Shopify Product Type vs Collection: Ultimate Guide

Shopify product types and collections are both essential for organizing your store, but they serve different purposes. Think of “product types” as labels that categorize your products based on their characteristics, like “T-shirts” or “shoes.”.

“Collections,”  on the other hand, are like curated groups of products. They allow you to gather items from different categories based on themes, like “new arrivals” or “best sellers.”.

Shopify Product Types: A Comprehensive Guide to Organizing Your Store

Product types are a powerful tool in Shopify that allows you to categorize and manage your products effectively. It helps organize similar products together. For example, if you sell clothing, you might have product types like “T-shirts,” “Jeans,” and “Dresses.” Each product can have only one product type, and you can either use predefined Shopify product types or create custom ones based on your needs.

By using Shopify product types, you can:

• Organize your inventory: Group similar products together, making it easier to find and manage them.
• Create specific collections: Filter products based on type, allowing you to showcase related items to customers.
• Enhance search functionality: Help customers find what they’re looking for by providing more specific search options.
• Automate tasks: Use product types to trigger specific actions, like applying discounts or shipping rules.

What is Product Type in Shopify?

Creating Product Types

1. Navigate to Products: From your Shopify admin, click on “Products” in the left sidebar.
2. Create a New Product: Click on “Add product.”
3. Define the Product Type: In the “Product type” field, enter the desired type. For example, “T-shirt,” “Coffee Mug,” or “Laptop.”
4. Save the Product: Click on “Save” to create the product with the assigned type.

Managing Product Types

1. View Existing Types: Go to “Products” > “All products.” In the “Product type” filter, you can see all the existing types.
2. Edit or Delete Types: Click on the “Product type” filter to manage existing types. You can edit the name or delete types as needed.

Utilizing Product Types

• Create Collections: Use the “Product type” filter in the “Collections” section to group products based on their type.
• Apply Discounts: Use product types to apply discounts to specific categories of products.
• Customize Shipping Rules: Set different shipping rates based on product types.
• Use in Themes: Access product types in your theme code to display products in specific ways.

Example: A Clothing Store

Imagine you run a clothing store selling T-shirts, Sweatshirts, and Jeans. You can create these product types in Shopify and then:

• Create collections: “Men’s T-shirts,” “Women’s Sweatshirts,” “Kids’ Jeans.”
• Apply discounts: Offer a 10% discount on all “T-shirts” during a sale.
• Set shipping rules: Charge a flat rate for “T-shirts” and “Sweatshirts,” but offer free shipping on orders over $50 for “Jeans.”

Conclusion

By effectively utilizing product types, you can streamline your Shopify store’s organization, enhance customer experience, and optimize your business operations. Remember to regularly review and update your product types to ensure they accurately reflect your inventory and meet your evolving business needs.

{% for product in collection.products %}
  {% if product.type == 'T-shirt' %}
    <div class="product">
      <img src="{{ product.featured_image | img_url: '100x100' }}" alt="{{ product.title }}">
      <h3>{{ product.title }}</h3>
      <p>{{ product.price | money }}</p>
    </div>
  {% endif %}
{% endfor %}

{% if product.type == 'Coffee Mug' %}
  <p>This mug is perfect for your morning coffee!</p>
{% elsif product.type == 'T-shirt' %}
  <p>This T-shirt is made from 100% organic cotton.</p>
{% endif %}

{% assign tshirts = collection.products | where: 'type', 'T-shirt' %}
{% if tshirts.size > 0 %}
  <h2>T-shirts</h2>
  {% for product in tshirts %}
    <div class="product">
      <img src="{{ product.featured_image | img_url: '100x100' }}" alt="{{ product.title }}">
      <h3>{{ product.title }}</h3>
      <p>{{ product.price | money }}</p>
    </div>
  {% endfor %}
{% endif %}

<p>Product Type: {{ product.type }}</p>