The File Format wizard lets you configure how an Excel file should be read directly from the job creation screen, without asking an administrator to write a Custom Input Format. It can prepare an AI configuration for you to review, or you can configure each sheet manually with a live preview of the data.

Before you start

• The wizard supports .xlsx, .xlsm, .xls, and .xlsb files.
• If a file matches an existing Custom Input Format, SDM uses that format by default. Select Configure with import wizard when creating the job to open the wizard instead.
• Depending on your organization's settings, SDM may open the wizard automatically for complex Excel files that do not match an existing format.
• The wizard is not available yet to suppliers who upload files from a Supplier Portal configured in Akeneo PIM. See Upload product files from a Supplier Portal.

Start the wizard

1. Go to a project's Jobs tab and click Create job.
2. Upload an Excel file.
3. Select Configure with import wizard, then create the job.

The wizard has three steps: Select sheets, Configuration, and Finalization. The File preview on the right shows the content of each sheet. Click Display more rows to see more of it, and click a long cell to read it in full.

Leave and resume the configuration

If you click Cancel before importing the file, SDM keeps the job without starting its workflow. The job appears in the Jobs list with the Needs configuration status.

Hover over the job and click Configure to reopen the wizard. The wizard starts again from Select sheets, so review or re-enter any choices you made before leaving.

A file waiting for its Wizard configuration remains available from the Jobs list.

Review the AI suggestion

When the wizard opens, SDM analyzes the file with AI in the background. You can start configuring the file manually while AI file analysis in progress is displayed.

1. When AI file analysis is ready! appears, click Apply suggestions.
2. In Select sheets, review which sheets the AI suggests loading or ignoring. You can change any checkbox before continuing.

The AI suggests loading three sheets and ignoring the Read me sheet.

1. Click Continue and review every loaded sheet in Configuration. The sheet tabs use these statuses:
   • AI — The suggested configuration is technically valid, but you must still review it.
   • ! — The sheet needs review before you continue.
   • ✓ — The sheet was reviewed manually.
2. Check the suggested header rows, skipped rows, transposition, merged cells handling, regrouping, and how the sheet is combined with the main sheet. Change any setting that does not match the file's business meaning.
3. If you change a sheet, click Next sheet. Repeat until every loaded sheet is ready, then click Continue.

The AI suggests joining the Prices sheet to the main sheet by matching SKU with Product SKU.

Configure the file manually

You can complete the wizard without applying the AI suggestion:

1. In Select sheets, choose which sheets to load. Unselected sheets are ignored for the rest of the import.

1. Click Continue. In Configuration, select each loaded sheet and configure it. The first sheet is the main sheet.
   • Header — Click the row that holds the column names. Use Number of header rows if the headers span more than one row. Click a row number below the header to skip that row. Turn on Transpose sheet if products are stored in columns instead of rows.
   • Merged cells handling — Excel reads merged cells as empty, except the first one. Choose Keep it as is, Fill all the empty cells of the table with the value above them, or Apply on specific columns and select the columns to fill. The file preview highlights the values that will be copied from the cell above.
   • Advanced options — Turn on Regroup rows (attribute / value pairs) into columns if the sheet stores one attribute per row, then choose the Group by, Column name from, and Value from columns.

1. For every sheet after the first, choose how to combine it with the main sheet:
   • Join sheets from a matching row — Pick the column that identifies the same row in both sheets (Main sheet = This sheet), such as a SKU. Click + Add a key to match on more columns, then choose the Join type: left, inner, right, or outer.
   • Stack rows to the main sheet — Add the sheet's rows below the main sheet's rows.

1. Click Next sheet once a sheet's configuration looks correct. To apply the same configuration to all the following sheets, click Validate and copy to following sheets instead.
2. When every loaded sheet is ready, click Continue.

Finalize the import

1. In Finalization, review the Result preview. SDM displays a message while it generates the preview of the final file.
2. Choose how to use the configuration:
   • Continue for this file only — Use the configuration for this import and discard it afterward.
   • Save as import format — Save the configuration as a reusable Custom Input Format and give it a name. This option is available only to organization administrators.

1. Click Import or Save & import.

Next steps

• Custom Input Format
• What product file formats and size are accepted?