The Variation Settings table for Amazon in 3Dsellers Mapping Templates lets you say which of your catalog options (Color, Size, Wattage, Lot Of and so on) is which Amazon variation type for a product type, for example Color to COLOR and Lot Of to NUMBER_OF_ITEMS. 3Dsellers then builds the Amazon variation theme from your mapping and sends every child SKU with the right attribute values. Until October 2026 the only control was the preset Variation Theme Name field, and nothing tied your options to Amazon's attributes. The table appears only for product types that have variation themes, and it offers only the types Amazon allows for that product type.
⚠️ Amazon does not allow the variation theme to change once the parent SKU exists. Set the mapping before the first publish of a product with variations. To change it later you have to create a new parent on Amazon.
In this article:
Where do I find Variation Settings for Amazon?
Open Product Catalog > Mapping Templates and open your Amazon template.
In the left panel, select the Amazon product type you publish with, for example LIGHT_FIXTURE or AUTO_PART.
On the right, below the product type's fields, find the Variation Settings table. It lists every variation option used in your catalog on the left and an Amazon variation type dropdown on the right.
If the product type has no variation themes on Amazon, the table does not appear; that product type cannot carry variations.
How do I map my options to Amazon variation types?
For each catalog option in the table, open the dropdown and pick the Amazon type it stands for. The list holds only the types valid for this product type, for example COLOR, SIZE, COLOR_NAME, SIZE_NAME, BASE_COLOR, DIAMETER or NUMBER_OF_ITEMS. You cannot type a custom name, unlike on eBay.
Options whose name already matches an Amazon type are filled in for you: Color is matched to COLOR and Size to SIZE. You can change them.
Leave options that this product type does not vary by on Select.
Click Save Changes or Save Changes & Exit.
Example for a light fixture that varies by wattage, colour and pack count: Wattage stays unmapped if the product type has no wattage theme, Color to BASE_COLOR, Lot Of to NUMBER_OF_ITEMS. Example for an auto part sold in packs: To Fit to NUMBER_OF_ITEMS is saved as a variation mapping for that product type.
How does 3Dsellers pick the variation theme?
When you publish a product with variations to Amazon, 3Dsellers joins the Amazon types you mapped into the theme name and sends it, for example BASE_COLOR/DIAMETER/NUMBER_OF_ITEMS when three options are mapped to those three types. Every child SKU is sent with the value of each mapped attribute. You no longer need to pick a theme in the preset Variation Theme Name field under the Amazon tab's Optional Item Specifics.
If you do fill in Variation Theme Name by hand, it must use the types you mapped. A theme that uses none of them is refused before anything is sent, with a message that says so.
The combination you map must be a theme that exists for the product type. The table lists types, not themes, so it cannot check the combination for you (see the next two sections).
Can I combine two options into one Amazon type?
Yes. Map two catalog options to the same Amazon type and 3Dsellers shows the note that the values will be combined. The two values are joined into one attribute value on every child, the way the eBay Variation Settings do. Use it when the Amazon theme has fewer attributes than your product has options.
What the table does not check
It does not check that your chosen types form a real Amazon theme. Some types only exist inside a combined theme: DIAMETER, for instance, may exist only as part of BASE_COLOR/DIAMETER. Mapping DIAMETER alone is accepted in the table but the publish fails with “Variation theme is required … matches no variation theme”.
It does not warn when the combination narrows to one attribute. Mapping BASE_COLOR and NUMBER_OF_ITEMS for a product type that has no such pair falls back to a NUMBER_OF_ITEMS theme, and the publish is refused as “identical variations” because the children then differ only by colour.
It does not change a parent that already exists on Amazon. The theme is fixed at the first publish.
It does not save the automatic name matches as rows. Color to COLOR is matched again at publish time, so it works without saving, but only your own choices are stored.
Troubleshooting
I don't see the Variation Settings table on my Amazon template
Select a product type first; the table belongs to the product type, not to the template as a whole. If it is still missing, that product type has no variation themes on Amazon, so it cannot be published with variations. Check the product type on Amazon Seller Central or choose a different one.
Publish fails with "Variation theme is required" or "matches no variation theme"
The types you mapped do not add up to a theme Amazon offers for this product type. Open the product type's variation themes in Seller Central (or the Variation Theme Name list in the template), find a theme that uses your options, and map exactly its attributes. A type that only appears inside a combined theme must be mapped together with its partner.
Publish fails with "identical variations"
The theme 3Dsellers could build uses fewer attributes than your products vary by, so two children end up with the same attribute values. Map every option your variations differ by to an attribute of one real theme, or combine two options into one type so that each child is unique.
I mapped the options but the children were not created on Amazon
If the parent was published before you set the mapping, Amazon keeps the original theme and rejects the change. Create the product again under a new parent SKU with the mapping in place. If the parent is new and the children are still missing, open the listing error on the product in the catalog and read Amazon's message.
FAQ
Do I still need the Variation Theme Name field?
No. 3Dsellers builds the theme from the Variation Settings mapping. If you fill the field anyway, it must match the mapped types or the publish is refused before sending.
Can I type my own variation type for Amazon?
No. Amazon only accepts the variation attributes defined for the product type, so the dropdown offers those and nothing else. eBay is different: there the Variation Settings accept custom names.
Can I change the mapping after publishing?
You can change the template, but Amazon will not change the theme of a parent SKU that already exists. The new mapping applies to products you publish afterwards.
Is the mapping per template or per product type?
Per product type inside the Amazon mapping template. Each product type you publish with has its own Variation Settings table, because each one has its own list of variation types.