Product·
2048 variants, one product: how Merges unlocks Shopify's new limit
Shopify lifted the 100-variant cap to 2048. Merges lets you merge products into one native Shopify product – simple, clean, and limitless.
User Manual
Step-by-step guide to merging Shopify products with Merges - from the Shopify admin selection to saving, publishing and managing the merged product.
This manual walks through the full merge flow end-to-end: opening Merges, selecting products, reviewing the merge in the editor, saving, and handling the merged product afterwards.
Getting started
Accessing Merges
- Log in to your Shopify admin.
- Open the Apps section and select Merges from your installed apps.
Preparing for merging
Before you merge, review your catalog and identify products that should share a single listing. Good merge candidates share a core identity but are currently listed separately because they differ on one or two attributes - color, size, material, pattern, flavor.
A clear merge candidate looks like: "plum sneakers sized 6 to 10" and "orange sneakers sized 6 and 10", currently two products, better served as one product with Color and Size options.
Step-by-step merging
Step 1: Select products in Shopify admin
From your Shopify admin, open the Products tab. Select the checkboxes next to every product you want to combine.
Select products to be merged in Shopify admin
Step 2: Initiate the merge
Click the More actions (...) button at the top right of the product list.
Select Merge Products in Shopify admin
Select Merge Products from the dropdown.
Select Merge Products in Shopify admin - detail
Step 3: Review the merged product
You are taken to the Merges editor - a surface that closely mirrors Shopify's product detail editor. Review and adjust every field before saving. Nothing writes to Shopify until you confirm.
Merges interface - merge products and variants
The editor consolidates:
- Images, prices, inventory. Combined images (pixel-identical duplicates removed), prices, SKUs, barcodes, and per-location inventory quantities.
- Shipping, options, variants, category, type. Weight, dimensions, shipping class, option structure, variant list, product category, product type. Collections and tags are merged with duplicates removed.
- AI-generated titles and descriptions. Merges proposes a new title and description covering all source products. You can edit the text directly, regenerate it, or pick one of the original titles.
Merges - AI generated titles and description
- Regenerate. The button at the top left of the title/description block asks the AI for a new proposal.
- Original titles dropdown. Next to the regenerate button, a dropdown lists every source product title so you can revert or reuse a specific original.
For the full list of fields Merges handles, see Data handled by Merges.
Step 4: Save
Click Save. A prompt appears asking how to handle inventory quantities and SKUs - select the option that matches how you manage stock.
Merges interface - save options
Merges then creates the new product, uploads images, and redirects you to the Shopify admin product detail page for the merged product.
Shopify interface - product detail
Confirm the final details - images, price, SKU, variant list.
After the merge
A few things happen automatically, and a few need your attention.
What Merges does automatically
- Archives the original products. The source products are set to
Archivedstatus in your Shopify admin. They remain in your store for historical reference (orders, reporting) but are no longer visible to customers. - Generates 301 redirects. Available on the PRO and UNLIMITED plans. Redirects point from each original product URL to the new merged product URL, preserving SEO value and backlinks.
- Carries over metafields. Metafield definitions configured in Settings -> Metafields and metaobjects in Shopify transfer across. Unstructured legacy metafields do not.
What to check yourself
- Sales channels. Confirm the merged product is published to the right channels (Online Store, POS, Buy Button, any custom apps). Visibility settings are merged from the source products but worth a glance.
- Theme rendering. Open the merged product on your storefront and verify the variant picker, image switching, and add-to-cart flow all work. See Advanced usage and limitations for theme notes on large variant counts.
- Third-party fulfillment. If a dropshipper or fulfillment service was managing stock for the originals, see Managing inventory after product merging.
For a full launch checklist, use Post-merge checklist: what to do after your first merge.
Integrations
Merges includes native integrations for third-party services that need to know about the merge:
- Printful - use Sync original products and Order routing in the Merges Settings panel to keep stock in sync and route orders to the original Printful variants. See Using Merges with third-party fulfillment.
- Judge.me - link merged products to source products using Judge.me Product Groups so reviews stay connected.
Open the Integrations tab in the Merges app to connect additional services.
Unmerging a product
If you want to revert a merge, the original products are still in your archived products list. Change their status back to Active and they return to your catalog. Delete the merged product if you no longer need it.
Merges does not yet offer a one-click unmerge. If you need help reversing a complex merge, email support@merges.io.
Need help
For additional help, contact support@merges.io.