¶ Categories - tree, main category and item visibility
Categories in Hummerce organize the catalog into a tree that the customer browses in the store, and that store staff use to manage the assortment in the admin panel. Every product has one main category and can additionally be visible in other categories, and the order of categories and products within them is set independently from the rest of the catalog.
Last updated: 2026-09-29.
¶ Benefits and use cases
- One category tree for the whole store - staff build the structure once, no matter how many views (B2B, B2C, language versions) use the catalog.
- Visibility control without deleting the product - a category or a product in it can be hidden without losing its assignment and history.
- A separate tree branch for each view - a store view (e.g. wholesale) can show a different part of the categories than the retail view, through its own main category for the view.
- Less manual work when changing a product's main category - visibility in categories refreshes automatically.
- Categories are created and organized in Assortment -> Categories. Every category (except top-level categories) has one Main category - this is what builds the tree visible in the panel and in the store menu.
- Moving a category under another parent category moves its whole branch (subcategories) along with it.
- A category has Active and Visible flags - an inactive or invisible category disappears from the store menu but stays in the panel together with its assigned products.
¶ Product's main category - and the view's main category
These are two different concepts sharing the same name in Hummerce:
- Product's main category - the category the product is assigned to by default when saved. Changing the main category on the product card automatically refreshes the product's visibility in categories - the panel warns before saving that the change also removes the old visibility.
- View's main category - a view setting (e.g. B2B) that decides which branch of the category tree that view shows as its top-level category. Categories are not assigned to views directly - the view points to its main category instead.
- Besides its main category, a product can also be visible in any number of other categories - the Visibility in categories field on the product card.
- Product types that do not support visibility in categories (e.g. some variants) show only an archival list of categories from before the type change - on the next save of the product card, the archival list is removed.
- A product's visibility in a category is separate from visibility in Views - a product can be visible in a category and at the same time unavailable in a view it has not been assigned to.
- Categories that pick up products automatically based on a saved condition (price, producer, property), instead of manual assignment, are described in Virtual categories.
- The order of sibling categories is set in the tree (moving up/down).
- The order of products within a category is chosen from the sorting rules configured in the store (e.g. relevance, price, name), or left as Default - in which case the store's default rule applies. Full sorting rule configuration - Items sort.
- The category tree, a product's main category and visibility in categories are a core platform feature - available in all current versions.
- Automatic refresh of a product's visibility after a main category change (together with the panel warning) - since version 2.34.
- A view's main category requires configured Views.
- Filters and sorting on the category list in the store - Search and filters.
- Categories that automatically pick up products based on a condition - Virtual categories.
- Works after the update - the category tree, main category and visibility are part of the platform. Store staff create and organize categories in the panel.
- Minimum estimated time:
- store staff expanding the category tree on their own - 0 h,
- moving and organizing an existing category structure with our help - from 1 h.
- The time for a specific implementation depends on its scope - we quote it individually.
- What the time depends on:
- the number of categories and the depth of the tree,
- the number of views and the differences in main category between them,
- whether an existing category structure needs to be moved from another platform.
- A product always has exactly one main category - it is not possible to set two main categories at once.
- Categories are not assigned to views directly - a different category scope per view is achieved only through the view's main category.
- Changing a product's main category clears its existing visibility in categories - it has to be set again if it should remain.
- Sorting products within a category is chosen from rules configured in the store - a one-off, custom order without a rule is set manually (drag and drop on the list).
- We do not verify the task for legal compliance (e.g. licenses of supplied materials, GDPR, store terms and conditions).
- Assigning categories directly to selected views, without going through the view's main category.
- A preview of how a main category change affects product visibility before saving, not just a warning.
Can a product be visible in several categories at once?
Yes. Besides its main category, a product can additionally be assigned to any number of categories in the Visibility in categories field.
Does changing a product's main category require manually fixing visibility?
No, since version 2.34 visibility in categories refreshes automatically after a main category change - the panel only warns before saving that the old visibility will be removed.
Can each store view (e.g. B2B) show a different part of the category tree?
Yes, through the view's main category setting - see Views.
How long does it take to organize the category tree during implementation?
Store staff expanding the tree on their own does not require our involvement. Moving and organizing an existing structure with our help - from 1 h.
Can categories pick up products automatically without manual assignment?
Yes, that's Virtual categories - they work on a different principle than the regular, manually assigned categories described on this page.
Want to see how a category tree could work in your store? Book a free demo (in Polish).
- Category tree: Assortment -> Categories - adding, moving within the tree, changing order among siblings.
- Editing a category: Main category, name per language, Active and Visible flags, product sorting rule for the category (or Default).
- Product card: the Main category field (with a warning about clearing visibility on change) and the Visibility in categories field (additional categories).
- View's main category: Configuration -> Views, view details (Views).
¶ REST API and MCP
- REST API: reading, creating, changing and deleting categories (REST API).
- MCP (AI assistant - MCP server):
ec2_categories_list - list of categories, flat or as a tree from the root or a given parent,ec2_categories_details - category details together with the number of products,ec2_category_create - a new category under a given parent,ec2_category_update - change name, the Active/Visible flags, or move under a different parent (admin only),ec2_category_delete - deletes a category; refuses if it has subcategories or products (admin only),ec2_category_move - changes the order among siblings (admin only),ec2_category_description_set - category description in a chosen language (admin only).
The category's name, description and SEO are set on the category itself, in every store language; other menu and category list messages are changed in the message editor.
| Symbol |
Object |
Label |
_viewRootCategory |
view |
Main category of the view (see Views) |