What is a taxonomy node?
A taxonomy node represents a category or classification point within your product hierarchy. Taxonomy nodes define where products sit and which attributes apply to them.
Examples include:
Dog Food
Pet Beds, Bedding & Housing
Equine Supplements
Aquatics Accessories
Taxonomy nodes are the backbone of your catalogue structure. They ensure products are classified correctly and only see attributes that are relevant to their category.
Taxonomy nodes vs categories
Although they may look similar, taxonomy nodes serve a different purpose to front-end categories.
Taxonomy nodes control data structure and attribute assignment
Categories are typically used for navigation, merchandising, or storefronts
A single taxonomy node can support multiple downstream category structures.
Viewing taxonomy nodes
To view taxonomy nodes:
Navigate to Product settings → Taxonomy Nodes
Use search to find a specific taxonomy
Each row shows:
Taxonomy name
Creation date
Click a taxonomy to explore its hierarchy
This view gives you a high-level overview of your product classification model.
Creating a new taxonomy
To create a taxonomy:
Click New taxonomy
Choose:
Single taxonomy to create manually
Bulk taxonomy to upload a hierarchy in one go
Provide the taxonomy name
Save
Once created, you can begin adding and structuring nodes within it.
Assigning attributes to taxonomy nodes
Taxonomy nodes control which attributes apply to which products.
To assign attributes:
Open a taxonomy node
Click Assign attributes
Select one or more attributes
Click Assign
Assigned attributes will now apply to all products classified under that node.
Attribute inheritance
Attributes assigned at a higher level in the taxonomy automatically apply to child nodes unless removed.
For example:
Attributes assigned at Dog Food apply to Dry Dog Food
Child nodes can add more specific attributes on top
This reduces duplication and keeps schemas manageable at scale.
Best practices
Design taxonomy around product meaning, not navigation menus
Keep hierarchy levels consistent
Assign attributes as high up the tree as possible
Use child nodes for specialisation, not duplication
Review taxonomy regularly as new product types are introduced
A well-designed taxonomy ensures clean classification, relevant attributes, and scalable product data management.