An option is a choice such as Size or Colour, and a variant is one exact combination, like Small in Blue. As of October 2026 Shopify allows up to three options and up to 2,048 variants per product. Multiply the number of values in each option to know how many variants you will create.
| Limit | Value | What to do past it |
|---|---|---|
| Options per product | 3 | Split into separate products, or use an app or theme code |
| Variants per product | 2,048 | Split the range, or use an app or theme code |
| Products in one combined listing | 60 | Combined listings need a Plus or enterprise plan |
Updated
Before you type a hundred variants into your admin, plan them. Enter each option and its values below. The planner multiplies them, warns you when you pass a Shopify limit, and writes starter CSV rows you can paste into an import file. It all runs in your browser.
Size: S, M, L. Color: Blue, Black.
6 variants. Within Shopify's limits.
A made-up shirt with two sizes and two colours. Every row shares the handle; the option names are repeated so each row stands on its own.
Check the headers against the sample CSV in your Shopify admin, which is the source of truth for column names.
URL handle,Option1 name,Option1 value,Option2 name,Option2 value,SKU,Price
linen-shirt,Size,S,Color,Blue,LS-S-BLU,40.00
linen-shirt,Size,S,Color,Black,LS-S-BLK,40.00
linen-shirt,Size,M,Color,Blue,LS-M-BLU,40.00
linen-shirt,Size,M,Color,Black,LS-M-BLK,40.00Choose option names a shopper understands at a glance, and keep the order consistent across products. If Size comes first on one shirt and second on another, filters and imports get messy.
Write values the same way everywhere. M and Medium look like two different sizes to a filter, and to the import.
If the combinations approach the limit, or if each colour needs its own images and description, split the range. Separate products also give each colour its own page that can show up in search.
A shoe sold in many colours and sizes is the classic case: each colour as its own product with sizes as variants, joined by a shared colour option in a combined listing.
The option is the question the shopper answers, like Size. A variant is the finished answer to every option at once, which is what has its own price, SKU and stock.
Shopify Help says up to 2,048 variants and up to three options per product as of October 2026. Past that, Shopify points you to third-party apps or theme code changes.
On Plus and enterprise plans, the Combined Listings app joins up to 60 separate products into one listing that shows them as choices, each keeping its own page details.
The first row holds the product and its first variant. Each further variant gets its own row with the same URL handle and its own option values, SKU and price.
Only the ones you actually sell. Delete combinations you never stock, so shoppers do not pick something that is always sold out.
Related: SKU generator, How to start a Shopify store, Shopify pricing, How to edit a Shopify theme.
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