Error: Skip import row, is not valid value "" for field "type"

📘

Error found when using Dataflow Import

Dataflow Is Skipping Row 1 (aka - Column Headers)

Dataflow does not actually require Headers, but it doesn't really matter if you have them there. I actually prefer to have them as it makes it easier for me to read and troubleshoot my CSV files.

This error almost always shows up once, and the most common reason is because of the headers in row 1 of the CSV. If this is the case you can ignore it. If you get the error more than once, see other reasons below.

SKU Does Not Exist

If you are trying to Update You Products via CSV file, this error will tell you which rows have SKUs that do not exist.

The reason this error comes up is because since the SKU does not exist already, the importer will then try to create the product. And since the "_type" column is the first column required for creating new products, if this column does not exist in the CSV, it can not create the product and tell you that this is the reason.

The error will tell you which rows have SKUs that do not exist.

Issue With "_type" Column

If you ARE trying to Import New Products via CSV, the "_type" column is required. Often this error is thrown for the following reasons:

  • The column is missing - Make sure it's there
  • The column is spelled incorrectly. It's _type not "type" or "Type"
  • Values in the column are spelled incorrectly. (simple, configurable etc... non-capitalized) Note, the values are Case Sensitive.
  • Values are not valid. Our importer can NOT import the following types: Bundle and Gift Card.

CSV Created In Excel On Windows But Edited In Mac/Linux

The problem could be that the CSV was modified on Mac or Linux. Sometimes Mac/Linux CSV editors (numbers/open office etc...) will put line break formatting at the end of lines (or something like this). Opening and saving the file in Microsoft Excel will typically fix the problem.

Quote: "I was receiving this error when editing and saving using LibreOffice on my Mac. Problem was solved by editing the file using Google Drive instead, then the error went away."

UTF-8 Encoding Or Not Comma Separated

If the above does not solve the problem, you could have an issue with your file's encoding or delimiters.

First, to identify that this is the issue, please open the CSV in a plain-text editor like notepad++. Then check to see if the first row (values like sku, type, name etc...) are separated with commas, semi-colons, spaces or some other 'delimiter'.

If you do see a tab or semi-colon, you can update the dataflow profile to recognize a different delimiter.

If you have verified the delimiter is correct, then Ensure that the file is UTF-8 encoded. In Excel, when saving the file (save as), in the Save window where you can name the file, click "Tools", then select Web options. In the "Encoding" tab you will be able to specify the file encoding type.