Transferring product data deserves careful consideration during Magento to Shopify product migration. Some online stores have thousands of items in their catalog, and migration for such stores requires a responsible and meticulous approach to ensure no data is lost during the transition. Often, products in a Magento store can have different custom attributes, thus the quality of the migration depends on the correct mapping of these attributes to Shopify meta fields.
There are several ways to migrate products from Magento 2 to Shopify. In general, these methods can be divided into programmatic (using your own scripts), and automatic (using third-party solutions). So, let’s get both in detail.
Pros and Cons of Programmatic Magento to Shopify Product Migration
Advantages
Control: This migration process must be manually started, therefore, it is monitored from start to finish. The developer also always has the option of additional logging of the migration process.
Detailing: The developer controls the migration behavior from start to finish since the migration process involves writing your own scripts. This approach allows the transfer of complex custom attributes for products, which an automated system may struggle to migrate correctly.
Disadvantages
Issues: The more customizations involved, the higher the risk of migration issues. Therefore, always make backups on both platforms before and after Magento to Shopify product migration.
Manual Work: It is essential to write data migration scripts, which requires the experience of working with products on both platforms. Additionally, the sheer volume of products will certainly necessitate the creation of numerous code automations.
Pros and Cons of Automated Magento to Shopify Product Migration
Advantages
Ease of use: Typically, third-party solutions facilitate product migrations using only exported product tables from a Magento 2 store. Exporting products to Magento 2 is not a complicated task and usually does not require deep technical knowledge, so this approach is simpler for merchants.
Disadvantages
Limited Customization and Flexibility: Most migration tools are designed to handle standard Magento data structures. If your Magento 2 store has customized product attributes, complex product types (such as bundled or configurable items with specific setups), or custom integrations, these tools might struggle to manage them. Also, they often have limited customization options.
How to Migrate Products From Magento 2 to Shopify Programmatically
1. Backup your Magento 2 store
Since the process of software migration involves working with code, it is crucial to make a backup of the Magento 2 store data.
Within the Magento 2 backend, you must activate the option that allows creating backups of your store data. To enable this, navigate to Stores -> Configurations -> Advanced -> System -> Backup Settings -> Enable Backup.
Navigate System -> Tools. A “Backup” button will appear, allowing you to create a backup of your store.
2. Export product data
To export product data, you can use the default product export functionality.
Step-by-step guide:
- Navigate to System -> Data Transfer -> Export.
- On the export page, in the Entity Type drop-down list, select Products.
- Depending on your needs, you can set filters for exporting in the bottom menu.
- Click Continue, and the products will be exported.
3. Modify product data
Having a table with exported products, you can start modifying the data to the Shopify format. To do this, you need to write your own script in any programming language that will convert Magento 2 product data to Shopify data. However, the structure of the script will vary depending on the import method you choose for the Shopify platform.
4. Import product data
Shopify provides two ways to import products.
Using the Shopify API
The import script using the Shopify API creates products in Shopify on the fly. The Shopify platform provides a number of SDKs in different programming languages to help you access the API and manage product creation efficiently.
Using the Bulk Import Feature
For this method, you will need to prepare a CSV file in a certain format containing the product data you want to import. Detailed guidelines for the required file format can be found here.
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How to Migrate Products From Magento 2 to Shopify Automatically
Automatic methods involve the use of third-party solutions. Shopify has a number of applications that can perform migration of various data types, including product migration.
However, it’s crucial to understand that these automatic tools are typically built to migrate standard Magento product data. This usually includes core attributes like product names, descriptions, prices, SKUs, and images. The primary limitation lies in handling custom data.
Even when migrating standard data, it’s essential to recognize that these applications are not always perfect. You should anticipate that some errors occur during the migration process. Frequently, they are related to Magento 2 and Shopify data format differences (for example, product description formatting) or the way the apps interpret the data set. So, manual review and correction are required steps during the automatic Magento to Shopify product migration.
Conclusion
Migrating products from Magento 2 to Shopify is a complex process that requires careful consideration and planning. A well-executed store transfer ensures that data loss and other negative outcomes are avoided.
Migration can be performed in two ways – programmatically and automatically using third-party solutions. Both methods have their advantages and disadvantages, but the choice will depend on the business capabilities and needs.
Need a seamless Magento 2 to Shopify migration or help resolve challenges? Our Shopify development experts are here to ensure a smooth transition.
