# How to Add WooCommerce Custom Fields to Your Products: A Beginner’s Guide
Adding custom fields to your WooCommerce products opens up a world of possibilities. Need to specify a product’s weight in kilograms alongside pounds? Want to add a field for material composition? Perhaps you need to collect a custom engraving message? This guide shows you how to easily add custom fields to your WooCommerce products, enhancing both the user experience and your product data management.
Why Use Custom Fields?
Before diving into the “how,” let’s understand the “why.” Custom fields provide flexibility that WooCommerce’s default settings lack. They allow you to:
- Capture additional product information: Go beyond basic details like title and description. For example, a furniture store might add fields for dimensions, assembly required (yes/no), or material type.
- Improve product filtering and searchability: Custom fields can be used to filter products on your shop pages, allowing customers to easily find exactly what they need. Imagine a clothing store using a “Fabric” custom field to filter by cotton, wool, silk, etc.
- Enhance product presentation: Showcase crucial details directly on the product page, enhancing the customer experience and reducing the need for lengthy descriptions. Think of a jewelry store adding a field for gemstone carat weight and clarity.
- Streamline internal processes: Use custom fields to track internal information, such as supplier details or inventory location, without cluttering the customer-facing product page.
- WooCommerce Custom Product Fields: This is a free and easy-to-use plugin.
- Advanced Custom Fields (ACF): A powerful plugin, although slightly more complex, offering extensive customization options.
Methods for Adding Custom Fields
There are several ways to add custom fields to your WooCommerce products. We’ll cover two common approaches: using a plugin and using code (for more advanced users).
Method 1: Using a Plugin (Recommended for Beginners)
Plugins provide a user-friendly interface, eliminating the need for coding. Popular options include:
How it works (general example):
1. Install and activate your chosen plugin.
2. Configure the plugin to create a new custom field. You’ll typically specify the field label (e.g., “Material”), field type (text, select, checkbox, etc.), and where the field should appear (product page, backend, both).
3. Save the changes. Your new custom field will now be available when you edit or add new products.
Method 2: Using Code (For Developers)
This method requires familiarity with PHP and WooCommerce’s code structure. It offers greater control but is more complex. We’ll use the `add_meta_box` function to add a custom field to the product edit page.
Let’s add a field for “Product SKU” to the product edit page.
add_action( 'add_meta_boxes', 'add_custom_product_sku_field' );
function add_custom_product_sku_field() {
add_meta_box(
'custom_product_sku', // Unique ID
'Product SKU', // Title
'render_custom_product_sku_field', // Callback function
'product', // Post type
'normal', // Context
'high' // Priority
);
}
function render_custom_product_sku_field( $post ) {
$sku = get_post_meta( $post->ID, ‘_custom_product_sku’, true );
?>
<input type="text" id="custom_product_sku" name="custom_product_sku" value="” />
<?php
}
add_action( ‘save_post_product’, ‘save_custom_product_sku_field’ );
function save_custom_product_sku_field( $post_id ) {
if ( isset( $_POST[‘custom_product_sku’] ) ) {
update_post_meta( $post_id, ‘_custom_product_sku’, esc_attr( $_POST[‘custom_product_sku’] ) );
}
}
This code adds a text field labeled “Product SKU.” Remember to place this code in your theme’s `functions.php` file or a custom plugin. Always back up your website before making code changes.
Displaying Custom Fields on the Product Page
Once you’ve added your custom fields, you need to display them on the product page. This can be done using WooCommerce’s template functions or by directly accessing the meta data using PHP in your theme’s product page template. For example, to display the “Product SKU” from the above example:
<?php
$sku = get_post_meta( get_the_ID(), '_custom_product_sku', true );
if ( ! empty( $sku ) ) {
echo 'Product SKU: ' . esc_html( $sku ) . '
';
}
?>
This guide provides a foundation for adding custom fields to your WooCommerce products. Remember to choose the method that best suits your technical skills and needs. Using a plugin is generally recommended for beginners, while coding offers more advanced customization options for experienced developers. Remember to always test your changes thoroughly before making them live on your website.
