Set up product categories (collections)

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Set up product categories (collections)

Categories — also called collections — group related products so buyers can browse them together. They power your storefront menus, collection pages (e.g., /collections/summer-sale), filters, and on-site search.

Create a category

  1. Sign in to your admin.
  2. Go to Products > Categories.
  3. Click Add category in the top right.
  4. Enter:
    • Name — e.g., "Summer Sale" or "Men's T-shirts".
    • Description — shown at the top of the collection page.
    • Image — banner shown on listings.
    • URL handle — the slug (summer-sale).
    • SEO title & SEO description — for Google.
  5. Click Save.

Add products to a category

  • From the category — open the category and click Add products. Pick products from the picker, then drag them into the order you want.
  • From the product — in any product's edit screen, use Select categories to assign one or more.

Products are added to categories manually using either method above.

Nested categories

Categories can have parents and children. Example: Apparel > Men > T-shirts. This lets you organize collections into a tree and build matching navigation menus.

Add the category to your menu

  1. Go to Online Store > Navigation.
  2. Open the menu (e.g., Main menu).
  3. Click Add menu item, link it to your category, and save.

FAQ

Can one product be in multiple categories?

Yes. A "Red Linen Dress" can sit in Summer Sale, Dresses, and New Arrivals simultaneously.

What's the difference between a category and a tag?

Categories drive their own URL and menu entry (a buyer-facing page). Tags are smaller labels used inside the category page for filtering. A category like T-shirts might use tags like cotton, v-neck, oversized.

Can I reorder products inside a category?

Yes — open the category and drag products to reorder how they appear to customers. Storefront shoppers can also sort the collection page by options such as best-selling, newest, price, or alphabetical.

How do I attach custom data to a category?

Use metafields. Define them under Settings > Custom data > Collections, then fill values per category. Themes read them as {{ collection.metafields.<namespace>.<key> }}.

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