How to fill an Amazon inventory file template from your own spreadsheet

Amazon sellers can add products in bulk by filling a spreadsheet template from Seller Central and uploading it. Templates differ by category and change over time, so the headers and rules always come from the template you download. This guide covers the workflow, based on Amazon's “Using your Inventory File Template” document, which we could read as a public PDF. Amazon's Seller Central help pages need a signed-in browser, so check them for current details.

The workflow

1. Download the template for your category from your Seller Central account (Add Products via Upload). Templates can change, so download a fresh one rather than reusing an old file.
2. Read any instructions or definitions that come with the template to see which columns are required and what values are allowed.
3. Fill the Template tab. Keep its header rows exactly as downloaded.
4. Save either the whole workbook as Excel, or the Template tab only as Text (tab-delimited) (*.txt), as the guide describes.
5. Upload under Add Products via Upload in Seller Central.
6. Use “Check Your File” first. Amazon's guide says it validates the file without adding products. It also recommends testing with 15 or fewer products first.
7. Read the error report, fix the file, and repeat.

Copying data from your own sheet

• Match columns by header name rather than position. Your sheet and the template will not be in the same order.
• Keep identifiers as text so leading zeros survive (UPC and EAN values often begin with 0).
• Product identifiers must be valid and licensed to you. See our guides on GS1 licensing and the check digit.
• Trim stray spaces and keep text within each column's length limits.
• Do the copy on a duplicate of the template so you can start over.

Listloom automates the column matching: load the header row of your downloaded template, map your own columns onto it, and export tab-delimited text or CSV in your browser. It includes no Amazon templates and no connection to Amazon, and does not check your data against Amazon's rules, so always run “Check Your File” yourself. You remain responsible for your listings and for Amazon's policies.

Sources

1. Amazon, "Using your Inventory File Template" (PDF): https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91kgH6T9nUL.pdf (read 2026-10-27)

Related tool: Listloom. Estimates and guidance only; check the source documents before relying on a figure.

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