Clean a supplier product CSV without losing barcode zeros

A supplier CSV can look fine in a spreadsheet while hiding two expensive import problems: the same SKU appears twice, or a barcode such as 001234 has been changed into 1234. Keep the original file as your reference and make a separate reviewed export.

Prepare your input

Start with a comma-delimited UTF-8 CSV with a header row. Keep SKU and barcode columns as text in the upstream export. If a spreadsheet has already removed leading zeros, no validator can infer the original digits; return to the supplier or an earlier file.

Work through the task

Open the file in Product CSV Doctor and map SKU, title and price; map barcode and stock when available. Inspect the issue list. Every row in a duplicate-SKU group stays out of the clean export until you decide which record is correct. Select a row, preview a correction, check old and new values, then apply it. You can undo the last edit. Export the clean CSV and a separate issue report so rejected rows remain visible to the operator.

Example to try

Suppose three supplier rows share SKU MUG-RED while another barcode begins 0007. Review all three SKU rows together rather than letting the first occurrence win. Open the exported CSV as plain text for the barcode spot check: a spreadsheet may reinterpret it on display. If the clean file has fewer rows, the issue report should explain exactly which records were excluded.

Check the result

Before importing the result elsewhere, compare its row count with the source, inspect the issue report and spot-check two SKUs with leading-zero barcodes. The clean export contains mapped product fields; other supplier columns stay in the untouched source.

Know the current limits

The app does not write to a live store or guarantee compatibility with every marketplace. Treat import as a separate, reviewed step.