Product Comparison

Build product comparison tools that help users make informed purchasing decisions. Catalog’s product endpoints provide detailed, normalized product data that makes comparing products across different vendors straightforward.

Overview

Product comparison helps users:

Evaluate alternatives side-by-side
Compare key attributes like price, materials, features, and specifications
Make informed decisions based on normalized data

Core Concepts

Normalized Product Data

Catalog provides normalized product data with consistent structure across different vendors:

Pricing: Normalized price amounts and currency
Attributes: Standardized attribute structure (color, material, style, etc.)
Variants: Consistent variant information
Availability: Standardized availability status

Comparison Dimensions

Compare products across multiple dimensions:

Price: Current price, price ranges, sale status
Specifications: Materials, dimensions, care instructions
Attributes: Style, color, aesthetic, features
Availability: Stock status, variant availability

Building Your Comparison Tool

Python
JavaScript

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Retrieve products you want to compare using the Extract endpoint:

import requests
import time
import os

def retrieve_products_for_comparison(urls):
    """Retrieve products for comparison"""
    # Start async extraction with URLs
    response = requests.post(
        'https://api.getcatalog.ai/v2/extract',
        headers={
            'Content-Type': 'application/json',
            'x-api-key': os.getenv('CATALOG_API_KEY')
        },
        json={
            'urls': urls,
            'enable_enrichment': True,  # Enable enrichment for better attributes
            'country_code': 'us'
        }
    )
    
    data = response.json()
    execution_id = data['execution_id']
    print(f"Extraction started: {execution_id}")
    
    # Poll for results
    return poll_for_results(execution_id)

def poll_for_results(execution_id):
    """Poll for execution results"""
    while True:
        response = requests.get(
            f'https://api.getcatalog.ai/v2/extract/{execution_id}',
            headers={'x-api-key': os.getenv('CATALOG_API_KEY')}
        )
        
        data = response.json()
        
        if data['status'] == 'completed':
            # Extract successful products
            return [
                item['product']
                for item in data['data']
                if item['success'] and item.get('product')
            ]
        elif data['status'] == 'failed':
            raise Exception(f"Extraction failed: {data.get('error', 'Unknown error')}")
        
        # Wait before next poll
        time.sleep(2)

# Usage
product_urls = [
    'https://www.nike.com/t/air-force-1-07-mens-shoes-5QFp5Z/CW2288-111',
    'https://www.adidas.com/us/gazelle-shoes/BB5476.html'
]

products = retrieve_products_for_comparison(product_urls)
print(f"Retrieved {len(products)} products for comparison")

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Extract and normalize comparison attributes from product data:

def extract_comparison_attributes(product):
    """Extract comparison attributes from product data"""
    attrs = product.get('attributes', {})
    
    return {
        # Basic info
        'title': product.get('title'),
        'brand': product.get('brand'),
        'vendor': product.get('vendor'),
        'url': product.get('url'),
        
        # Pricing
        'price': product.get('price_amount'),
        'currency': product.get('price_currency'),
        'min_price': product.get('min_price'),
        'max_price': product.get('max_price'),
        'on_sale': product.get('min_price', 0) < product.get('max_price', 0),
        
        # Availability
        'available': product.get('is_available', False),
        'available_variants': len([v for v in product.get('variants', []) if v.get('isAvailable')]),
        'total_variants': len(product.get('variants', [])),
        
        # Attributes
        'color': attrs.get('color', {}).get('merchant_label') or attrs.get('color') or 'N/A',
        'material': attrs.get('material', {}).get('primary') or attrs.get('material') or 'N/A',
        'style': attrs.get('style', []),
        
        # Media
        'image_count': len(product.get('images', [])),
        'primary_image': product.get('images', [{}])[0].get('url') if product.get('images') else None,
        
        # Description
        'summary': attrs.get('summary') or product.get('description', '')[:200] or ''
    }

# Extract attributes for all products
comparison_data = [extract_comparison_attributes(p) for p in products]
print('Comparison attributes extracted')

Step 3: Create Comparison

Build a comparison class to organize and display products side-by-side:

class ProductComparison:
    def __init__(self, products):
        self.products = [extract_comparison_attributes(p) for p in products]
    
    def generate_comparison_table(self):
        """Generate comparison table data"""
        rows = [
            {
                'label': 'Product',
                'values': [
                    {
                        'title': p['title'],
                        'brand': p['brand'],
                        'image': p['primary_image']
                    }
                    for p in self.products
                ]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Price',
                'values': [f"${p['price']} {p['currency']}" for p in self.products]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Price Range',
                'values': [
                    f"${p['min_price']}" if p['min_price'] == p['max_price']
                    else f"${p['min_price']} - ${p['max_price']}"
                    for p in self.products
                ]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Availability',
                'values': [
                    f"In Stock ({p['available_variants']}/{p['total_variants']} variants)"
                    if p['available']
                    else 'Out of Stock'
                    for p in self.products
                ]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Color',
                'values': [p['color'] for p in self.products]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Material',
                'values': [p['material'] for p in self.products]
            },
            {
                'label': 'Style',
                'values': [', '.join(p['style']) if p['style'] else 'N/A' for p in self.products]
            }
        ]
        return rows
    
    def find_best_value(self):
        """Find best value (lowest price among available products)"""
        available = [p for p in self.products if p['available']]
        if not available:
            return None
        
        return min(available, key=lambda p: p['price'])
    
    def get_summary(self):
        """Get comparison summary"""
        best_value = self.find_best_value()
        all_available = all(p['available'] for p in self.products)
        prices = [p['min_price'] for p in self.products]
        
        return {
            'total_products': len(self.products),
            'all_available': all_available,
            'best_value': {
                'title': best_value['title'],
                'price': best_value['price'],
                'currency': best_value['currency']
            } if best_value else None,
            'price_range': {
                'min': min(prices),
                'max': max(prices)
            }
        }

# Usage
comparison = ProductComparison(products)
table = comparison.generate_comparison_table()
summary = comparison.get_summary()

print('Comparison Summary:', summary)
for row in table:
    print(f"{row['label']}: {row['values']}")

Step 4: Error Handling

Handle cases where some products fail to retrieve:

def retrieve_products_with_errors(urls):
    """Retrieve products with error handling"""
    response = requests.post(
        'https://api.getcatalog.ai/v2/extract',
        headers={
            'Content-Type': 'application/json',
            'x-api-key': os.getenv('CATALOG_API_KEY')
        },
        json={
            'urls': urls,
            'enable_enrichment': True,
            'country_code': 'us'
        }
    )
    
    data = response.json()
    execution_id = data['execution_id']
    results = poll_for_results(execution_id)
    
    successful = []
    failed = []
    
    for result in results:
        if result.get('success') and result.get('product'):
            successful.append(result['product'])
        else:
            failed.append({
                'url': result.get('url'),
                'reason': result.get('outcome', 'Unknown error')
            })
    
    return {
        'products': successful,
        'errors': failed,
        'success_rate': (len(successful) / len(urls)) * 100 if urls else 0
    }

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Retrieve products you want to compare using the Extract endpoint:

async function retrieveProductsForComparison(urls) {
  // Start async extraction with URLs
  const response = await fetch('https://api.getcatalog.ai/v2/extract', {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      'x-api-key': process.env.CATALOG_API_KEY
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      urls: urls,
      enable_enrichment: true, // Enable enrichment for better attributes
      country_code: 'us'
    })
  });
  
  const { execution_id } = await response.json();
  console.log(`Extraction started: ${execution_id}`);
  
  // Poll for results
  return await pollForResults(execution_id);
}

async function pollForResults(executionId) {
  while (true) {
    const response = await fetch(
      `https://api.getcatalog.ai/v2/extract/${executionId}`,
      {
        headers: {
          'x-api-key': process.env.CATALOG_API_KEY
        }
      }
    );
    
    const data = await response.json();
    
    if (data.status === 'completed') {
      // Extract successful products
      return data.data
        .filter(item => item.success && item.product)
        .map(item => item.product);
    } else if (data.status === 'failed') {
      throw new Error(`Extraction failed: ${data.error}`);
    }
    
    // Wait before next poll
    await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, 2000));
  }
}

// Usage
const productUrls = [
  'https://www.nike.com/t/air-force-1-07-mens-shoes-5QFp5Z/CW2288-111',
  'https://www.adidas.com/us/gazelle-shoes/BB5476.html'
];

const products = await retrieveProductsForComparison(productUrls);
console.log(`Retrieved ${products.length} products for comparison`);

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Extract and normalize comparison attributes from product data:

function extractComparisonAttributes(product) {
  const attrs = product.attributes || {};
  
  return {
    // Basic info
    title: product.title,
    brand: product.brand,
    vendor: product.vendor,
    url: product.url,
    
    // Pricing
    price: product.price_amount,
    currency: product.price_currency,
    minPrice: product.min_price,
    maxPrice: product.max_price,
    onSale: product.min_price < product.max_price,
    
    // Availability
    available: product.is_available,
    availableVariants: product.variants?.filter(v => v.isAvailable).length || 0,
    totalVariants: product.variants?.length || 0,
    
    // Attributes
    color: attrs.color?.merchant_label || attrs.color || 'N/A',
    material: attrs.material?.primary || attrs.material || 'N/A',
    style: attrs.style || [],
    
    // Media
    imageCount: product.images?.length || 0,
    primaryImage: product.images?.[0]?.url || null,
    
    // Description
    summary: attrs.summary || product.description?.substring(0, 200) || ''
  };
}

// Extract attributes for all products
const comparisonData = products.map(extractComparisonAttributes);
console.log('Comparison attributes extracted:', comparisonData);

Step 3: Create Comparison

Build a comparison class to organize and display products side-by-side:

class ProductComparison {
  constructor(products) {
    this.products = products.map(extractComparisonAttributes);
  }
  
  // Generate comparison table data
  generateComparisonTable() {
    const rows = [
      {
        label: 'Product',
        values: this.products.map(p => ({
          title: p.title,
          brand: p.brand,
          image: p.primaryImage
        }))
      },
      {
        label: 'Price',
        values: this.products.map(p => 
          `$${p.price} ${p.currency}`
        )
      },
      {
        label: 'Price Range',
        values: this.products.map(p => {
          if (p.minPrice === p.maxPrice) {
            return `$${p.minPrice}`;
          }
          return `$${p.minPrice} - $${p.maxPrice}`;
        })
      },
      {
        label: 'Availability',
        values: this.products.map(p => 
          p.available ? 
            `In Stock (${p.availableVariants}/${p.totalVariants} variants)` : 
            'Out of Stock'
        )
      },
      {
        label: 'Color',
        values: this.products.map(p => p.color)
      },
      {
        label: 'Material',
        values: this.products.map(p => p.material)
      },
      {
        label: 'Style',
        values: this.products.map(p => p.style.join(', ') || 'N/A')
      }
    ];
    
    return rows;
  }
  
  // Find best value (lowest price among available products)
  findBestValue() {
    const available = this.products.filter(p => p.available);
    if (available.length === 0) return null;
    
    return available.reduce((best, current) => 
      current.price < best.price ? current : best
    );
  }
  
  // Get comparison summary
  getSummary() {
    const bestValue = this.findBestValue();
    const allAvailable = this.products.every(p => p.available);
    const priceRange = {
      min: Math.min(...this.products.map(p => p.minPrice)),
      max: Math.max(...this.products.map(p => p.maxPrice))
    };
    
    return {
      totalProducts: this.products.length,
      allAvailable,
      bestValue: bestValue ? {
        title: bestValue.title,
        price: bestValue.price,
        currency: bestValue.currency
      } : null,
      priceRange
    };
  }
}

// Usage
const comparison = new ProductComparison(products);
const table = comparison.generateComparisonTable();
const summary = comparison.getSummary();

console.log('Comparison Summary:', summary);
console.log('Comparison Table:', table);

Step 4: Error Handling

Handle cases where some products fail to retrieve:

async function retrieveProductsWithErrors(urls) {
  const executionId = await startProductRetrieval(urls);
  const results = await pollForResults(executionId);
  
  const successful = [];
  const failed = [];
  
  results.forEach(result => {
    if (result.success && result.product) {
      successful.push(result.product);
    } else {
      failed.push({
        url: result.url,
        reason: result.outcome || 'Unknown error'
      });
    }
  });
  
  return {
    products: successful,
    errors: failed,
    successRate: (successful.length / urls.length) * 100
  };
}

Best Practices

Enable Enrichment

Always enable enable_enrichment: true when retrieving products for comparison. This provides richer, normalized attributes that make comparisons more meaningful.

Enrichment provides:

Better attribute extraction
Normalized color and material information
Enhanced style and feature descriptions
Consistent data structure across vendors

Handle Missing Data

Not all products will have all attributes. Handle missing data gracefully:

function safeGetAttribute(product, path, defaultValue = 'N/A') {
  const keys = path.split('.');
  let value = product;
  
  for (const key of keys) {
    if (value && typeof value === 'object' && key in value) {
      value = value[key];
    } else {
      return defaultValue;
    }
  }
  
  return value || defaultValue;
}

def safe_get_attribute(product, path, default='N/A'):
    """Safely get nested attribute with default value"""
    keys = path.split('.')
    value = product
    
    for key in keys:
        if isinstance(value, dict) and key in value:
            value = value[key]
        else:
            return default
    
    return value or default

Batch Requests

Retrieve all products in a single batch (up to 1000 URLs) for better performance and consistency.

/extract

Extract high-quality, real-time product data

/extract/{execution_id}

Check extraction status and access results when ready

/agentic-search

AI-powered semantic search tailored to customer profiles

Get Started

API Reference

Guides

Resources

Migration Guides

Overview

Core Concepts

Normalized Product Data

Comparison Dimensions

Building Your Comparison Tool

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Step 3: Create Comparison

Step 4: Error Handling

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Step 3: Create Comparison

Step 4: Error Handling

Best Practices

Enable Enrichment

Handle Missing Data

Batch Requests

/extract

/extract/{execution_id}

/agentic-search

Get Started

API Reference

Guides

Resources

Migration Guides

​Overview

​Core Concepts

​Normalized Product Data

​Comparison Dimensions

​Building Your Comparison Tool

​Step 1: Retrieve Products

​Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

​Step 3: Create Comparison

​Step 4: Error Handling

​Step 1: Retrieve Products

​Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

​Step 3: Create Comparison

​Step 4: Error Handling

​Best Practices

​Enable Enrichment

​Handle Missing Data

​Batch Requests

​Related Endpoints

/extract

/extract/{execution_id}

/agentic-search

Overview

Core Concepts

Normalized Product Data

Comparison Dimensions

Building Your Comparison Tool

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Step 3: Create Comparison

Step 4: Error Handling

Step 1: Retrieve Products

Step 2: Extract Comparison Attributes

Step 3: Create Comparison

Step 4: Error Handling

Best Practices

Enable Enrichment

Handle Missing Data

Batch Requests

Related Endpoints