Your first sync starts as soon as you connect Shopify. It usually takes a few minutes, and longer for a store with a large order history. You don't have to wait on the page. You can install the add-in or look around the web app while it runs.
What the first sync pulls
The first sync brings in everything Merchant Sheets will keep up to date from then on:
Orders and order lines back to your history start date
Refunds and fulfillments on those orders
Products and variants, including cost per item
Inventory levels and locations
Discount codes and their rules
The statuses you'll see
Data Connectors, the top bar of the web app, and the Data Sources panel in the add-in all show the first sync's progress.
Status | What it means |
Setting up sync | Merchant Sheets is preparing the connection to your store. This happens once, on the first sync. |
Syncing | Your Shopify data is being copied. |
Finishing up | Personal data is being removed and the data is being organized into data types. |
Up to date | The sync finished, and your data is ready to pull into Excel. |
If you're setting up a new workspace
The setup screen shows the first sync as its last step. Select Finish when it completes, or Continue while it syncs to go to the web app straight away. The sync keeps running either way.
Your 30-day free trial starts when this first sync finishes, so setup time doesn't count against it.
Before the sync finishes
Until the first sync finishes, queries and functions return no data for that store, and Data Sources in the add-in shows it as not synced yet. Once it reads Up to date, everything is ready.
If the first sync fails
Data Connectors shows a short reason next to the store, such as Shopify rejected the keys or Missing permissions. Fix what it names, then select Retry sync. Check your sync status explains each message and its fix.
What to do next
When the sync reads Up to date, install the add-in if you haven't yet, then build your first query or install a template.