Configurable product

A configurable product looks like a single product with a drop-down list of each variation. Each list item is actually a separate simple product with a unique SKU, which makes it possible to track inventory for each product variation. You could achieve a similar effect by using a simple product with custom options, but without the ability to track inventory for each variation.

The following instructions demonstrate the process of creating a configurable product using a product template, required fields, and basic settings. Each required field is marked with a red asterisk (*). When you finish the basics, you can complete the other product settings as needed.

Configurable product

Part 1: Creating a configurable product

Although a configurable product uses more SKUs and may initially take a little longer to set up, it can save you time in the end. If you plan to grow your business, the configurable product type is a good choice for products with multiple options.

Before you begin, prepare an attribute set that includes an attribute that is set to one of the allowable input types for each product variation. For example, the attribute set might include drop-down attributes for color and size.

The properties of each attribute that is used for a configurable product variation must have the following settings:

Product variation attribute requirements

Property
Setting
Scope
Global
Catalog Input Type for Store Owner
The input type of any attribute that is used for a product variation must be one of the following: Dropdown, Visual Swatch, or Text Swatch.
Values Required
Yes

Step 1: Choose the product type

  1. On the Admin sidebar, go to Catalog > Products.

  2. On the Add Product ( Menu arrow {width="25"} ) menu at the upper-right corner, choose Configurable Product.

    Add configurable product {width="700" modal="regular"}

Step 2: Choose the attribute set

The attribute set determines the selection of fields that are used in the product. The attribute set that is used in the following example has attributes for color and size. The name of the attribute set is indicated at the top of the page and is initially set to Default.

  1. To choose the attribute set for the product, click the field at the top of the page and do one of the following:

    • For Search, enter the name of the attribute set.
    • In the list, choose the attribute set that you want to use.

    The form is updated to reflect the change.

  2. If you want to add another attribute to the attribute set, click Add Attribute and follow the instructions in Adding an Attribute.

    Choose template {width="600" modal="regular"}

Step 3: Complete the required settings

  1. Enter the product Product Name.

  2. Accept the default SKU that is based on the product name or enter another.

  3. Enter the product Price.

  4. Because the product is not yet ready to publish, set Enable Product to No.

  5. click Save and continue.

    When the product is saved, the Store View chooser appears in the upper-left corner.

  6. Choose the Store View where the product is to be available.

    Choose the store view {width="600" modal="regular"}

Step 4: Complete the basic settings

  1. Set Tax Class to one of the following:

    • None
    • Taxable Goods
  2. The Quantity is determined by the product variations, so you can leave it blank.

  3. Leave the Stock Status as set.

    The Stock Status of a configurable product is determined by each associated configuration. Because the product was saved without entering a quantity, the Stock Status is set to Out of Stock.

    note note
    NOTE
    The Stock Status of the configurable product is a semi-manually controlled setting. It is partially controlled by the stock status of its child products. It is a part of a multi-criteria stock status calculation, which is described in the Configure the Stock Status section.
  4. Enter the product Weight.

NOTE
A configurable product must always have a weight. If you select This item has no weight from the drop-down list, it is automatically changed to This item has weight after saving the product.
  1. Accept the default Visibility setting of Catalog, Search.

  2. To feature the product in the list of new products, select the Set Product as New checkbox.

  3. To assign Categories to the product, click the Select… box and do either of the following:

    Choose an existing category:

    • Start typing in the box until you find a match.

    • Select the checkbox of the category that is to be assigned.

    Select one or more categories for the bundle product {width="600" modal="regular"}

    Create a category:

    • Click New Category.

    • Enter the Category Name and choose the Parent Category, which determines its position in the menu structure.

    s- Click Create Category.

  4. Choose the Country of Manufacture.

    There might be additional attributes that are used to describe the product. The selection varies by attribute set, and you can complete them later.

Step 5: Save and continue

Now is a good time to save your work. In the upper-right corner, click Save. In the next series of steps, you’ll set up the configurations for each variation of the product.

Part 2: Adding configurations

The following example shows how to add configurations for three colors and three sizes. In all, nine simple products are created with unique SKUs to cover every possible combination of variations. By default, the product name and SKU for each variation is based on the attribute value and either the parent product name or SKU.

The progress bar at the top of the page shows where you are in the process and guides you through each step.

Step 1: Choose the attributes

  1. Continuing from above, scroll down to the Configurations section and click Create Configurations.

    Configurations {width="600" modal="regular"}

  2. Select the checkbox of each attribute that you want to include as a configuration.

    For this example, color and size are selected.

    Select Attributes {width="600" modal="regular"}

    The list includes all attributes from the attribute set that can be used in a configurable product.

  3. If you want to add an attribute, click Create New Attribute and do the following:

    • Complete the attribute properties.

    • Click Save Attribute.

    • Select the checkbox for the attribute.

  4. In the upper-right corner, click Next.

Step 2: Enter the attribute values

  1. For each attribute, select the checkbox of the values that apply to the product.

    Attribute values {width="600" modal="regular"}

  2. To rearrange the attributes, grab the Reorder Sort order icon ) icon and move the section to a new position.

    The order determines the position of the drop-down lists on the product page.

  3. In the progress bar, click Next.

Step 3: Configure the images, price, and quantity

This step determines the images, pricing, and quantity of each configuration. The available options are the same for each, and you can choose only one. You can apply the same setting to all SKUs, apply a unique setting to each SKU, or skip the settings for now.

Choose the configuration options that apply.

Use one of the following methods to configure the images:

Method 1: Apply a single set of images to all SKUs

  1. Select Apply single set of images to all SKUs.

  2. Browse to each image that you want to include in the product gallery, or drag them to the box.

Use same images for all SKUs

Method 2: Apply unique images for each SKU

Because the image for the parent product is already uploaded, you can use this option to upload an image of each color. You can add a different image that appears in the shopping cart when someone buys the item in a specific color.

  1. Select Apply unique images by attribute to each SKU.

  2. Select the Attribute that the images illustrate, such as color.

  3. For each attribute value, either browse to the images that you want to use for that configuration or drag them to the box.

    If you drag the image to a value box, it also appears in the sections for the other values. If you want to delete an image, click the Trash can ( Trash icon ) icon.

    Unique images per SKU {width="600" modal="regular"}

Use one of the following methods to configure the prices:

NOTE
A configurable product does not have its own price in the catalog. The configurable product price is derived from its In Stock child products.

Method 1: Apply the same price to all SKUs

  1. If the price is the same for all variations, select Apply single price to all SKUs.

  2. Enter the Price.

    Same price per SKU {width="600" modal="regular"}

Method 2: Apply a different price for each SKU

  1. If the price differs for each or for some variations of the product, select Apply unique prices by attribute to each SKU.

  2. Select the Attribute that is the basis of the price difference.

  3. Enter the Price for each attribute value.

    In this example, the XL size costs more.

    Unique price per SKU {width="600" modal="regular"}

Use one of the following methods to configure the Quantity:

Method 1: Apply the same quantity to all SKUs

If the quantity is the same for all SKUs, select Apply single quantity to each SKU and specify the quantity.

Single source merchants - Enter the Quantity.

Multi Source merchants using Inventory Management - Assign sources and add quantities for all generated product variants:

  1. Select the Apply single quantity to each SKU option.

  2. To add a source, click Assign Sources.

  3. Browse or search for a source you want to add. Select the checkbox next to the sources that you want to add for the product.

  4. Enter an on-hand inventory amount per source.

    Single Quantity for All SKUs, assign source {width="600" modal="regular"}

Method 2: Apply different quantity by attribute

Single source merchants - Enter the Quantity.

Multi Source merchants using Inventory Management - Assign sources and add quantities for all generated product variants:

  1. If the quantity is the different for each SKU, select Apply unique quantity by attribute to each SKU.

  2. Enter the Quantity for each.

    Different quantities per attribute {width="600" modal="regular"}

When configuration for images, price, and quantity are complete, click Next in the upper-right corner.

Step 4: Generate the product configurations

Wait a moment for the list of products to appear and do one of the following:

  • If you are satisfied with the configurations, click Generate Products.

  • To make corrections, click Back.

Review summary before generating product variations

The current product variations appear at the bottom of the Configuration section.

Current Configurations

Step 5: Add product images

  1. Scroll down and expand Expansion selector the Images and Videos section.

  2. Click the Camera tile and browse to the main image that you want to use for the configurable product.

For more information, see Images and Video.

Step 6: Complete the product information

Scroll down and complete the information in the following sections as needed:

Step 7: Publish the product

  1. If you are ready to publish the product in the catalog, set Enable Product to Yes and do one of the following:

    • Method 1: Save and preview

      • In the upper-right corner, click Save.

      • To view the product in your store, choose Customer View on the Admin Menu arrow  ) menu.

      The store opens in a new browser tab.

      Customer View {width="600" modal="regular"}

    • Method 2: Save and close

      On the Save ( Menu arrow {width="25"} ) menu, choose Save & Close.

Step 8: Configure the cart thumbnails

If you have a different image for each variation, you can set the configuration to use the correct image for the shopping cart thumbnail.

  1. On the Admin sidebar, go to Stores > Settings > Configuration.

  2. In the left panel, expand Sales and choose Checkout underneath.

  3. Expand Expansion selector the Shopping Cart section.

  4. Set Configurable Product Image to Product Thumbnail Itself.

  5. When complete, click Save Config.

    Shopping cart - configurable product image {width="600" modal="regular"}

Configure the Stock Status

Configurable product stock status is different from the stock status of the simple product, where it is a direct representation of the product availability. For a configurable product, the stock status is a part of a multi-criteria stock status calculation.

Overview

The main principles of Stock Status relationships are following:

  • When you change the Stock Status of the configurable product as Out of Stock and click Save, it is not controlled by the stock statuses of its child products. It is always displayed as Out of Stock in the Admin and on the Storefront.

  • When you set the Stock Status of the configurable product as In Stock and click Save, it is only partially controlled by the stock statuses of its child products, which are reflected in the Admin and on the Storefront.

Detailed description

The Stock Status of the configurable product is partially controlled by the Stock Status of its child products, and according to the following multi-criteria stock status calculations:

With default source/stock only:

  • If the configurable product Stock Status is manually set to Out of Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call, it remains as Out of Stock on both the Admin and Storefront until it is manually changed to In stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call. It cannot be controlled by the stock status of its child products.

  • If the configurable product Stock Status is manually set to In Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call, its stock status is automatically controlled by the stock status of its child products on both the Admin and Storefront.

NOTE
Custom stocks and sources are part of the Inventory Management extension and it is highly recommended that you use this tool exclusively for managing stock and source. The default source and stock functions are part of the CatalogInventory module, which is now deprecated.

With at least one custom source/stock:

  • If the configurable product Stock Status value is manually set to Out of Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call, it remains as Out of Stock on both the Admin and Storefront until it is manually changed to In Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call. It cannot be controlled by the stock status of its child products.

  • If the configurable product Stock Status value is manually set to In Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call, its stock status is automatically controlled by the stock status of its child products on the Storefront only.

  • If the configurable product Stock Status value is manually set to In Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call, it remains as In Stock in the Admin until it is manually changed to Out of Stock by an Admin user, file import, or API call. It cannot be controlled by the stock status of its child products.

Things to remember

  • A configurable product allows the shopper to choose options from drop-down, multiple select, visual swatch, and text swatch input types. Each option is a separate, simple product.

  • Stock Status for a configurable product is a semi-manually controlled setting. It is different from the stock status of the simple product, where it is a direct representation of the product availability. For a configurable product, the stock status is a part of a multi-criteria stock status calculation.

  • Configurable child products can be simple or virtual products without custom options. To make custom child products virtual, you must select Тhis item has no weight for the Weight setting for each of them.

  • All child products are assigned and unassigned from the configurable product globally for all websites, stores, and store views at the same time.

  • A configurable product does not have its own price in the catalog. The configurable product price is derived from its In Stock child products.

  • The attributes that are used for product variations must have a global scope and the customer must be required to choose a value. The product variation attributes must be included in the attribute set that is used as a template for the configurable product.

  • The attribute set that is used as a template for a configurable product must include the attributes that contain the values that are needed for each product variation.

  • The thumbnail image in the shopping cart can be set to display the image from the configurable product record or from the product variation.

  • Swatch attributes can be configured to not display corresponding simple product images when the swatch is selected by setting the Update Product Preview Image option value to No at the attribute edit page in the Admin.

  • The theme controls how the Image Gallery behaves when a user switches between product configurations. The default behavior for the Blank theme is to override the parent configurable product images with the selected product variation. For the Luma theme, the default behavior is to prepend the selected product variation images to the parent configurable product images.

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