About
If you sell the same product on more than one channel, Margins brings it in once per channel, so one product can show up as three or four rows. Merging folds them into a single product with one cost, one unit count, and one margin.
Until you merge, your SKU analysis is split. The same product looks like several small sellers instead of one big one, and you have to maintain a cost per unit on each copy. Merging only changes how Margins sees your products; nothing changes on your sales channels.
This article covers reviewing Margins' recommendations, merging by hand, and undoing a merge.
Before you begin
Decide which channel should be primary. The primary product's cost per unit is the one used for COGS, and the merged product takes the primary's name, SKU, and photo.
Know the date the merge should start from. Margins won't let you pick a date earlier than when your books start or the start of any open year, whichever is later.
Merge before you spend time entering costs. The primary's cost is what counts, so costs on the other copies are wasted work.
1. Review Margins' merge recommendations
Margins scans your products across every connected channel and groups likely duplicates for you. This is the fastest path, and it's where most brands should start.
Recommendations come in three categories, from certain to probable:
Category | What Margins matched on | Auto merge |
Perfect match ① | The same SKU, possibly under different product names | Available |
Flexible match ② | The same SKU with a known prefix or suffix, like FBA or FBM | Available |
Smart match ③ | Similarities in name, SKU, ASIN, or description | Not available, review these yourself |
Go to Products.
Click Tap to review on the You've got product merge recommendations! banner.
Expand a category with the ⌄ chevron to see the pairs inside it.
Check each group. The product marked Primary ① is the one whose cost, name, SKU, and photo will win. Click Make primary ② on the other product if Margins picked the wrong one, or ✕ ③ to dismiss a group that isn't a duplicate.
Click Merge products for that category.
The merged groups drop off the recommendations list and appear as single products in Products.
Recommended: turn on Auto merge for Perfect match. Products with identical SKUs are the same product, and auto merge keeps new ones from piling up as your catalog grows. Leave Smart match manual, those are probable, not certain.
2. Merge products by hand
Use this when the duplicates don't share a SKU and Margins hasn't suggested them.
Go to Products.
Click Actions → Merge products.
In the product list at the bottom of the page, select the products you want to combine. You need at least 2.
Click Make primary on the product whose cost, name, SKU, and photo should win.
In Starting from, enter the date the merge takes effect.
Click Save.
The merged products disappear from Products and the primary shows a merge icon in the Attributes column. Open it and expand Product details to see every product folded into it.
Note: data from before the Starting from date still shows the products separately. The merge applies forward, not backward.
3. Undo or change a merge
Go to Products.
Click Actions → Merge products, then Merge log →.
Find the merge and expand it with the › chevron ①. The products folded into it appear underneath, with the primary marked Primary ②.
Hover over that row and click Edit merge → ① at the far right. The link only appears while you're hovering.
Click ✕ next to any product you want to separate out again, or Make primary on a different product.
Click Save.
The separated product reappears in Products as its own row.
The Merge log also tells you what happened and when: Date merged, Type (Manual or By recommendation), and Merged by. Turn on Group by latest update to collapse repeated edits to the same group.
FAQs
Does merging change anything on Shopify, Amazon, or my other channels?
Does merging change anything on Shopify, Amazon, or my other channels?
No. Merging only affects how Margins groups your products.
What happens to the costs I entered on the non-primary products?
What happens to the costs I entered on the non-primary products?
The primary product's cost per unit is what's used for COGS from the merge date forward.
Can I merge more than two products at once?
Can I merge more than two products at once?
Yes. Add as many as belong together before you save.
Why is a product still showing separately after I merged it?
Why is a product still showing separately after I merged it?
Check the Starting from date on the merge. Anything before that date still shows the products separately, by design.