datawebotPinterest Shopping product catalogs: fields and variants
Understand Pinterest catalog fields, variant identifiers, Product Pins and Rich Pins, and the documented API and policy boundaries for merchant data.
Pinterest Shopping connects merchant catalogs to product discovery
Pinterest Shopping uses merchant catalogs to publish product information for discovery. A Product Pin is a type of Rich Pin; its product data can come from a merchant catalog or from product metadata on the merchant's own site. Keep those publishing paths and the source catalog record distinct. This catalog documentation does not describe arbitrary Pins, boards, profiles, or other user content.
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| Record | What it represents | How the records relate |
|---|---|---|
| Merchant catalog item | A merchant-supplied product row, with an item ID and the required product attributes. | The merchant catalog is the product-data source described by Pinterest's catalog setup guide. |
| Catalog-created Product Pin | A Pinterest product-discovery Pin created from catalog information. | Pinterest describes Product Pins as a type of Rich Pin and says only catalog-created Product Pins can be promoted as shopping ads. |
| Product Rich Pin | A Pin that can sync product metadata from an eligible merchant product page. | Rich Pin metadata and a catalog row are different sources; Pinterest also documents adding Product Pins through markup or catalogs. |
Required catalog fields describe one merchant item and its destination
Pinterest's catalog setup guide names seven required fields for a product item. They describe the merchant's item and its landing page, not a guaranteed live Pinterest display or current offer. item_group_id is conditional: Pinterest requires it when a product has multiple variants. Other attributes such as brand, GTIN, MPN, product type, color, size, or material may be useful when applicable, but they are not substitutes for the required fields.
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| Field | Role in the catalog | Important boundary |
|---|---|---|
| id | Unique identifier for this catalog item. | Keep the item identifier distinct from a shared variant-group identifier. |
| title | Merchant's product name or title. | Use the merchant catalog's item description; this reference does not reproduce listings. |
| description | Merchant-provided product description. | A feed field, not Pin text or a user review. |
| link | Destination product-page URL. | Names the merchant landing page associated with this item. |
| image_link | Image URL associated with the catalog item. | A field definition only; this page does not copy or display product images. |
| price | Merchant-supplied price for the catalog item. | Values can change; this reference gives no current price. |
| availability | Merchant-supplied stock-status field. | Availability can change; this reference gives no current inventory status. |
| item_group_id | Shared identifier used to relate variant items. | Required by Pinterest when the item has multiple variants; it is not a replacement for each variant's own id. |
Variant rows keep their own IDs and ordered option values
Pinterest's variant model preserves a record for each item while using item_group_id to associate variants of one product. Where option fields are supplied, each variant_values position corresponds to the variant_names position. For example, a merchant may define option names such as color and size and provide the corresponding values for each item row; that illustrates the field relationship, not a captured Pinterest record or a universal product schema.
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| Field or relationship | Purpose | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| id | Identifies an individual catalog item. | Each variant retains its own item identifier. |
| item_group_id | Groups items that are variants of the same product. | Shared across the related variants when variants exist. |
| variant_names | Names the available option dimensions. | The order matters because it aligns with the values array. |
| variant_values | Supplies this item's option values. | Read in the same order as variant_names; do not collapse distinct variant rows into one item. |
Feeds and the Catalogs API are Pinterest-side merchant publishing tools
Pinterest documents two ways for merchants to provide catalog data: scheduled feed ingestion and catalog API operations. The help guide says a hosted feed is checked daily and a manually uploaded feed is processed on upload; the API overview describes bulk updates for more frequent catalog changes. These are Pinterest's documented merchant catalog publishing mechanisms; their description does not by itself establish authorization to access catalog content.
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| Pinterest-documented path | What the source says | Setup or scope noted by Pinterest |
|---|---|---|
| Hosted catalog feed | Pinterest checks the hosted feed daily. | The feed is a merchant catalog input; processing cadence is not a promise about display timing. |
| Manual feed upload | A feed can be uploaded and processed manually. | A new upload is the documented update action for this path. |
| Catalogs API | The Shopping API overview describes bulk catalog updates and diagnostics. | Pinterest documents OAuth scopes including catalogs:read and catalogs:write; calls require authorized account credentials. |
| Merchant prerequisites | Pinterest identifies a business account and claimed website among catalog setup requirements. | Availability and eligibility can vary; consult Pinterest's current setup guidance. |
Terms and crawler rules define the evidence boundary
Source review: 7 October 2026 Singapore (6 October UTC). Pinterest's current Terms page identifies an effective date of 30 April 2025; the separate preview says its revised Terms are scheduled to take effect on 12 November 2026 and that the current Terms remain in force until then. Both documents address automated collection without authorization. Pinterest's Developer Guidelines separately govern use of Pinterest Materials in developer products. The robots file is a crawler directive for Pinterest.com paths, not a grant of permission or a rule for merchant websites.
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| Source | Observed statement or date | Scope for this reference |
|---|---|---|
| Current Pinterest Terms of Service | Effective 30 April 2025; section 2(a) addresses unauthorized automated access and collection. | The current page is the operative Terms reference on the review date; this summary is not a legal interpretation. |
| Pinterest Terms preview | The preview lists 12 November 2026 as its future effective date and says current Terms remain until then. | Treat it as a preview on 7 October 2026 Singapore (6 October UTC), not as the current Terms. |
| Pinterest Developer Guidelines | Guidance for products built using Pinterest Materials restricts automated scraping or data extraction except where expressly permitted. | This source-specific page does not provide instructions for collecting Pins, users, profiles, boards, reviews, or engagement data. |
| Pinterest.com robots.txt | Checked 7 October 2026: Pinterest and Pinterestbot appear in a shared crawler group with disallow rules that include /product-catalogs/ and /product-feed/. | Robots directives describe crawler handling of Pinterest.com URLs; they do not prove permission, API/feed availability, or rules for retailer domains. |
Content reviewed 2026-10-06.