---
title: "Primary category"
url: "https://support.acendy.com/en/article/new-article-2aaab881-9a83-41ea-adda-7131d8c907a2"
language: "en"
last_updated: "2026-09-21T17:13:05.824Z"
---

# Primary category

The primary category is the category the store uses when only one can be selected — breadcrumbs, feeds, search, and the trend report.

A product can be in as many categories as you want. The primary category tells the store which of them is the actual one — the one to be used when only one can be chosen.

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## Why it's worth setting

Without a primary category, the store guesses. It chooses the first active category the product is in, and 'the first' is not something you control. A product that is in both Offers and Running Shoes can then be reported to Google as an offer rather than a shoe.

These are the places where the choice has an impact:

| Where | What the primary category controls |
| --- | --- |
| Product page | The breadcrumb trail. A customer who lands directly on the product from Google or an ad will see the category path — without a primary category, they won't get one |
| Google Shopping | Product category and product type in the feed. The wrong category here leads to poorer ad targeting |
| Klaviyo | The same category follows the product into emails |
| Recommendations | Which category the product is considered when the store suggests similar items |
| Search | The product carries its category into the search index |
| Orders and statistics | The category that follows the item line into Google Analytics |
| The Trend Report | Whether the product is counted once or in every category it belongs to |

The Trend Report is the clearest: a product without a primary category is counted with full revenue in all its categories. If a jacket is in both Jackets, Women, and New Arrivals, all three get the full sale. The figures per category then become higher than what the store actually sold for.

> **💡 One category per product**  
> A product can only have one primary category. If you set a new one, the old one automatically loses the tag.

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## How to set a primary category for one product

**1.** Go to **Products → Products** and open the product

**2.** Find **Categories** in the product card — the categories the product belongs to are listed

**3.** Click on the **star** in front of the category you want to make the primary category

The star fills in when selected. The change is saved immediately; you don't need to save the product afterward.

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## How to set a primary category for many products simultaneously

Bulk editor does the job for entire product lists. The smart order is to first find the products that are missing a primary category, and then set it for them.

### Find the products that are missing it

**1.** Go to **Products → Bulk editor**

**2.** Add the filter **Has primary category** and select **No**

**3.** Add the filter **Categories** and select the category you want to work with

Now you are left with the products in one category that do not have a primary category. This is the list you want to change.

### Set the category

**1.** Select the products you want to change

**2.** Select the action **Change categories**

**3.** Set **Action** to **Add**

**4.** Select the category under **Primary category**

**5.** Run the action

All selected products will have the same primary category. Therefore, the filtering above is important: do one category at a time to ensure accuracy.

If the category you select is not already a primary category for the product, it will be added automatically. This field is optional — if you leave it empty, the action will only change which categories the product is in, and the primary category will remain as it was.

> **⚠️ "Replace with" removes all other categories**  
> The action **Replace with** removes the product from all categories it is currently in, and places it only in those you have selected. If you only want to set a primary category, use **Add**

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## Tip

-   Choose the category the customer would look for, not the one that sells best. The primary category should describe the product, not market it.

-   Campaign and seasonal categories such as Offers, New Arrivals, and Black Friday are rarely suitable as primary categories. They change content, while the product remains the same.

-   If you have many products without a primary category, take one main category at a time rather than the entire store in one operation. Then you will see the result before proceeding.

-   The filter **Has primary category** does not find products that are not in any category at all. They must first be placed in a category before they appear.