Create Shopify variants in bulk
You enter the axes, colour, size or material, and ListoMax generates every combination. Each variant gets its SKU, price, stock and barcode, then the product goes to your Shopify store with its options, in a single operation.
By Yvan Barbaggio, creator of ListoMax · Updated
How do you create many Shopify variants without entering them one by one?
By entering the axes only once. ListoMax crosses every value, builds the table of combinations, then creates the product in Shopify: one option per attribute, one variant per combination.
You fill in the base listing
Title, description, price, images, collection and SEO tags. This information is shared by every variant.
You add your attributes
Colour, size, shoe size, material… Start from a preset or enter your own values: capacity, format, length.
ListoMax generates the combinations
One row per combination, in an editable table: SKU, price supplement, stock and barcode.
You publish to Shopify
The product is created through Shopify's official Admin API. Each attribute becomes an option and each combination a variant. A progress bar shows every step.
| Axis | Ready-made values |
|---|---|
| Colour | 14: black, white, red, blue, green, yellow, pink, grey, brown, beige, orange, purple, gold, silver |
| Size | 8 + 8: from XS to 4XL, and from 34 to 48 |
| Shoe size | 23: from 35 to 46, half sizes included |
| Material | 10: cotton, polyester, leather, linen, silk, wool, denim, synthetic, velvet, satin |
| Condition | 3: new, used, refurbished |
How many variants and options can a Shopify product have?
Up to 2,048 variants per product, spread over three options at most. Shopify raised the variant limit, long set at 100, on 15 October 2025; the option limit has not changed.
| Axes entered | Calculation | Variants created | Options in Shopify |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 colours and 5 sizes | 5 × 5 | 25 | 2 |
| 3 colours and 8 sizes (XS to 4XL) | 3 × 8 | 24 | 2 |
| 2 materials, 4 colours and 23 shoe sizes | 2 × 4 × 23 | 184 | 3 |
How do you set a SKU, price and stock per Shopify variant?
Directly in the combinations table, before sending. Each row has its own fields, and each variant arrives complete in Shopify: no more opening variants one by one.
| Field | In ListoMax | In Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| SKU | Derived from the product SKU, unique per combination | Variant SKU |
| Price | Supplement added to the base price, positive or negative | Variant price, tax included or not according to the store's “taxes included” setting |
| Stock | Quantity specific to each combination | Quantity at the store's active location |
| Barcode | Entered per combination, can stay empty | Variant barcode |
How do you create variants in the Shopify admin, and where does it get stuck?
The native method works well for one product. It gets long when there are fifty.
The product editor
You add options and their values on the product page, Shopify generates the variants. You still have to set the price, stock, SKU and barcode of each variant, product by product.
The CSV import
One row per variant, the same handle repeated, Option1 to Option3 values without conflict. See our guide to import a CSV or Excel file into Shopify.
The combinations table
Axes entered once, every combination generated, each row filled in a single table. The product, its images and its variants go together.
Variants or one listing per colour: which to choose on Shopify?
Sizes of the same model work well as variants. Colours that people search for by name often gain from having their own listing.
| Variants | One listing per colour (Series) | |
|---|---|---|
| Pages in the store | One page, choice in a menu | One page per colour |
| SEO | One page to rank | Title, description and URL specific to each colour |
| Best for | Sizes, price options | Colours searched by name |
Many stores combine both: one listing per colour, and sizes as variants inside each listing. The Series feature creates one listing per value, with its own SKU (REF-0042-RED, REF-0042-BLUE) and its own URL: under 2 minutes to publish 12 listings, as measured by the publisher.
Everything created in the store is detailed on the page bulk add products to Shopify, and connecting takes five minutes: help, connect Shopify. The equivalents for other stores: PrestaShop combinations in bulk and WooCommerce variations in bulk.
Your questions, answered
How many variants can a Shopify product have?
Up to 2,048 variants, spread over three options at most. Shopify raised this limit, long set at 100, on 15 October 2025.
Can each variant have a different price?
Yes. In ListoMax, each combination has a price supplement, positive or negative, added to the base price: each variant goes to Shopify with its own price.
Does each variant have its own SKU and stock?
Yes. The SKU is derived from the product's and is unique per combination. Stock and barcode are entered row by row; stock is recorded at the store's active location.
Is ListoMax a Shopify App Store app?
No. It is Windows software. It creates products and their variants through Shopify's official Admin API, with a private app you create yourself: nothing is added to your store's theme.
Can the same variants be published to PrestaShop and WooCommerce?
Yes. You tick the destination stores: the same listing goes as variants to Shopify, as combinations to PrestaShop and as variations to WooCommerce.
Try it on your Shopify store
5 real publications free, no credit card required. Then a lifetime licence: €49 for one computer, €149 for up to 5 computers.