (shown above)
Shuttle will transfer all variations except Red, Large, and Extra Large.
3. Export Only Visible Variations
Etsy provides sellers the option to hide specific variations from buyers. By default, Shuttle exports all variations (both visible and hidden). However, you can configure Shuttle to transfer only the variations visible to customers on Etsy.
Enabling this setting will automatically exclude any hidden variations from the transfer or update process.
Example:
Consider an Etsy product (T-shirt) that includes the following variations:
Visible Variations: Blue, Green, Red
Hidden Variations: Limited Edition Yellow
If you enable the setting “Only Export Visible Variations,” Shuttle will transfer only Blue, Green, and Red T-shirts to Shopify, while excluding the hidden “Limited Edition Yellow.”
When Should You Use These Settings?
Business Preferences: When certain product variations are not profitable, popular, or suitable for your Shopify store.
Shopify’s Variation Limits: Shopify might apply different limits on variations. If Etsy products exceed this limit, selective exclusion helps you smoothly transfer products without errors or manual adjustments.
Inventory Management: When specific variations are temporarily out of stock or discontinued, excluding them can streamline your inventory.
Important Notes:
Be sure the variation type or variation name matches exactly as it appears in Etsy, as Shuttle relies on precise text matching.
Wildcards (*) can only be added to the end of variation names, not at the beginning or middle.
You’re now all set to effectively manage and optimize product variations when transferring from Etsy to Shopify using Shuttle’s powerful variation exclusion features.
For further questions or assistance, our support team is always here to help!