This guide explains what each catalog rule condition does, when to use it for data validation, and which product attributes it supports. If an attribute fails to meet these conditions during and after data entry, it will not pass validation.
To know the attributes each of the conditions support, refer to this article.
Text-based Conditions
Use these rules to enforce naming conventions and content standards for text fields.
These conditions work with fields like product title, SKU, image filenames, etc. Most are used to detect specific words or phrases
| Condition | What it does | Example |
| Contain | Checks if the field includes a specific word or phrase. |
Rule: For legal and operational consistency, all product descriptions must include the standard marketplace shipping policy statement. Condition: Product description must contain “Shipping and returns are managed by the individual seller.” Explanation: When validating, a product description that does not include this exact sentence would fail. The sentence must be present somewhere in the description to pass. |
| Not contain | Checks if the field does not include the given word or phrase. |
Rule: Product descriptions cannot contain placeholder text before going live. Condition: Product description must not contain “TBC”. Explanation: A description with "More details TBC" would fail validation. A complete description would pass. |
| Contain at least one of | Checks if the field contains any value from a list of options. |
Rule: To ensure web performance and compatibility, all product images must be in an approved, web-friendly format. Condition: Image format must contain at least one of “jpg, png, webp”. Explanation: An image uploaded as "product-photo.tiff" would fail validation. An image named "product-photo.jpg" would pass. |
| Not contain exact word or phrase | Checks that the field does not contain an exact, full match of a specific word or phrase. |
Rule: To maintain a formal tone, product titles cannot include marketing slang. Condition: Product title must not contain exact phrase “Must Have”. Explanation: A title "Our Awesome New Shirt" would pass. "The Must Have Shirt" would fail. |
| Start with | Checks if the text in the field begins with the exact characters you provide. |
Rule: All SKUs for our in-house brand must follow the company's naming convention. Condition: SKU must start with “OURBRAND-”. Explanation: A SKU of "OB-12345" would fail. "OURBRAND-12345" would pass. |
| Not start with | Checks if the text in the field does not begin with the exact characters you provide. |
Rule: To prevent system errors, scannable coupons cannot be entered into the system as regular sellable products. Condition: Barcode must not start with “99”. Explanation: GS1 barcode prefixes starting with '99' are often reserved for coupons. When validating, a standard product barcode like "9312345678901" would pass. A coupon barcode like "9912345..." would fail. |
Numeric and Exact Match Conditions
Use these rules to enforce quantitative and specific value constraints. Use them to compare prices, image sizes, tax rates, and other measurable fields.
| Condition | What it does | Example |
| Equal to | Checks if the value in the field is an exact and complete match to the value provided. |
Rule: A specific, discontinued product must be blocked from being set to 'active' in the store. Condition: SKU must be equal to “DISC-WIDGET-001”. Explanation: When validating, if a product has the exact SKU "DISC-WIDGET-001" and its status is 'active', it would fail validation. Any product with a different SKU would pass this specific check.) |
| Not equal to | Checks if the value in the field is different from the value provided in any way. |
Rule: A product's brand cannot be left as the default placeholder Condition: Brand must not equal to “Generic”. Explanation: A product where the Brand field is still "Generic" would fail. It must be changed to an actual brand name to pass. |
| Greater than | Checks if the numeric value in the field is higher than the number you enter. |
Rule: All products must have a valid price Condition: Price must be greater than 0. Explanation: A product with a price of 0 would fail validation. It must have a positive value to pass. |
| Greater than or equal to | Checks if the numeric value is either the same as the number you enter or higher. |
Rule: To ensure profitability, all products must be priced at or above our minimum floor price. Condition: Price must be greater than or equal to 15.50. Explanation: Setting a price of 15.49 would fail. A price of 15.50 or higher would pass. |
| Less than | Checks if the numeric value in the field is lower than the number you enter. |
Rule: The maximum allowable discount percentage for standard promotions is 40%. The maximum allowable price is 500. Condition: Product Price must be less than 500. Explanation: Entering a price of 550 would fail validation. 499.99 or less would pass. |
| Less than or equal to | Checks if the numeric value is either the same as the number you enter or lower. |
Rule: To manage website clutter, products can have a maximum of 100 variants. Condition: Variant count must be less than or equal to 100. Explanation: A product with 6 variants would fail. 5 or fewer variants would pass. |
Special Logic Conditions
These conditions don’t require a value and are used to check completeness, uniqueness, or formatting.
| Condition | What it does | Example |
| Blank | Checks if the field is completely empty and has no value entered at all. |
Rule: To ensure a clean cart and invoice display, non-physical "service" products (like gift wrapping) must not have a main description. Condition: Description must be blank. Explanation: When validating a product of type 'Service', adding any text to the description field would fail validation. The field must be left empty to pass. |
| Present | Checks if the field has any value in it. It is the direct opposite of "Blank". |
Rule: All products must have a barcode before they can be saved to the catalog. Condition: Barcode must be present. Explanation: Trying to save a product with an empty barcode field would fail validation. |
| Not contain HTML | Checks that the field's content is plain text only and does not contain any web formatting code. |
Rule: Product title and description must be plain text to prevent system errors. Condition: Product description must not contain HTML. Explanation: Pasting a SKU as <strong>ABC-123</strong> in product description would fail. It must be ABC-123 to pass. |
| Unique |
Checks the value in this field against all other products/variants in the catalog to ensure it is not duplicated.
|
Rule: Every product variant must have a completely unique SKU to prevent inventory and fulfillment errors. Condition: Variant SKU must be unique. Explanation: If you enter a SKU that already exists for another variant in the marketplacer database, the new product will fail validation. |
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