Getting metafield column names and value formats right is one of the trickiest parts of a bulk import. The metafield import template gives you a head start: Altera builds an Excel file with every metafield definition on your store already laid out, using the correct column headers and a working example value for each type, so you can start editing instead of guessing.
Create a template
Open Altera and go to Tools > Metafield import template.
Click Create template.
The file is built in the background and downloads automatically when it's ready. If the download doesn't start on its own, use the link in the banner, or the download button in the Previous templates list.
Your most recent templates stay on the page under Previous templates, so you can download an earlier one again without rebuilding it.
What's in the file
The template contains one tab per resource type, and only includes tabs for resources that actually have metafield definitions:
Products (including variant metafields)
Smart Collections and Manual Collections
Customers
Orders and Draft Orders
Pages and Blog posts
Companies
Locations
Markets
Each metafield column uses the exact Altera/Matrixify metafield format, so you never have to look up the namespace, key, or type by hand. For example:
Metafield: custom.material [single_line_text_field]Variant Metafield: specs.weight [weight]
This is the same Matrixify metafield format Altera supports throughout the app, so if you're coming from Matrixify the column headers will look familiar and your existing files keep working.
Every column is pre-filled with a working example in the format the importer accepts, for instance hex colors for color fields, ISO dates for date fields, {"value": 21.5, "unit": "celsius"} for measurements, product handles for references, and JSON arrays for list types. The columns for your store's SEO and Google Shopping fields are included too. See the metafields reference for the full list of types and their formats.
Edit and import
The template is a normal Altera import file. To use it:
Fill in the identifier column for each row (for example
HandleorIDon the Products tab) so Altera knows which records to update.Edit the metafield columns you care about, and delete the columns and tabs you don't need.
Save the file and import it the same way as any other Altera spreadsheet.
Because the headers and example formats already match what the importer expects, you can usually edit the values and import the file directly, without reformatting.
Note: A template is generated for you automatically the first time you install Altera, so there may already be one waiting under Previous templates when you first open the page.