Do I need to do any coding or design work?
No. Catalogs are created automatically using the professional, pre-set layout. You don’t need coding, graphic design, or manual formatting to produce a professional-looking PDF catalog.
What does the professional, pre-set layout include?
Every catalog PDF includes:
Branded header (logo, title, subtitle, promotional message, contact details)
Product grids with images, titles, SKUs, variants, and pricing
Clean, modern fonts
Shoppable links that lead buyers directly to product pages
Page numbering and consistent formatting
Can I set the display order of products?
Yes. Within sections, you can control display order by:
Numerical ordering (for products)
Drag-and-drop (for products and variants)
What’s the difference between Whole Store and Custom catalogs?
Both catalog types are powerful — the best choice depends on your needs:
Whole Store Catalogs
Automatically include all active products from your Shopify collections. They stay fully in sync with Shopify, reflecting both product edits (title, image, price, SKU, variants) and collection updates (name, rules, product assignments). This makes them perfect for a comprehensive, always up-to-date catalog of your entire store.Custom Catalogs
Give you the flexibility to curate exactly what you want to show by building catalogs from sections you create and assign. Sections can be collection-based (auto-populated without duplicates) or product-based (hand-picked products). Custom Catalogs stay synced with product edits, making them ideal for seasonal campaigns, buyer-specific selections, or promotional catalogs.
👉 Whole Store Catalogs keep your entire active selection synced at all times, while Custom Catalogs let you curate what to feature and how to present it.
How does automated sync work?
Whole Store Catalogs: Sync with Shopify for products and collections (product edits, additions, deletions, state changes, and collection updates).
Custom Catalogs: Sync with Shopify for product edits only (title, image, price, SKU, variants, state changes).
Can I use my own fonts or templates?
Active Catalogs provides a set of standard, professional fonts to keep catalogs readable across devices and print.
📩 If you need support for a specific font not listed, please contact our team. Font support is available for all plans.
Custom styling support for PDFs is available with the Professional and Premium Plans.
What should I do if my catalog is not generating?
Check if processing is still running (yellow status message = in progress).
Confirm products are published to the Store channel in Shopify.
status: active for inclusion in Whole Store catalogs
status: active, draft, or archived for inclusion in Custom Catalogs
Refresh the app and retry.
If the problem persists, contact support via chat or schedule a meeting.
Can I duplicate a catalog?
Yes. Duplicating a catalog makes a full copy, including its assigned sections. Duplicated sections are editable independently, so changes to the copy won’t affect the original.
👉 Still have questions? Visit the Knowledge Center for more FAQs or contact support directly.