How to Load Salesforce Products, Price Books & Price Book Entries with Data Loader
Load Salesforce Products with Data Loader and learn how to bulk insert Products, Price Books, and Price Book Entries into Salesforce—even when multi-currency is enabled.
In this step-by-step tutorial, you’ll learn how these Salesforce objects work together and how to prepare and load the required data using Data Loader. We’ll walk through the process in the same order demonstrated in the tutorial, from preparing your spreadsheet data to loading the records into Salesforce.
By the end, you’ll have a clearer understanding of how Products, Price Books, and Price Book Entries are connected and how to handle their data when performing a bulk Salesforce import.
What You’ll Need
Salesforce Access
Access to a Salesforce org where you can perform Data Loader operations.
Multi-Currency Enabled
Multi-currency must be enabled in your Salesforce org for this tutorial.
Data Loader Installed
Have Salesforce Data Loader installed and ready to use.
Data Prepared
Organize your Products, Price Books, and Price Book Entries in a spreadsheet ready for CSV conversion.
Table of Contents
💡 Tutorial Tip: The order in which you load these records matters because Price Book Entries connect Products to Price Books. Understanding that relationship will make the data-loading process much easier to follow.
Understanding Salesforce Products with Data Loader: Price Books & Price Book Entries
Learn how Salesforce connects products, pricing, and sales transactions.
Before working with product pricing in Salesforce, it's important to understand how Products, Price Books, and Price Book Entries work together. These records determine which products can be sold, which pricing structure is used, and what price is applied during a sales transaction.
Product
Product2Represents an item or service your company sells to customers.
Price Book
Pricebook2Contains the prices associated with products for a particular sales scenario.
Price Book Entry
PricebookEntryLinks a product to a price book and determines its specific price.
A Product represents an item or service that your company sells. In Salesforce, the API name for this object is Product2.
How the three records work together
Think of the Product as the thing you're selling, the Price Book as the collection of pricing, and the Price Book Entry as the record that connects a specific product to a specific price book at a particular price.
🛒 Where does this fit into the sales process?
🌎 Why use multiple Price Books?
👟 Real-World Example: One Product, Multiple Prices
🧠 Quick Check
Which Salesforce record connects a specific Product to a Price Book and determines the price for that combination?
Inserting Products Using Data Loader
Import new Product2 records into Salesforce and capture the IDs you'll need for the next step.
Now it's time to bring your product data into Salesforce. Using Data Loader, you'll insert the prepared CSV file as Product2 records, verify the field mapping, and save the results. The most important takeaway? The success file gives you the Product2 IDs Salesforce creates for every successful insert.
⚙️ The 10-Step Data Loader Workflow
🧩 Product2 Import Settings
These are the key values to confirm before running the insert.
Product2
The Salesforce object receiving the imported records.
Name
The name assigned to the product.
Code
The product code or identifier.
Family / Is Active
Product category and active status.
Make sure your CSV fields point to the right Product2 fields
Auto Match can speed up the process, but always verify the mapping before continuing with the insert.
50 Products Imported Successfully
The tutorial shows 50 successful inserts with zero errors. After the operation finishes, Data Loader generates a success file containing information about the records that were created.
Your Product2 IDs are needed next
Every successfully inserted product receives a unique Product2 ID. The success file provides these IDs, and they are crucial for creating the related Price Book Entries in the next stage.
🧠 Quick Check
You just inserted 50 products. What information from the success file should you keep for the next step?
Preparing and Inserting Standard Price Book Entries
Create Standard Price Book Entries for your products and define pricing for USD and EUR.
Now that your Product2 records have been successfully inserted, the next step is to connect those products to the Standard Price Book. This is done by creating PricebookEntry records that define the price for each product.
Product2 + Pricebook2 = PricebookEntry
A PricebookEntry connects a product to a specific price book and gives that product a defined price. In this step, the products from the previous step are connected to Salesforce's Standard Price Book.
📄 Step 1 — Prepare the CSV File
🧩 Build the PricebookEntry CSV
These are the key columns used to create the Standard Price Book Entries.
Product2 ID
ID from the Product success file.
Pricebook2 ID
ID of the Standard Price Book.
CurrencyIsoCode
Use USD or EUR.
Unit Price
Product list price for the selected currency.
UseStandardPrice
Set to false for specific list prices.
💱 Add Both Currency Versions
US Dollar Entries
Add the products to the CSV and set Currency ISO Code to USD. Then enter the corresponding USD list price.
Euro Entries
Copy the product rows again, paste them below the USD entries, change the currency to EUR, and enter the corresponding Euro list price.
⚙️ Important Price Book Entry Settings
⚙️ Step 2 — Insert Using Data Loader
Import Result: 100 Successful Inserts
The tutorial shows 100 successful Standard Price Book Entry inserts with zero errors. The success file can then be renamed and used for verification.
Your products now have defined Standard Price Book pricing
The Product2 records created in Step 2 are now connected to the Standard Price Book through PricebookEntry records. Because the entries include both USD and EUR pricing, the same products can have different list prices based on currency.
🧠 Quick Check: What does a PricebookEntry connect?
A PricebookEntry is used to connect which two records?
Verifying Standard Price Book Entries
Confirm that your PricebookEntry records were created correctly and linked to the right products and prices.
Creating records successfully is only part of the process. In this step, you'll verify that the new PricebookEntry records are actually connected to the correct Product2 and Standard Price Book, with the expected currency and list price.
🔎 Follow the verification workflow
Use the PricebookEntry ID from the success file
Copy the ID and place it after your Salesforce domain in the browser URL. This takes you directly to the corresponding PricebookEntry record.
yourdomain.my.salesforce.com/PricebookEntry-ID
✅ What should you verify?
Verification Result
The instructor verifies that Designer Shoe One has Standard Price Book Entries for both currencies, confirming that the product has been successfully configured with multiple price points.
💱 Verified Price Points
US Dollar Price
$100 Standard Price Book entryEuro Price
€85 Standard Price Book entry🧠 Quick Check: What should you verify on a PricebookEntry?
After opening a PricebookEntry record, which combination confirms that the entry was created correctly?
Preparing and Inserting Custom Price Books
Create new custom Pricebook2 records in Salesforce using Data Loader.
After working with the Standard Price Book, you can create custom price books for different pricing strategies, sales groups, or other business requirements. In this step, you'll prepare a simple CSV file and use Data Loader to create the new Pricebook2 records.
📄 Prepare the Price Books CSV
Start with the Price Book Sample Data from the workbook and prepare it as a CSV file named Price Books Prepped.
⚙️ Insert the Custom Price Books
Keep the mapping simple
For this import, the tutorial only maps the price book name. The CSV value is connected directly to the Name field on the Pricebook2 object.
⚙️ Values & Settings
Pricebook2
Name
Price Books Prepped
Custom Price Books
Import Result: 3 Successful Inserts
The tutorial shows 3 successful Pricebook2 inserts with zero errors. Salesforce creates a new record for each custom price book included in the CSV file.
Your custom Pricebook2 records are now ready
Once the custom price books have been created, their Salesforce IDs can be used when creating the related PricebookEntry records.
Preparing and Inserting Custom Price Book Entries
Create custom price book entries with specific products, prices, and currencies using Data Loader.
Now that your custom Pricebook2 records have been created, the next step is to connect your products to those price books. You'll prepare a CSV containing the Product2 IDs, custom Pricebook2 IDs, currencies, and prices, then insert the records as PricebookEntry records.
📄 Prepare the Custom Price Book Entries CSV
🧩 Build the CSV with the required fields
These are the key values that connect each product to the correct custom price book and define its pricing.
Product2 ID
Which product?
The Product2 ID from the earlier product insert success file.
Pricebook2 ID
Which price book?
The ID of the custom Pricebook2 record created in Step 5.
CurrencyIsoCode
Which currency?
Use the appropriate ISO code, such as USD or EUR.
Unit Price
What price?
The product's price for that custom price book and currency.
UseStandardPrice
Use standard pricing?
Set this value to false when defining a specific custom price.
IsActive
Is the entry active?
Set to true or use the applicable default behavior.
First currency set
Add the products with their corresponding USD prices for the selected custom price book. Keep the correct Product2 ID and Pricebook2 ID associated with every row.
Add another currency
Copy the product data into new rows, change the CurrencyIsoCode to EUR, and enter the corresponding Euro price while keeping the correct IDs.
Check these values before you insert
UseStandardPrice
false
Use this when you are defining a specific price for
the custom price book.
IsActive
true
Keep the price book entry active, or use the applicable
default if the field is not explicitly mapped.
Unit Price
Custom list price
Enter the price that applies to the product within
this custom price book and currency.
⚙️ Insert the Custom Price Book Entries
Import Result: 100 Successful Inserts
The tutorial shows 100 successful custom PricebookEntry inserts with zero errors. The success file confirms the records were created and provides the resulting Salesforce IDs for verification.
🧠 Quick Check: Which ID connects the entry to the custom price book?
When preparing a custom PricebookEntry CSV, which ID tells Salesforce which custom price book the entry belongs to?
Verify Your Data Loader Inserts
Confirm that your Salesforce records were created and linked correctly.
A successful Data Loader import is only the first check. Use the success files and Salesforce records to confirm that your Products, Price Books, and Price Book Entries are correctly connected.
Check Success Files
Confirm the number of successful records and check for errors.
Open the Records
Copy an ID from the success file and use it to open the record in Salesforce.
Check Related Lists
On the Product2 record, use Related to verify its PricebookEntry records.
Product2
Pricebook2
PricebookEntry
Don't Just Verify the Import — Verify the Relationships
The success file confirms records were created. The Salesforce record and Related tab confirm they are connected correctly, including the expected prices and currencies.
🧠 Quick Check
Where do you verify the PricebookEntry records associated with a Product2?
Final Result
The tutorial demonstrates how to use Data Loader to build and verify a complete Salesforce product pricing structure.
Important Notes
Keep these details in mind when working with Products and Price Books.
Product2 is Salesforce's object for Products.
The Standard Price Book is automatically created and is the starting point for loading prices.
Always verify your Product2 ID and Pricebook2 ID before inserting entries.
Get the correct Pricebook2 ID directly from the Salesforce record URL.
CSV Unit Price maps to Salesforce's List Price field.
Set Use Standard Price to false when defining specific list prices.
Products, Price Books & Price Book Entries
Understand how Salesforce connects products with different pricing structures.
Products
The items or services your company sells.
Salesforce stores them as Product2.
Price Books
Collections of product prices. Salesforce includes a Standard Price Book and allows custom price books.
Price Book Entries
Connect a product to a price book and define its specific price and currency.
🌎 Why Use Multiple Price Books?
👟 One Adidas Shoe, Multiple Prices
The same product can have different prices depending on the price book, partner, location, or currency.
⚙️ The Data Loader Process
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to common questions about Products, Price Books, and Data Loader imports.
Use these answers as a quick reference when preparing CSV files or troubleshooting your Salesforce Data Loader imports.
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