The base unit price on TikTok Shop is the cost of a product per standard unit, like per kilogram, per liter, or per piece. It helps customers clearly see what they’re paying for, especially when products are sold by weight, volume, length, or quantity. The base unit price is also important for staying compliant with consumer protection laws.
In this article, you’ll learn when base unit pricing is required and how to set it up correctly for your TikTok Shop listings in M2E Multichannel Connect.
Why the base unit price matters #
In the European Union (EU), showing the base unit price is required for certain types of products. The unit price helps shoppers compare items easily and fairly.
If you're selling in countries like Germany, France, or Spain, your listings must meet local rules. That includes showing the correct base unit price on product pages.
When to include the base unit price #
You should add a base unit price for the following product categories:
- Packaged food and beverages
- Cosmetics and toiletries
- Cleaning and household products
- Any product where the price per unit is helpful to the buyer
TikTok Shop may show the base unit price next to the regular price to help shoppers compare products.
How to configure base unit price for TikTok Shop listings in M2E #
To make sure TikTok Shop can calculate the base unit price correctly, you need to fill in three attributes under the Product card for the relevant category:
- Quantity Per Pack (PACKING_COUNT)
- Unit Type (UNIT_TYPE)
- Base Unit Count (UNIT_COUNT)
These attribute names vary by language. For example:
- Italian: Quantità per confezione, Tipo di unità, Conteggio unità base
- German: Menge pro Packung, Einheitstyp, Basisstückzahl
Example: Selling tea in the "Food & Beverages > Beverages > Tea" category
If you’re selling tea in 250g packages and want to show the price per 1kg, here’s how you should set the values:
- Unit Type: kg
- Base Unit Count: 1
- Quantity Per Pack: 0.2500
This way, TikTok Shop can correctly calculate and show the price per kilogram.
Other examples:
- 500g bag → 0.5000
- 15g bag → 0.0150
How to define the Quantity Per Pack value #
You can set up the Quantity per Pack value through Category attributes using one of the options:
1) TikTok Shop attributes (note that no default value is provided for calculating base unit price).
2) Store attributes (Shopify, WooCommerce, Ecwid, etc.):
- Supported for Simple products
- Can be used for Variational products only if all variations share the same quantity per pack
- Correct values must be entered in the connected store
3) M2E Catalog Custom Attributes
✅ For Variational listings where each variation has a different quantity per pack, we recommend using M2E Catalog custom attributes. This lets you assign a unique value to each variation without affecting the parent product.
If all variations use the same quantity, you can:
- Set the value at the parent product level in your store, or
- Create a single Quantity Per Pack custom attribute in your M2E Catalog. The app will apply it to each variation automatically during the listing process.
💡 Follow this guide to set up an M2E Catalog Custom Attribute for Quantity for Pack value.
Example: Selling glasses in the “Kitchen Utensils > Drinkware > Glasses” category
Let’s say you’re selling a set of 6 glasses, and you want the base unit price to show the cost per single glass. Here’s how you should set the attributes:
- Unit Type: piece
- Base Unit Count: 1
- Quantity Per Pack: 6
In this case, all the required fields are available directly through TikTok Shop attributes, so there’s no need to use M2E Catalog custom attributes. Enter the values, and TikTok Shop will calculate the base unit price automatically.
ℹ️ If you run into any issues or need a hand with setup, feel free to reach out to the M2E support team. We’re here to help.
