WooCommerce CSV

How to Fill Backorders allowed? for WooCommerce CSV

2026-06-21
Task

The supplier stores its backorder policy in backorder_policy, for example deny, allowed, or preorder. WooCommerce's built-in CSV importer needs Backorders allowed? to contain 0, 1, or notify.

Short answer

Trim the value, convert it to lowercase, map only the exact example codes, and clear anything that is not 0, 1, or notify after the transformations.

How to Do It in Eofferix

  1. Add or open the target Backorders allowed? column and select backorder_policy as its source. backorder_policy and its values are examples; use the actual source column, node, or path.

    Opening the Backorders allowed? column settings in the Eofferix table editor
    Open the output column whose exact CSV header is Backorders allowed?.
  2. Under Transformations, add AnyTrim spaces at edges, followed by AnyLowercase. These rules remove surrounding spaces and convert the current value to lowercase.

  3. Add exact Equals rules: denyReplace with0; allowedReplace with1; preorderReplace withnotify. Do not use substring matching.

    Six rules that normalize a backorder policy for WooCommerce CSV
    Three exact example values become 0, 1, and notify, while the final guard clears unknown input.
  4. Finish with Not a regular expression using ^(?:0|1|notify)$Do not export field. Apply the settings and inspect all five example rows, including not_allowed and unknown.

Important. backorder_policy, deny, allowed, and preorder are only an example supplier dictionary, not standard WooCommerce source codes. The preordernotify mapping is correct only when the business intends to allow the order and show a customer notice. The Do not export field action clears the cell but does not remove the product row.

Expected Result

backorder_policyBackorders allowed?Why
DENY 0Spaces and case are normalized before the exact match.
allowed1The example policy allows backorders without a separate notice.
preordernotifyThe example policy allows the order and notifies the customer.
not_allowedblankIt is not equal to allowed; the false substring match is prevented.
unknownblankAn unknown policy is not silently converted to 0.

Checks Before Importing the CSV

  • Keep all six rules in the documented order and apply them to the current value.
  • Use Equals for all three exact dictionary rules, not Contains substring.
  • The result contains only 0, 1, or notify; both negative rows are blank.
  • Stock management is enabled at the product or variation level where the backorder policy must apply.

Requirements and Limits

  • In the built-in WooCommerce CSV schema, 0 denies backorders, 1 allows them, and notify allows them while enabling a customer notice.
  • Backorder behavior applies when stock management is enabled; the available modes are described in the official product editor documentation.
  • Use a separate dictionary for the REST API: its writable backorders field accepts no, yes, or notify, while backorders_allowed is read-only. See the WooCommerce Products REST API.
  • Do not export field leaves the output cell blank and does not remove the row. Do not treat an unknown value as a denial unless the business explicitly adopts that policy; resolve it or exclude the row separately.

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