How to Set Up a Product Catalog on TikTok

Turning your TikTok profile into a dynamic, shoppable storefront starts with setting up a product catalog. This is the foundation that unlocks powerful e-commerce tools, moving your brand beyond just entertainment and into direct sales. This guide will walk you through creating and connecting your catalog, optimizing your product listings, and using this new tool to drive sales directly from your content.

What is a TikTok Product Catalog and Why Do You Need It?

A TikTok Product Catalog is essentially a digital file that contains all the essential information about the products you sell: product IDs, titles, descriptions, prices, images, landing page URLs, and inventory levels. By uploading this file to your TikTok for Business account, you create a centralized hub of product data that can interact seamlessly with TikTok's advertising and e-commerce features.

So, why is this so important? Instead of just showing off your products in a video and hoping viewers will navigate to the link in your bio, a catalog unleashes a suite of interactive, shoppable experiences:

• Unlocks Shoppable Ad Formats: A catalog is your ticket to using features like Collection Ads (which create instant storefront experiences), Dynamic Showcase Ads (which retarget users with products they've viewed), and Video Shopping Ads (which let you tag specific products in your in-feed videos).
• Enables TikTok Shop and LIVE Shopping: It’s the backbone of your TikTok Shop, allowing you to create a storefront on your profile. During LIVE streams, you can pin products from your catalog, letting viewers purchase in real time without leaving the stream.
• Centralizes Product Management: Any updates you make to your products - like price changes or inventory adjustments - can be synced automatically. This means your product information is always accurate and consistent across all your TikTok activities.
• Improves the Customer Experience: You're reducing friction. A user sees a product they love in a video, taps a link on the screen, and can immediately browse or buy. The fewer steps between discovery and purchase, the higher your conversion rate will be.

Before You Start: What You'll Need

Getting organized before you begin will make the whole process much smoother. Here’s a quick checklist of what you need to have ready before diving into the TikTok Business Center.

1. A TikTok for Business Account

Your personal TikTok profile won't cut it. You need a free TikTok for Business account to access the Ads Manager and the Business Center, where the Catalog Manager lives. If you haven’t converted your account yet, you can do it within the app’s settings under "Manage Account." This also gives you access to analytics and other helpful business tools.

2. An E-commerce Store

While you can add products manually, the process is far easier if you're already selling through an established e-commerce platform. TikTok has partner integrations with platforms like Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and Square, which automate the entire catalog creation and sync process.

3. Organized and Complete Product Information

Garbage in, garbage out. Your catalog is only as good as the data you put into it. Before you start, check that your product listings are ready for the spotlight. This includes:

• High-quality images: Use clear, well-lit photos. TikTok is a vertical video platform, so images with a 9:16 aspect ratio perform best.
• Accurate titles and descriptions: Make sure they are descriptive and correctly reflect the product.
• Up-to-date pricing and inventory: Incorrect information can lead to canceled orders and frustrated customers.
• Valid product page URLs: Double-check that all links direct customers to the correct product page on your website.

Tidying up your product listings now will save you from troubleshooting headaches later.

How to Set Up Your TikTok Product Catalog: A Step-by-Step Guide

With your prerequisites squared away, it’s time to build your catalog. Log in to your TikTok Business Center and follow these steps.

Step 1: Navigate to the Catalog Manager

Once you are in your TikTok Business Center, look for the "Assets" tab in the left-hand navigation menu. Under Assets, click on "Catalog." If you have an existing Ads Manager account, you can also find it there. This will take you to the Catalog Manager dashboard. Click the blue "Create Catalog" button to get started.

Step 2: Set Your Catalog's Basic Information

Next, you’ll be prompted to set up the basics for your new catalog:

• Catalog Name: Give your catalog a clear, recognizable name, like "[Your Brand Name] - Main Catalog."
• Default Currency: Choose the currency your store operates in. Make sure this matches the pricing on your website to avoid any discrepancies.

Once you’ve filled these in, click "Create."

Step 3: Add Products to Your Catalog

This is the main event. TikTok gives you several options for adding products, from fully automated to completely manual. Let’s break each one down.

Method A: Connect a Partner Platform (The Easiest Way)

If you use a major e-commerce platform like Shopify or BigCommerce, this is by far the best option. The integration sets up an automatic and continuous sync between your store and TikTok.

1. Inside your newly created catalog, click on the "Products" tab and then "Add Products."
2. Select "Data Feed Sync" or a similar option indicating automation. TikTok may directly prompt you to connect a partner platform.
3. Choose your e-commerce provider from the list of partners. You'll be redirected to your store's login page to authorize the connection.
4. Once authorized, the integration will pull all of your product data into TikTok to create your catalog automatically. Any changes you make in your Shopify or BigCommerce store in the future (like adding a new product or updating a price) will automatically sync to your TikTok catalog.

Method B: Upload a Data Feed File

If you aren't using a partner platform or want more granular control, you can create a data feed - a spreadsheet file (usually a CSV, TSV, or XML) formatted specifically for TikTok.

Start by selecting "Data Feed Schedule." This lets you host a file at a URL (like a public Google Sheet link) and have TikTok automatically fetch it on a regular basis (hourly, daily, or weekly). This is the next best thing to a direct partner integration for keeping your catalog current.

Your feed file should include these essential columns:

id, title, description, link, image_link, price, availability, brand

• Manual Upload: Alternatively, you can choose to upload a file manually. This is a decent option for a one-time setup or for stores with products that don’t change often. However, you will have to remember to re-upload the file anytime you update product information or inventory.

Method C: Add Products Manually

If you only have a handful of products (fewer than 20), you can add them one by one. Select the "Add Products Manually" option. You'll be presented with a form where you can fill in all the details for a single product: title, description, images, price, URL, and so on. This is the most time-consuming option and isn't practical for large inventories, but it’s a great way to start if you just want to test the waters with a few best-sellers.

Step 4: Review Your Products and Fix Errors

Once your products are uploaded, your work isn’t quite done. Go to the "Products" tab in your catalog to see everything you’ve added. TikTok will automatically review your feed for common errors and flag any issues, such as:

• Invalid image URLs or low-resolution images.
• Missing required fields like `price` or `id`.
• Incorrectly formatted prices (e.g., "$19.99" instead of "19.99 USD").
• Broken product page links.

The "Diagnostics" tab is your best friend here. It gives you a summary of any errors or warnings and provides details about which specific products are affected. You can then go back to your source file (or e-commerce platform) to fix the issues and re-sync or re-upload the data feed.

Best Practices for a High-Converting TikTok Catalog

Setting up your catalog is just the technical first step. Optimizing it is what drives sales. Here are a few expert tips to make your products stand out.

Optimize Your Product Titles and Descriptions for Discovery

Think like a TikTok user. Use clear, descriptive, and search-friendly language. Instead of a sterile title like "TSHIRT_VNTG_001," use something like "Retro 'Good Vibes' Graphic Tee." Your descriptions should have personality. Speak your brand’s language and highlight the benefits and unique features that resonate with your audience.

Prioritize Vertical, High-Quality Visuals

TikTok is a visual-first platform. Your product catalog should reflect that. Use crisp, high-quality images and, if possible, short product videos. Your primary image should be vertically oriented (9:16 aspect ratio) to fill the screen on a mobile device. Show your products in action with lifestyle shots or user-generated content (UGC) instead of just plain studio photos on a white background.

Categorize Your Products into "Product Sets"

Don't just dump all your products into one massive list. Inside the Catalog Manager, you can create "Product Sets." These are smaller, curated collections of products based on certain criteria. For example, you can create sets for "New Arrivals," "Best Sellers," or "Summer Skincare Essentials." This makes it way easier to run highly targeted ad campaigns. You can promote your "Summer" set to users who have shown interest in summer-themed content.

Maintain Accurate Inventory and Pricing

This is non-negotiable for building customer trust. A customer who clicks on an exciting product only to find it’s out of stock or priced differently on your site will probably not return. If you're not using a partner integration, make sure you are re-syncing your scheduled feed at least daily to keep inventory, pricing, and availability accurate.

Final Thoughts

Setting up a product catalog on TikTok officially transforms your profile from a content channel into a powerful e-commerce engine. By centralizing your product data and connecting it to TikTok’s shoppable features, you close the gap between discovery and conversion, making it incredibly simple for followers to become customers.

Once your catalog is live, the next adventure is creating a steady stream of content to showcase your products in an authentic TikTok way. I've found that pairing a powerful sales tool like a product catalog with a solid content strategy is the key to growth. After you've set up your shoppable links, the big challenge is to create a consistent flow of content that shows off your products. This is where we built our own tool, Postbase, to help. Our visual calendar lets you plan a content strategy around product drops and promotions, while reliable scheduling for TikTok and other channels makes sure your shoppable videos go live without a hitch.