SKU number for new products: sequential number or ID number

Your SKU is your own product number. It appears on the picking slip, and it’s the number you look up when a customer calls. When you create a product, you can use the SKU Number field to determine how the item is numbered: Shoporama can use the product’s ID number, assign the item the next number in the sequence, or leave the field blank so you can enter the number yourself. This setting is saved for the entire store.

How to select a SKU number

1. Go to Products → All Products, and click “Create Product” in the top-right corner.
2. Select Profile, and enter the product’s Name in the “Create New Product” form.
3. In the “SKU Number” field, choose between “Product ID,” “Sequential Number,” and “No SKU.” The text below the field explains what happens based on your selection.
4. Click “Create Product” at the bottom of the form. Only now will the product be assigned a number, and you’ll be taken to the edit page.

The three options

Product ID

The product is assigned the ID number provided by Shoporama, e.g., 243530. These numbers are shared by all stores on Shoporama, so they are long and follow a sequential pattern. The SKUs for variants follow the same pattern, with the variant’s value appended, e.g., 243530-SMALL. This option is suitable for stores that do not use product numbers in their day-to-day operations. It is the default setting if you have never selected anything else.

Sequential Numbering

The item is assigned the next number after the highest SKU in the store. If your highest SKU is 28041, the new item will be 28042. Variant SKUs follow the same pattern, e.g., 28042-SMALL. This option is suitable for antique shops, thrift stores, and other businesses where each item must have its own short number. It’s also suitable if you’ve migrated from another system and brought your old item numbers over as SKUs. In that case, the sequence simply continues where it left off.

No SKU

The field is left blank, and the variants are not assigned a number either. You enter the SKU for the item yourself afterward. This option is suitable if you use the supplier’s item numbers or your own alphanumeric codes, such as KAF-012. This way, you avoid an automatically generated number that you’d have to correct anyway.

How Shoporama Determines the Next Sequential Number

• Only SKUs consisting of numbers and nothing else are counted. KAF-012 and 28042-SMALL are skipped.
• If you don’t have any SKUs consisting solely of numbers, the sequence starts at 1.
• The numbers are compared as digits, so 10 comes after 9.
• Variant SKUs also count if they consist only of numbers, so a new item won’t get the same number as a variant.
• Items in the shopping cart are not included, but their numbers will not be assigned to a new item as long as the item can be restored. If the sequence reaches one of them, it skips it.
• Leading zeros do not count. If your highest SKU is 00123, the next one will be 124.
• The number isn’t finalized until you click “Create Product,” not when you open the form. If a colleague creates a product in the meantime, your product will receive the next number.

Check the number before creating the product

Shoporama counts up from the highest number in the SKU field, even if that number is a barcode. Therefore, select “Sequential Number” in the field and check the number below it before clicking “Create Product.” Your selection isn’t saved until you click, so if the number isn’t correct, you’ll still have time to choose something else. Two situations result in a different number than you might expect:

Your selection is saved for the entire store

Shoporama saves your selection when you click “Create Product.” This applies to everyone who creates products in the store and to all new products until someone selects a different option. Items that already exist won’t be changed when you switch. If there are multiple users, agree on a single option so that items don’t end up with different types of numbers.

This field replaces the previous “Automatically Assign SKU Number” option. If you had disabled it, the field will show “No SKU.” Otherwise, it will show “Product ID,” which works exactly as before.

Edit the SKU Later

You can always edit the number in the SKU field on the product’s edit page. See Edit Product. If the same SKU is used for another product, the page will display a warning. If you change an SKU to a higher number, the sequential numbering will continue from there.

If you change the profile of a product that doesn’t have an SKU, it will be assigned one at the store’s discretion. If the product already has an SKU, it will retain it. However, the SKUs for product variants may be lost when you change the profile, so be sure to read the article on changing profiles first.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a SKU and a GTIN?

A SKU is your own product number. A GTIN is the product’s barcode—typically a 13-digit EAN—by which the outside world identifies the product. The manufacturer’s own number belongs in the MPN field.

I’ve never selected anything in that field. Will anything change for me?

No. Your new products will be numbered the same way as before until you select something else in that field yourself.

Can I make the sequence start at a specific number?

Yes, if the number is higher than your current SKUs. For example, enter 10000 as the SKU for one item, and the next item will be 10001. You cannot start lower as long as there is an item with a higher number.

Can the number have letters or zeros at the beginning, such as KAF-0124?

No. Sequential numbering always results in a number without leading zeros. If you want letters in your numbers, select “No SKU” and enter the number yourself.

What happens to the SKU when I copy an item?

The copy follows your selection in the SKU Number field, just like a new product: it gets its own ID number, the next sequential number, or no SKU. If you copy the product to another one of your stores, the copy retains the original’s SKU.

Several of us create products. Can two products have the same number?

Only if you click “Create Product” at exactly the same moment. In that case, the edit page will display a warning next to the SKU field, and you can correct it.

I have multiple online stores. Do I need to select a store for each one?

Yes. The selection is saved for each individual store, and each store maintains its own numbering system. If your stores share inventory, the same product must have the same SKU in all stores, so you’ll need to update the number yourself in the other stores.

Need help? Email us at support@shoporama.dk.