Updated
WooCommerce product type guide
WooCommerce product bundle vs variable product
Use a variable product when one item has choices such as size or colour. Use a product bundle when one purchase must include several separate products or exact variations.
v0.1.0 · 54 KB · WordPress 6.8+ · WooCommerce 9.9+ · PHP 8.2+ · GPL-2.0-or-later
Opens the GitHub release page.
Need help installing? Follow the installation steps.
Example
A T-shirt and a repair kit in the same store
You sell a T-shirt in several sizes and colours. It is one item with choices, so it is a variable product. The shopper picks a size and colour, and the order shows that variation.
You also sell a repair kit with one filter and two seals. These are separate products that ship together, so the kit is a fixed bundle. Shoppers add the complete kit with one click. The total is the sum of the item prices, and each item keeps its own stock.
Direct comparison
Variable product or fixed bundle?
| Question | Variable product | Fixed bundle |
|---|---|---|
| What does the customer buy? | One variation of one product. | Several required products or exact variations. |
| Who chooses the contents? | The customer chooses the available attributes, such as size and colour. | You choose the products, exact variations, and quantities. The customer buys the complete set. |
| How is stock managed? | The chosen variation can manage its own stock or use shared parent-product stock. | Each component keeps its own WooCommerce stock rules. The cart checks the combined quantity needed for each product. |
| How is the price calculated? | The selected variation has its WooCommerce price. | Advanced Bundles Free totals each component's current price multiplied by its quantity. |
| What appears in the order? | One line for the selected variation. | A zero-value line with the bundle name, plus one line for each component. |
| Best fit | One T-shirt offered in several sizes and colours. | One repair kit containing several required products. |
Variable products are part of WooCommerce. Advanced Bundles Free is a third-party plugin from UAB BusinessPress that adds the fixed bundle product type. It is not made or endorsed by Woo. Woo sells a separate Product Bundles extension with its own documentation.
Setup
Build a fixed bundle in four steps
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Create the bundle product
Open Products → Add New. In Product data, choose Bundle.
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Add the components
Open Bundle components. Select each simple product or exact variation and set its quantity.
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Publish the product
Add the name, images, and description that shoppers see, then publish.
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Test the cart
On a staging site, add the bundle to the cart. Check the items, prices, stock, shipping, and tax.
Bundle and variable product questions
Can a product bundle contain a variation?
Yes. You add one exact existing variation as a component, such as the Blue, Medium T-shirt. To offer the kit in another size, create a separate bundle product. Bundle exact variations.
Should a kit use variations or separate products?
Use variations when the choices describe one product. Use separate component products when each part needs its own stock, shipping, or order record.
What if shoppers must choose each part?
That is a configurable or composite product, which is a different product type. Advanced Bundles Free sells ready-made sets that you define. Read WooCommerce's configurable product example (opens in new tab) .
Related guides
Also from we-wp: Advanced Invoices creates numbered PDF invoices from your WooCommerce orders. Advanced Quotes turns price requests into paid orders.
Want the full picture? See what Advanced Bundles Free includes.
Sell several products as one ready-made kit.
Download Advanced Bundles Free, follow the setup guide, and test your first bundle on a staging site.
v0.1.0 · 54 KB · WordPress 6.8+ · WooCommerce 9.9+ · PHP 8.2+ · GPL-2.0-or-later
Opens the GitHub release page.
Need help installing? Follow the installation steps.