SKU exceeds 40 characters

What is this issue?

Amazon limits SKUs to a maximum of 40 characters.

Why Amazon rejects this

SKUs exceeding 40 characters are rejected by the flat-file processor.

Valid values / expected format

• ✓Maximum 40 characters
• ✓Count includes spaces and punctuation

Examples

Fix in StriveFormats

StriveFormats flags every row where the value exceeds the platform limit so you know exactly which cells to shorten.

Fix in Excel

1. 1In Excel, right-click the column header next to sku and choose 'Insert' to add a blank helper column.
2. 2In the first data row of the helper column, type: =LEN(X2) -- replace X2 with the actual cell reference of your sku column.
3. 3Copy this formula down to all rows by double-clicking the fill handle (the small square in the cell's bottom-right corner).
4. 4Go to Data > Filter. On the helper column, use a number filter for 'Greater Than 40'.
5. 5For each flagged row, click into the original column's cell and shorten the text until the helper column shows a number at or below the limit.
6. 6When done, select the helper column, right-click, and choose Delete. Save as CSV (Comma delimited).

Fix in Google Sheets

1. 1In Google Sheets, click the column letter next to sku and insert a blank column (right-click > Insert 1 column left/right).
2. 2In the first data row of the helper column, enter: =LEN(X2) -- replace X2 with the cell reference for your sku column.
3. 3Copy the formula down to cover all data rows.
4. 4Go to Data > Create a filter on the helper column. Use the filter to show only rows where the value is greater than 40.
5. 5For each flagged row, shorten the original column's text until the helper column shows a number at or below the limit.
6. 6Delete the helper column. Go to File > Download > Comma Separated Values (.csv).

Prevent it next time

• --Know the platform's character limits before writing titles and descriptions.
• --Use =LEN() in Excel or Google Sheets to count characters as you type.
• --Focus on high-impact keywords rather than full sentences in title fields.
• --Review titles for length before exporting -- it is much faster to fix them in the source sheet.

How StriveFormats detects this

StriveFormats measures the character length of every cell in the sku column and compares it against Amazon's documented limit. Rows exceeding the limit are individually flagged with the actual character count.