Import / Export

You can save time by managing metafields in bulk with our spreadsheet import and export tool.

Export metafields

First choose a metafield type, e.g. products. Then click the "Export" tab.

Choose the "Start export" button.

Once an export has been started, its progress will be shown in the "Export history" section.

Exports are deleted after 3 days.

Progress is shown for all recent exports and a link to download the results will be displayed once the process is complete.

Import metafields

When viewing a resource type, e.g. products, click the "Import" tab.

You can then choose a file and click the "Start upload" button.

Progress will then be shown in the "Import history" section.

Imports are deleted after 3 days.

Import Format

We recommend preparing for a metafields import by starting with a recent export spreadsheet.

However, you can import with a spreadsheet with the following columns:

Field	Required	Notes
id	Yes	The resource id, e.g. product ID, category ID
namespace	Yes	This is BigCommerce's way of grouping metafields together to avoid the keys clashing with metafields created by other apps and API users.
key	Yes	Metafield name
permission_set	On creation	Allowed values are "read", "write", "read_and_sf_access", "write_and_sf_access" and "app_only". We recommend using "write" or "write_and_sf_access".
value	On creation	Once this field is set it can be changed but cannot be set as an empty value, e.g. "" or null.
description	No	Once this field is set it can be changed but cannot be set as an empty value, e.g. "" or null.
name	No	This field is ignored. It's included in exports to make it easier to read and identify items

Import Errors

If there were any errors when updating a metafield, the status will be update to "Compelted with errors". View the errors by clicking on the red warning triangle icon. The full list of errors can also be viewed by downloading the results spreadsheet. This spreadsheet will include columns that show when an update failed and why it failed.

Common Errors

"You do not have permission to modify the metafield"

The value field of a metafield can only be updated if permission_set is set to "write" or "write_and_sf_access", or the metafield was created by the app.

The namespace, key, description and permission_set fields can only be updated by the app or API user that created the metafield.

Unable to update metafield - Invalid field(s): value

The 'value' field cannot be empty. If you need to unset it, you will need to either delete the metafield, or set it to a known "falsey" value that your code can detect, e.g. "null" or "_empty_",

Single item import/export

Alternatively, if you only want to manage the metafields of a single item, you can create an export from the item view. For example, when editing a product variant, go to the "Import/Export" tab to manage this specific item's metafields in bulk.