Overview

Amazon's Product Classifier is a tool within Seller Central that helps sellers correctly categorize their products so they appear in the right places across the Amazon catalog. Proper classification is essential because it directly determines where your listings show up when customers browse or search — and incorrect or missing classification data can make your products nearly invisible to shoppers.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• Classification drives discoverability — Amazon uses the category and item type values you provide to decide where your listings appear in the catalog. Without accurate classification, customers cannot easily find, compare, or purchase your products.
• The Product Classifier replaces older tools — If you previously used the Category Listing Report or other legacy classification methods, Amazon now recommends transitioning to the Product Classifier tool, which provides more current and accurate information about the catalog structure.
• Browse Tree Guide (BTG) is central to the process — The BTG file you download from the Product Classifier contains the exact values you need to populate your inventory file templates, including item type keywords and refinement fields.
• Multiple classification methods available — You can classify products either by browsing through Amazon's category tree or by searching with keywords, giving you flexibility depending on how well you already know your product's category.
• XML feeds are also supported — Sellers who use XML-based uploads can map the same classification values into their XML feed structure, with the item_type_keyword field in the BTG corresponding to the item_type attribute in XML files.

How the Product Classifier Works

The Product Classifier tool offers two approaches for identifying the correct classification for your products. The first is a browse method, where you select the store your product belongs in and then drill down through progressively narrower subcategories until you reach the correct classification. Once the tool displays an "Add" button, you can add that classification to your working list. The second approach is a keyword search method, where you type a descriptive term into the search box and then select from the matching categories using the plus sign next to each result. Both methods allow you to classify multiple products in a single session and then download the resulting Browse Tree Guide file, which contains all the values you need.