# Product Library – import ready-made products in bulk

> Browse the Mart, Pharmacy and Electronics catalogs, preview any product, tick whole departments or brands and check the import before you add it.

Source: https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/product-library/  
Last updated: 2026-10-30  
Product: SmartPOS Hub (https://smartposhub.com)

The **Product Library** is a shared, ready-made product catalog you can import from instead of typing every item. Pick a department, a brand or single products from the Mart, Pharmacy or Electronics catalog, check what will be created, and import thousands of products with names, barcodes, photos and categories in one go.

> **How to turn it on**
> 1. **Plan:** Product Library included in your plan (see Settings › Package Subscription › Modules in your plan)
> 2. **Switch:** Settings › Business Settings › Modules › Product Library (off by default)
> 3. **Permission:** User Management › Roles › Import products from the Product Library

## What is in the library

| Catalog | What you get | Typical shops |
|---|---|---|
| **Mart / Karyana / General store** | Groceries, personal care, snacks, beverages, household, dairy, fresh, baby care and more in a 3-level department tree | Marts, grocery and convenience stores, kiryana shops |
| **Pharmacy** | Medicines and non-medicine products, with the sale structure (tablet, strip, box) where it is known | Pharmacies and medical stores |
| **Electronics** | Mobiles and tablets, computers, ACs, home and kitchen appliances, TVs, audio, wearables and accessories, with variations such as storage and colour | Electronics, mobile, appliance and AC & fridge stores |

Each product carries a name, brand (often with logo), category path, barcode, photo where available, short and full description, and specifications. The counts next to each catalog tab show how many products it holds.

## Before you start

- Add your [business locations](https://docs.smartposhub.com/start/locations/) first. Imported products are made available in the locations you choose.
- Decide if you track stock for these items. **Manage stock for these products** is ticked by default.
- If you charge tax on every item, add the tax rate first in [Settings › Tax Rates](https://docs.smartposhub.com/settings/tax-rates/) so you can pick it during the import.

## Browse a catalog

1. Open **Products › Product Library**.
2. Click a catalog tab at the top: **Mart / Karyana / General store**, **Pharmacy** or **Electronics**.
3. In the left panel, **Departments** shows the department tree with product counts. Click the arrow to open sub-categories, or click a name to show only that department in the grid.
4. Use **Search name, brand or barcode** above the grid to find a product. You can type or scan a barcode.
5. The header shows **Imported** (how many you already imported) and how many more products your plan allows.

![Product Library page with Mart, Pharmacy and Electronics tabs, the department tree on the left and product cards with photos and barcodes](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-catalog.C4s-z2Xm.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=mart`)
*The Mart catalog: department tree on the left, product cards on the right.*

### Filter by brand

Switch the left panel to **Brands** to see every brand of the catalog (or of the department you opened) with its logo and product count. Sort by **Most products** or **A–Z**, or search brands. Click a brand name to filter the grid; a chip such as **Nestle ×** appears above the grid, and you can combine it with a department and a search.

![Brands tab of the Product Library listing Nestle, Peek Freans and other brands with counts, and the grid filtered to Nestle products](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-brands-tab.2hI-gD1L.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=mart`)
*Brands tab: click a brand to filter, tick its box to select all its products.*

## Preview a product before you import

Every product card has a **Preview** button. It opens a side panel (a full screen sheet on phones) with everything the library knows about that item:

- photos (click to enlarge, with a photo per variation where there is one),
- **Status in your store**: Not imported, Already in your store, or the same barcode found in your store,
- **Basics**: name, brand with country and official website, and the category path,
- **Descriptions**, a **Variations** table with barcodes, **Specifications** grouped by topic, and **Units** (for example how many tablets are in a strip).

From the panel you can click **Import this product** to import only this one item, or **Close**. If the product is already in your store you see **Open product** instead.

![Preview panel for Apple iPhone 15 showing the photo, status Not imported, brand Apple with United States and official website, and category Mobiles & Tablets › Smartphones › Apple](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-preview-electronics.BXA1wFeU.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=electronics`)
*Electronics preview: brand, category path and status before anything is imported.*

![Preview panel for PANADOL (Paracetamol) in the Pharmacy catalog with photo, brand Gsk Pharma and short description](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-preview-pharmacy.DDFt3yfR.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=pharmacy`)
*Pharmacy preview. Medicine descriptions are for reference only.*

## Select what to import

You can select at any level, and mix them:

| To select | Do this |
|---|---|
| A whole department or sub-category | Tick its box in **Departments**. Ticking a parent includes everything under it. |
| Every product of a brand | Tick the brand's box in **Brands** (inside the department you opened, if any). |
| The products on the current page | Tick **Select this page**. |
| Single products | Tick the box on each product card. |
| Everything | Tick **Select the whole catalog**. |

To leave one product out of a ticked department, untick that product's card. The bar at the bottom always shows what is selected, for example **1,586 products selected**, with **Clear** and **Import**.

![Beverages department ticked in the Product Library and the bottom bar showing 1,586 products selected with the Import button highlighted](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-select-department.Bgh4-RM2.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=mart`)
*Ticking the Beverages department selects all 1,586 of its products.*

## Check the import, then import

1. Click **Import** in the bottom bar. The **Import products** window opens and checks your selection straight away. Nothing is created yet.
2. Under **Business locations**, keep or remove the locations that should sell these products.
3. Pick a **Tax** or leave **No tax**.
4. Keep **Manage stock for these products** ticked if you count stock for them. In the Mart catalog you can also tick **Fill in a suggested selling price (PKR) where one is known**.
5. Read the check. **Will create** counts new products, categories, brands and units. **Will reuse (already in your store)** shows categories, brands and units you already have, which are matched by name instead of duplicated. **Will skip** lists products that are **Already imported**, whose **Barcode already in your store**, or that are **Over your plan limit**.
6. Scroll **Products in this import** to see each product with a status chip (New, Already in store and so on). Each row has its own **Preview**.
7. If you changed the options, click **Check again**. When the numbers look right, click **Import now**. A progress bar shows the import; you can keep working and come back. When it finishes, click **Open the product list**.

![Import products window with four business locations, No tax, Manage stock ticked, and the check: will create 1,586 products, 8 categories, 167 brands; will reuse 2 categories and 1 unit; will skip 0](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-import-check.BagUCqJY.png) (web app page: `/product-library?catalog=mart`)
*The check shows exactly what will be created, reused and skipped before you click Import now.*

**Caution:** 
Prices start at **0** unless you chose the suggested price. Products with a price of 0 can still be sold, so update prices before you go live. The quickest way is [Update Price](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/prices-and-discounts/) with a spreadsheet.

## What happens after the import

- Each product becomes your own product in **Products › List Products**, with its category path, brand, unit, barcode and photo.
- Categories and brands are created only where they were missing; existing ones with the same name are reused.
- In the Pharmacy catalog, medicines get a base unit such as **Tablet** plus sub-units such as **Strip of 10 (Tablet)** and **Box of 20 (Tablet)**, so you can sell a loose tablet, a strip or a box. Stock is counted in the base unit. See [Categories, brands and units](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/categories-brands-units/).
- Electronics products with several versions (for example storage and colour) become [variable products](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/variable-products/).
- The **Recent imports** table at the bottom of the page lists each import with its date, status and products created.

## What you can download

Products you import from the SmartPOS catalog are yours to sell, scan and print, but the catalog itself cannot be downloaded in bulk. This applies to every business and every plan, demo accounts included.

- **Your own products** (products you created yourself) download in full, as before.
- **Catalog products** download with basic details only: **Product ID, Variation ID, product name, variation (size or pack), unit, selling price, purchase price, stock per location and location.** Brand, category, descriptions, product fields, images and the catalog barcodes are left out of downloaded files, lists you copy or print, and API lists. In lists the barcode shows as **••••1234** (the last four digits).
- **Barcodes you add yourself are yours.** If you change a catalog product's SKU to your own code, or add an extra barcode of your own, that code is included in downloads. Typing the catalog barcode again (with spaces, leading zeros or a different last digit) does not count as your own code.
- **Updating prices still works.** Download the file (**Products › Download Excel** or **Products › Update Price › Export**), change the prices and upload the same file. Rows are matched by **Variation ID** (or SKU), so catalog products without a barcode in the file update correctly. Uploading the **Download Excel** file in **Products › Import Products** updates the prices of the products in it; it does not create copies.
- **Labels:** labels that print a catalog barcode are limited to 50 different products per print and 500 labels per day. Labels with your own barcodes are not limited.
- Need more fields for your business (for example barcodes or images)? Contact support. Support can allow extra fields for your business.
- Demo accounts cannot create API keys or connect AI apps.

## Next steps

1. Set selling prices: [Prices and discounts](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/prices-and-discounts/).
2. Add the stock you have now: [Opening stock](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/opening-stock/), or receive it with a [purchase](https://docs.smartposhub.com/inventory/purchases/).
3. Print shelf labels: [Barcodes and labels](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/barcodes-and-labels/).

## Tips and mistakes to avoid

- Import a department or brand at a time rather than the whole catalog. A smaller list is easier to price and check.
- If a product you sell is missing, add it by hand or scan its barcode in the POS and choose **Add new product with this barcode**.
- The **Fill in a suggested selling price** option is a starting point. Always check prices against your own costs.
- Imports run one at a time per business. If you see "An import is already running", wait for it to finish.

## On a phone

The Product Library works in a phone browser too: the department panel folds behind **Show**, and the selection bar stays at the bottom.

![Product Library on a 390 pixel wide phone screen with the Mart catalog tab, Departments and Brands buttons, search box and the Import bar at the bottom](https://docs.smartposhub.com/_astro/product-library-phone.Dfh8l-bK.png)
*Product Library in a phone browser.*

## Related pages

  - [Import prebuilt setup lists](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/import-prebuilt/) — Categories, brands, units, variations and more in one click.
  - [Add products by hand](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/add-products/) — Single products, prices, stock and photos.
  - [Import products from Excel](https://docs.smartposhub.com/catalog/import-products-excel/) — Bring your own product list from a spreadsheet.
  - [Product Library module](https://docs.smartposhub.com/modules/product-library/) — Plan, switch and permission in detail.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does the Product Library add prices and stock?

No. Products arrive with name, barcode, photo, description, category, brand and unit. Prices start at 0 and stock is empty, so you add your own prices and stock after the import. In the Mart catalog you can optionally fill in a suggested selling price in PKR where one is known.

### Can I import the same product twice by mistake?

No. The import check skips products you already imported and products whose barcode is already in your store, and shows them as Already imported or Barcode already in your store.

### Are imported products still editable?

Yes. After the import each product is your own product. You can rename it, change its category, add prices, sub-units, extra barcodes and stock like any product you typed in by hand.

### What does the dotted barcode under a product mean?

A dotted barcode is an in-store barcode made by the library because no manufacturer barcode is known for that item. It works at the till and on labels, and you can replace it with your own code later.

### Why don't I see Products › Product Library?

Three things must all be true. Your plan must include the Product Library, the Product Library switch must be on in Settings › Business Settings › Modules, and your role needs the permission Import products from the Product Library. It is off by default for every new business.

### Can I choose which locations get the products?

Yes. The Import products window lists your Business locations. All are selected by default; remove any location that should not sell these products.

### How many products can I import?

The page shows how many more products your plan allows, for example You can import 999,999 more products. Products over that limit are skipped and counted as Over your plan limit.

### Is the Product Library the same as Import prebuilt?

No. The Product Library adds real products with barcodes and photos. Import prebuilt adds setup lists such as categories, brands, units, tax rates and roles.