Discount Codes Import From File

📥 Import discount codes from a CSV file with full per-row configuration.

The Import from File feature lets you bulk-import discount codes from a CSV file. Each row in the file becomes one discount code, and you can configure value, dates, usage limits, minimum requirements, and combinations independently for each row. Optionally, the app can also email each code to the customer specified in the row.

When to use this vs other discount operations:

• Use this when you have a list of codes (or per-row settings) coming from another system.

• Use Bulk Create to generate a batch of codes that share the same rules.

• Use Bulk Send to generate codes and email a unique one to each recipient with shared rules.

💡 Common Use Cases

• Import from another system — load codes generated outside Shopify.

• Per-customer welcome codes — each row holds a unique customer email and a one-time code.

• Mixed campaigns in one upload — different rules per row (different discount values, dates, limits).

• Pre-staging seasonal campaigns — import codes with future starts_at so they activate automatically.

• Bulk-order incentives — different minimum_purchase_amount tiers per row.

🪜 Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Download a template. A simple template with the most common columns and an advanced template with every supported column are available below.

296B

discount_codes_simple_template.csv

Open

1KB

discount_codes_advanced_template.csv

Open

1. Fill in your data. Only title, discount_type, and discount_value are required. Remove columns you don't use.

2. Upload the file. The form accepts .csv, .tsv, and .txt files up to 10 MB. After upload, a summary shows the detected separator, row count, and column names. Validation errors (if any) are listed.

3. Resolve ambiguous dates. If your starts_at or ends_at columns contain dates like 01/05/2026, you'll be asked whether the first number is the day or the month.

4. Configure customer delivery (if applicable). When the file contains an email or customer_id column, a Send discount codes to customers checkbox appears. Enable it and choose a sending method to email each row's code to that row's customer.

5. Choose internal delivery options. Allow data download and / or send yourself a summary email.

6. Click Import now or Schedule.

📋 CSV Columns

Required

Column	Notes
title	Internal title shown in Shopify Admin → Discounts. Helps you identify the discount.
discount_type	fixed or percentage (lowercase).
discount_value	Numeric. For fixed it's the amount in your store currency; for percentage it's the percent (e.g. 20 for 20%). Decimal commas are auto-converted to dots.

Code

Column	Notes
code	The discount code. 3–20 characters, letters/numbers/hyphens/underscores only. If empty or omitted, a code is auto-generated.
prefix	Optional prefix (max 4 characters) used only when code is empty.

Date & Time

Column	Notes
starts_at	Date when the discount becomes active. See formats below.
ends_at	Date when the discount expires. Leave blank for no end date.

Supported date formats:

• YYYY-MM-DD (recommended): 2026-12-25

• DD/MM/YYYY or DD-MM-YYYY: 25/12/2026 / 25-12-2026

• MM/DD/YYYY or MM-DD-YYYY: 12/25/2026 / 12-25-2026

If the file contains ambiguous dates (e.g. 01/05/2026), the form asks you whether the first number represents day or month, and applies that interpretation to all rows.

Usage limits

Column	Notes
usage_limit	Total number of times this code can be used. Leave blank for unlimited.
once_per_customer	true / false. Limits each customer to one redemption.
once_per_order	true / false. For fixed discounts: applies once per order vs. per item.

Minimum requirements

Column	Notes
minimum_purchase_amount	Minimum order amount in your store currency.
minimum_quantity	Minimum number of items in the order.

Only one minimum requirement applies per discount code. If both columns are populated for the same row, behavior follows Shopify's rules — pick one per row to be safe.

Purchase type

Column	Notes
purchase_type	one-time (default), subscription, or both.

Combinations

true / false flags controlling whether the discount can be combined with other discount types:

• combines_with_product_discounts

• combines_with_order_discounts

• combines_with_shipping_discounts

Customer notification

Column	Notes
email	Customer email. Used to send the row's code to that customer if delivery is enabled.
customer_id	Numeric Shopify customer ID. Alternative to email.

Adding email or customer_id to your file enables the Send discount codes to customers option in the form. Without one of these columns, codes are still imported but no recipient emails are sent.

📨 Customer Notification (Optional)

If your file has an email or customer_id column, you can email each row's code to its customer. Enable Send discount codes to customers, then pick a sending method:

• App Email — uses Gift Card Factory's email infrastructure with a customizable template (built from the Discount codes import from file or Custom template type). Preview before sending.

• Shopify Flow — fires a Flow trigger; you configure the action that sends the email.

• Klaviyo — fires a Klaviyo metric; you configure a flow that responds to the metric.

Shopify Email is not available for discount codes — Shopify has no native discount-code email template. See Sending Customer Notifications for setup details.

📤 Internal Delivery Options

Independent of customer notifications, you can also receive the import results yourself:

• Allow discount codes data download: Creates a download link in the Bulk Operations section. The link expires after 3 days.

• Send internal email with all generated discount codes: Sends the full list of codes to an email address you specify (multiple addresses allowed, comma-separated).

▶️ Running the Operation

• Import now: Runs the operation immediately.

• Schedule: Runs the operation at a future date and time. The discount codes still respect each row's own starts_at / ends_at for when they are usable.

The submit button stays disabled until a file is uploaded.

🧪 Examples

Simple seasonal discounts

title,discount_type,discount_value,starts_at,ends_at
Summer Sale 2026,percentage,20,2026-06-01,2026-08-31
Fall Discount,fixed,10,2026-09-01,2026-11-30
Winter Special,percentage,25,2026-12-01,2027-02-28

Customer-specific welcome codes (one-time per customer)

title,discount_type,discount_value,email,usage_limit,once_per_customer
Welcome Discount,percentage,15,[email protected],1,true
Welcome Discount,percentage,15,[email protected],1,true

Tiered bulk-order incentives

title,discount_type,discount_value,minimum_purchase_amount,starts_at,ends_at
Bulk 10% off,percentage,10,100,2026-01-01,2026-12-31
Bulk 15% off,percentage,15,200,2026-01-01,2026-12-31
Bulk 20% off,percentage,20,300,2026-01-01,2026-12-31

Auto-generated codes with a brand prefix

title,discount_type,discount_value,prefix
Flash Sale,percentage,20,FLSH

Generated codes will start with FLSH followed by random characters.

🚫 Limitations

• Product / collection targeting: Imported codes apply to all products and collections. For product- or collection-specific discounts, use Bulk Create.

• Customer eligibility: Imported codes are available to all customers. Per-segment or per-customer eligibility is not supported via import.

• Code format: Codes must be 3–20 characters, letters / numbers / hyphens / underscores only.

FAQ

Why was my row rejected with "code length must be between 3 and 20 characters"? Codes you supply yourself must be 3–20 characters long, using letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores only. Auto-generated codes (when code is empty) always conform.

Why doesn't discount_value=$10 work? The value must be numeric — no currency symbols or %. Use 10, not $10 or 10%.

My file has dates like 05/06/2026 and the import got the months and days swapped. The form asks for a "Date format" only when it detects ambiguous dates. If you imported with the wrong choice, fix the dates (or change the column to YYYY-MM-DD) and re-import. There's no way to retroactively flip the interpretation on already-imported codes.

Recipients didn't get their emails. Confirm Send discount codes to customers is enabled, your file actually contains the email or customer_id column with valid values, and the chosen sender is configured (App Email enabled / Flow configured / Klaviyo flow listening on the metric).

Can I update or edit the imported codes later? Imported codes can't be edited from the app. Use Shopify Admin → Discounts to disable an individual code, then re-import or use Bulk Create for the corrected version.