# Migrating Categories Collections and Taxonomy

> A practical guide to migrating categories collections and taxonomy, including scope, transfer checks, launch evidence and recovery planning.

- Type: Merchant guide
- Level: Intermediate
- Reading time: About 4 minutes
- Audience: Written for store owners, builders, and designers refining high-performance ecommerce stores.
- Last updated: 2026-11-04
- Canonical page: https://academy.getzenbasket.com/merchant-questions/migrating-categories-collections-and-taxonomy/
- Part of: [Merchant Questions](https://academy.getzenbasket.com/merchant-questions/) on ZenBasket Academy

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## What you need to know

### How should categories be migrated?

Map every source category to an approved destination category and preserve product membership. Record whether its URL, content, metadata and navigation placement stay the same or require a redirect.

### Should category structure change during migration?

Change category structure only through an approved information-architecture decision supported by customer and merchandising needs. Keep redesign changes separate from transfer defects so each can be tested.

### How should collections be migrated?

Rebuild rule-based collections from documented conditions and transfer manual collections with stable product mappings. Validate membership and product order rather than assuming the old rule syntax works unchanged.

### How should product-category relationships be validated?

Compare the expected and actual product members for each category, including counts and identifiers. Test products that belong to several categories and products that should belong to none.

### Should taxonomy be cleaned up before migration?

Clean taxonomy before mapping when duplicates and unclear labels would create avoidable errors but freeze the approved structure before final migration. Do not perform undocumented cleanup inside an import file.

### Should navigation be redesigned during replatforming?

Redesign navigation only when research and business requirements justify the change. Test findability, mobile use, accessibility, and URL outcomes independently from the migration itself.

### A quick store check

Compare the member SKUs of one source category with its destination, then test its navigation path and URL outcome.

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## Frequently asked questions

### Can taxonomy and navigation use different structures?

Yes. Taxonomy organizes products and rules; navigation presents selected paths to shoppers. Their relationship should be documented.

### Should empty categories be migrated?

Only when they have an approved future purpose or valuable URL outcome; otherwise archive or remove them deliberately.

## Related articles

- **Ecommerce Product Data Migration**
- **Migrating Ecommerce Images and Media**