Specification data
Benchline runs on one rule: enter the specification once, and every surface reads the same value. The product card, the datasheet, the facet filters, the comparison table, and the fit check are all generated from a single set of metafields in the specs namespace. There is no second place to update, and no surface can drift out of date.
This page is the complete field list: 24 product fields, 3 variant fields, and 1 collection field. Create the definitions under Settings, then Custom data, with exactly the types shown. The theme ships no metafield definitions of its own, because metafield definitions belong to your store.
Product fields
| Field | Key | Type | Read by filters and fit check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer part number | specs.mpn | Single line text | No, display only |
| Specification summary | specs.summary | Multi line text | No, display only |
| Primary dimension value | specs.primary_dimension_value | Number, decimal | Yes |
| Primary dimension unit | specs.primary_dimension_unit | Single line text | No, pairs with the value |
| Length | specs.dim_length | Dimension | No, display and compare only |
| Width | specs.dim_width | Dimension | No, display and compare only |
| Height | specs.dim_height | Dimension | No, display and compare only |
| Diameter | specs.dim_diameter | Dimension | No, display and compare only |
| Thread and standard | specs.thread_standard | List of single line text | Yes |
| Material | specs.material | List of single line text | Yes |
| Finish and coating | specs.finish | Single line text | No, display only |
| Primary rating value | specs.rating_primary_value | Number, decimal | Yes |
| Primary rating unit | specs.rating_primary_unit | Single line text | No, pairs with the value |
| Primary rating | specs.rating_primary_text | Single line text | No, display only |
| Secondary rating value | specs.rating_secondary_value | Number, decimal | No, display only |
| Secondary rating unit | specs.rating_secondary_unit | Single line text | No, pairs with the value |
| Secondary rating | specs.rating_secondary_text | Single line text | No, display only |
| Compliance and certification | specs.compliance | List of single line text | Yes |
| Compatibility | specs.compatibility_keys | List of single line text | Yes |
| Position | specs.position | Single line text | No, display only |
| Cross-reference | specs.cross_reference | List of single line text | No, shown as entered |
| Pack quantity | specs.pack_quantity | Number, whole | Yes |
| Datasheet | specs.datasheet | File reference | No, download link |
| Installation note | specs.install_note | Rich text | No, product page prose |
Seven fields carry the filtering and the fit check: primary dimension value, thread and standard, material, compliance and certification, compatibility, primary rating value, and pack quantity. Everything else is display data: it enriches the datasheet, the card, and the comparison table without affecting verdicts.
Variant fields
Variants override the product record where they genuinely differ:
| Field | Key | Type | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary dimension override | specs.dimension_override | Dimension | Shown in the datasheet instead of the product primary dimension when a variant is selected |
| Primary rating override | specs.rating_override_text | Single line text | Shown in the datasheet instead of the product primary rating when a variant is selected |
| Compatibility note | specs.compatibility_note | Single line text | Added to the Compatibility group when a variant is selected |
Selecting a variant on the product page updates the gallery, price, SKU, and the datasheet rows together, so the specification a shopper reads always belongs to the variant they are about to buy.
Collection field
| Field | Key | Type | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Governing specification | specs.governing_specification | Single line text | Shown on the collection list page next to the collection, when the collection list section has it switched on |
The governing specification is the one line that tells a shopper what a whole range hangs on: "13 mm chuck class" for a drill range, "Metric thread" for fasteners, "15 mm nominal" for a plumbing range, "230 V systems" for an electrical range. Leave it empty for a mixed range; the collection list simply omits it.
The dimension fields, carefully
Two different things look alike here, and the distinction decides whether filters work:
- The primary dimension (value plus unit text) is the one dimension the finder, the facet filters, and the fit check read. It is a plain decimal number, so Shopify can filter on it. Values display with one decimal place, so 13 shows as 13.0 mm when the unit is mm.
- The length, width, height, and diameter fields use Shopify dimension type. They are for the datasheet and the comparison table only. Shopify cannot filter on dimension-typed fields, so no finder step, facet, or fit verdict ever reads them.
Put the size a shopper would filter by (nominal bore, chuck class, thread size number) in the primary dimension, and the measured sizes in the dimension fields.
How to fill the fields well
- One value style per field, store-wide. If one bolt is "A2 stainless steel" and another is "Stainless A2", they are two different filter values and the fit check treats them as different materials.
- Lists are real lists. For list fields, add each value as its own list entry. The fit check compares case-insensitively and accepts a match on any entry, so a product with materials Steel and Polymer matches a Steel search.
- Keep units out of values. Numbers go in the value fields, the unit goes in the unit field, and the theme prints them together.
- Ratings in words go in the rating text fields ("Type C", "IP65"). Ratings in numbers go in the value fields, where filters and the fit check can use them.
- A specification summary is a fallback line for the card when a product has no structured values yet. It is not a substitute for the structured fields: nothing can filter or check a summary.
- Cross-reference entries are shown exactly as entered. The theme displays them; it never looks them up or treats them as compatibility data.
- Attach the manufacturer PDF to the Datasheet field and the datasheet group gains a download link. Products without one simply omit the link.
Importing by spreadsheet
Create the definitions first, then import. Shopify spreadsheet import can fill the plain text, number, and multi-line fields. It cannot fill list fields, dimension fields, rich text, file references, or any variant metafield: set those in the admin or the bulk editor after import.