Manage Shopify Product and Variant Images inside Airtable

In Shopify, a product image carries more than the picture itself. Each image has a position that sets its order on the storefront, alt text for search engines and screen readers, and an optional link to one variant.

The Shopify admin handles all of this one product at a time. Uploading new photos and editing alt text image by image adds up quickly for stores with hundreds of products or regular photo refreshes.

AirPower brings product images into Airtable. Pull them in as attachments on the Products table, or as rows of their own in an Images table. Review images, add new files, and edit alt text from the grid.

Bring images into Airtable

Pick one of two layouts, based on how you work with images.

Photos on the Products table
Every photo of a product lands in one attachment cell on its row. Use this to view or download photos.

An Images table
Each image gets its own row, with its file, alt text, and position, linked to its product. Use this to edit alt text or add images one by one.

Photos on the Products table

The Media card on the Products tab holds Photos.

1. On the dashboard, click Edit on your Shopify to Airtable sync
2. Click Products
3. Click Whole product
4. In Media, click Sync to Airtable under Photos
5. Click Save in the save bar
6. In Save changes, keep Products ticked and click Save changes

Photos go into an Images attachment column, which is added when you save if it doesn’t exist.

The Variants tab has a Photo field too, for each variant’s own image.

An Images table

1. On the dashboard, click Edit on your Shopify to Airtable sync
2. Click Add data
3. Click Images
4. Click Create an Images table, or pick one of your tables from Use a table
5. Click Save in the save bar
6. In Save changes, keep the data ticked and click Save changes

Each image becomes a row with its file, alt text, and position. The row links to its product, and to its variant when it has one.

Add images from Airtable

Airtable to Shopify syncs add images in two ways.

Power Images columns
Two columns on your Products or Variants table upload images to the row’s product. Use them to add photos quickly.

The Images table
A new row in the Images table becomes a new image. Use it to add alt text or assign the image to a variant.

Power Images columns

Add one or both columns to your Products or Variants table. The names must match exactly, including the ∞ sign.

∞ Add images from files
An Attachment column. Upload files here.

∞ Add images from URLs
A text column. Enter image URLs separated by commas. Direct image links and public Dropbox file links both work.

The next Airtable to Shopify run uploads the images to the row’s product. Once every image on the row is uploaded, the sync clears the two cells. The row needs a Shopify ID.

The Images table

1. On the dashboard, click Edit on your Airtable to Shopify sync
2. Click Add data, then Images
3. Pick your Images table from Use a table
4. Click Send from Airtable under Image File and Alt Text
5. Click Save in the save bar

To add an image, create a row in the Images table. Upload the file into its attachment column, and link the row to its product row. Link it to a variant row too if the image belongs to one variant.

To change alt text, edit the alt text column. Then click Sync now.

Changing Position in Airtable does not reorder images in Shopify.

Remove images

Images can’t be deleted from Airtable. Removing a row from the Images table leaves the image in Shopify.

To remove an image, delete it in the Shopify admin. The next Shopify to Airtable update brings the Images table in line.

What you’ll see after syncing

After the download, each product’s photos appear in Airtable, as attachments or as Images rows. After an Airtable to Shopify run, new images and alt text show on the product in the Shopify admin.

Related pages

• Bulk edit Shopify products and variants
• Bulk edit Shopify files