How to Export WooCommerce Products With Images

Migrating a WooCommerce store sounds straightforward until you open your freshly imported product catalog and find every listing staring back at you with a broken image icon. We have been there, more than once, standing in front of a client’s screen explaining why their 400-product store looks like a placeholder mockup. The fix is not complicated, but it does require knowing exactly what WooCommerce’s built-in export tool handles and where it stops. This guide walks you through how to export WooCommerce products with images the right way, whether you are moving to a new host, handing off a build, or just creating a clean backup.

Why Exporting Product Images Alongside Data Matters

Here is something most tutorials skip over: a WooCommerce CSV export does not actually move your image files. It records image URLs, which are addresses pointing back to your original server. That distinction matters enormously.

If your original site goes offline, those URLs break. If you change domains, every image link in the export file becomes a dead reference. And if you are handing a completed build to a client who plans to host elsewhere, they will inherit a catalog full of broken thumbnails before their first sale.

For eCommerce stores, product images are not decoration. Research from BigCommerce’s ecommerce blog consistently shows that product photography is one of the top factors driving purchase decisions. A missing or broken product image can drop conversion rates noticeably on individual listings.

So the goal when you export WooCommerce products with images is twofold: export the structured data (titles, prices, SKUs, descriptions, categories) and ensure the actual image files travel with it. When both pieces move together, the import on the other end works cleanly.

This matters even more when your catalog includes WooCommerce custom product fields like engraving text, color swatches, or size charts tied to specific product photos. Losing image references in a data-rich catalog creates a mess that takes hours to untangle manually.

What the Built-In WooCommerce Export Tool Actually Does

WooCommerce ships with a native product exporter. You find it under WooCommerce > Products > Export. It generates a CSV file with columns for nearly every core product field: name, SKU, price, stock status, categories, tags, attributes, and more.

Useful? Yes. Complete for image migration? No.

What Is and Is Not Included in the Default Export

The default export includes image data in one specific way: it writes the full URL of each product’s featured image and gallery images into dedicated columns in the CSV. So if your store lives at https://mystore.com, the image column might read:

https://mystore.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/red-sneaker.jpg

That URL is just text. The export tool does not download the image file, zip it, or bundle it alongside the CSV. The actual .jpg, .png, or .webp files stay on your server.

What the default export includes:

• Product titles, descriptions, and short descriptions
• Prices, sale prices, and tax settings
• SKUs and stock quantities
• Categories and tags
• Product attributes and variations
• Image URLs (featured image + gallery)
• Virtual and downloadable product flags

What the default export does NOT include:

• The physical image files themselves
• Uploaded downloadable file assets
• Custom meta from third-party plugins (unless explicitly supported)

If you plan to set up WooCommerce from scratch on a new domain, relying on these URLs alone will leave your images broken the moment the old site goes down. That is the critical gap you need to bridge.

How to Export WooCommerce Products With Images Step by Step

There are two approaches depending on how you want to handle the image files: let the destination site re-download them from URLs, or physically move the files. Here is how each path works.

Option A: Export CSV and re-import images from existing URLs

This works only if your source site will stay live during and after the migration. Here is the process:

1. Go to WooCommerce > Products > Export.
2. Select the product columns you need, or leave all checked.
3. Click Generate CSV and download the file.
4. On the new site, go to WooCommerce > Products > Import.
5. Upload the CSV and map the columns.
6. Check the option to Download and link images during import.

WooCommerce’s importer will fetch each image URL and re-upload the files into the new media library. Clean, fast, and no extra plugin required, as long as the source server responds.

Option B: Move image files directly

If the old site is going offline, or if you want a self-contained export package, you need to physically copy the files. Here is what that looks like:

1. Run the standard WooCommerce CSV export as above.
2. Use FTP, SFTP, or your hosting file manager to download the /wp-content/uploads/ directory.
3. On the new site, upload that same directory to the matching path.
4. Edit the CSV: do a find-and-replace to swap the old domain with the new one in the image URL columns.
5. Import the updated CSV into WooCommerce.

Using a Plugin to Include Image Files in Your Export

If manually moving files sounds error-prone, a dedicated plugin simplifies things significantly.

Store Exporter Deluxe and Product Import Export for WooCommerce (by WebToffee) are two well-supported options. Both let you export a ZIP file containing the CSV and the actual image files together, then import them as a package on the new site.

The general plugin workflow:

1. Install the export plugin on your source store.
2. Select the export type (Products) and configure image export settings.
3. Run the export to generate a ZIP containing the CSV and images.
4. On the destination site, install the matching import plugin.
5. Upload the ZIP and run the import.

This method is cleaner for stores with custom fields for WooCommerce or complex variation setups, since dedicated plugins usually handle custom meta mapping better than the native importer.

For stores offering a product configurator for WooCommerce with per-option images, verify that your plugin of choice supports exporting variation-level image assignments, not just the main product image. Many tools miss that detail. Open-source export scripts shared on GitHub can also handle edge cases that off-the-shelf plugins don’t support out of the box.

Importing Your Products and Images to a New Store

Once you have your export package ready, whether that is a plain CSV with live URLs or a ZIP with bundled files, the import process follows a predictable pattern. But a few specific steps will save you from re-doing work.

Before you import:

• Make sure the new WordPress install has WooCommerce active and configured (currency, tax settings, shipping zones).
• If you use product personalization features like monograms or custom engravings, install those plugins before importing so the meta fields exist to receive data.
• Create a staging environment first. Do not import directly to a live production store.

Running the import:

1. Go to WooCommerce > Products > Import.
2. Upload your CSV file.
3. On the column mapping screen, verify that the image column maps correctly to WooCommerce’s image field.
4. Enable Download and link images if using URL-based imports.
5. Run the import and check the summary report for errors.

After the import, check these:

• Open five to ten product pages and verify featured images load.
• Check gallery images on products that use them.
• Confirm that product categories and attributes imported correctly.
• Review any woocommerce personalized product options to make sure custom fields carried over.
• Run a quick search in the media library to confirm images actually uploaded, not just linked.

One detail worth knowing: even when the import says it succeeded, some images can silently fail if the source server rate-limits requests. Check the media library count before and after, and cross-reference against your original product count.

For stores with a large catalog, the Shopify blog’s ecommerce migration guides offer useful benchmarks on what to expect during large-scale product data transfers, even if you are staying on WooCommerce. The error patterns tend to be similar across platforms.

If the import leaves some products with broken images, do not panic. You can run the import again with just the affected rows. Export a filtered version of the original CSV (filter by product ID), fix the image URLs, and re-import with the Update existing products option checked. WooCommerce won’t duplicate them.

For stores with a highly customized front end, revisit your WooCommerce product page layout after the import to make sure custom image display settings still apply. Template overrides and custom CSS sometimes reference image sizes that need to be regenerated using a tool like Regenerate Thumbnails. For stores tracking migration coverage and retail data accuracy, Digital Commerce 360 is a solid source for ecommerce benchmarks and import quality standards.

If your store build is complex and you want a second set of eyes on the process, our team at Zuleika LLC handles WooCommerce migrations and can scope the work before anything goes sideways.

Conclusion

Exporting WooCommerce products with images is a two-part job: get the structured data out in a CSV, and make sure the image files actually travel with it. The built-in exporter handles the first part well. For the second part, you either need the source site to stay live long enough for the importer to fetch images, or you move the files manually, or you use a plugin that bundles everything together.

Pick the method that fits your situation, test on a staging environment first, and verify images after every import run. That process is not complicated, but skipping any step is what turns a clean migration into a half-day repair job.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does WooCommerce’s built-in export tool include actual image files?

No. When you export WooCommerce products with images using the native exporter, it only records image URLs in the CSV — not the physical files. The actual .jpg, .png, or .webp files remain on your original server. If that server goes offline or the domain changes, those URLs become broken references.

What is the best way to export WooCommerce products with images to a new domain?

The most reliable approach is to export the CSV, then manually transfer the /wp-content/uploads/ directory via FTP or SFTP. Update the image URLs in the CSV using find-and-replace, then re-import. Alternatively, plugins like WebToffee’s Product Import Export bundle the CSV and image files into a single ZIP for a cleaner transfer.

Can WooCommerce automatically re-download images during import?

Yes — if the source site stays live, WooCommerce’s importer can fetch and re-upload images automatically. During import, simply enable the ‘Download and link images’ option. The importer pulls each image from its URL into the new media library. This only works while the original server is still accessible and responsive.

How do I export WooCommerce products with images when my catalog includes custom fields or variation-level images?

For catalogs using custom fields for WooCommerce or a product configurator for WooCommerce, dedicated export plugins like Store Exporter Deluxe handle custom meta mapping better than the native tool. Always verify the plugin supports variation-level image assignments, not just the main product image.

What should I check after importing WooCommerce products and images to a new store?

After importing, open 5–10 product pages to verify featured and gallery images load correctly. Confirm categories, attributes, and any WooCommerce personalized product fields carried over. Also check the media library count against your original, as some images can silently fail if the source server rate-limits requests during import.

Why do product images matter so much for WooCommerce store migrations?

Product images are a primary driver of purchase decisions. Research from the BigCommerce ecommerce blog shows that product photography significantly impacts conversion rates. Broken image thumbnails after a migration can damage trust and reduce sales before a store even launches, making proper image export a business-critical step — not just a technical one.