Adding SKUs to your products for Shopify Fulfillment Network

Note

This guide is for merchants who started using the Shopify Fulfillment Network (SFN) before January 30, 2024. The Shopify Fulfillment Network app has been rebuilt to offer fulfillment solutions in partnership with Flexport. If you use the new SFN app, then refer to the new SFN guide.

A SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) is a unique alphanumeric code that's used to identify a product or variant of a product, based on details such as its model, size, or color. SKUs can vary in length and can include letters, numbers, or both. SKUs are used to distinguish product variants, track inventory, and ship the right item to customers.

Although SKUs and barcodes might seem identical, they have different functions. SKUs are used by retailers to identify and track inventory or stock. Barcodes are used to generate scannable patterns to facilitate fulfillment. Preparing both SKUs and barcodes for your products enables SFN fulfillment centers to quickly fulfill your orders by automating the picking, packing, and shipping of your orders as soon as they're received.

Verify that each product variant has a unique SKU. You can’t use the same SKU on different variants. If any of your variants have the same SKU, then change one of the variant's details.

Don't change the SKU of a product after you submit it to SFN.

You can also edit SKUs in bulk using a CSV file.