What is EasyCatalog?
EasyCatalog is a plug-in for Adobe InDesign, published by the British company 65bit Software. It links an InDesign document to a data source — a spreadsheet, a text file, an XML feed, a database — and fills the layout with that data, then keeps it up to date when the data changes.
The principle: the layout reads the data, it does not contain it
In a standard InDesign document, a price is a piece of text typed into a frame. Nobody knows where it came from or whether it is still correct. With EasyCatalog, that same price is a field marker: the frame does not contain the value, it contains a reference to a column in the data file. The plug-in displays the corresponding value and keeps the link.
Three direct consequences:
The layout fills itself
You place the structure of a product entry once, then repeat it across the whole catalogue. Copying and pasting from Excel disappears from the process.
The document remains verifiable
At any time, InDesign can compare what is displayed with what the source says. A discrepancy is visible; it does not have to be guessed at during proofreading.
The data can still change
A last-minute correction in the spreadsheet is carried through to the document, without redoing the layout.
What it is used for in practice
Any document whose structure repeats and whose content comes from elsewhere: product catalogues, promotional flyers and leaflets, directories, brochures, data sheets, price lists, labels and shelf-edge strips, guides. As soon as the same template comes back dozens or hundreds of times with different content, manual work becomes both costly and risky — which is precisely EasyCatalog's territory.
Where the data comes from
The usual sources are the files produced by marketing departments and information systems: Excel workbooks, CSV or tab-delimited text exports, Google Sheets spreadsheets, XML feeds, and databases queried directly. This point matters for a project's schedule: the quality of the input file determines the implementation time. A clean export — one piece of information per column, one row per product, a unique identifier — connects quickly. An export full of merged cells, two-level headers and columns repeated per language first requires preparation work.
The unique identifier, the only truly structuring constraint
EasyCatalog needs to recognise each row from one import to the next in order to know what to update. This requires a column — or a combination of columns — that identifies each record unambiguously and does not change between two deliveries. It is the first thing to check on a file, even before discussing the layout. The data preparation tools on this site test this uniqueness and suggest the minimal combination of columns that guarantees it.
What the plug-in does not do
EasyCatalog is not a PIM: it consumes data, it does not manage it over time and is not the place to correct it. Nor does it design the layout for you: graphic design, the grid, styles and pagination logic remain the layout artist's job. Finally, it invents nothing — if a piece of data is wrong or missing at the source, it will be wrong or missing in the document, simply in a systematic way and therefore easier to spot.
Do you need to know how to code?
Not for everyday use: connecting a source, placing fields and paginating a simple catalogue are all done through the interface. The need for technical skills appears in complex cases — advanced conditional formatting, custom automation, large volumes, deep product hierarchies. That is where guidance saves the most time, and it is also the purpose of the training and support offered here.
The quickest way to get a feel for it is still to watch: ten demonstrations on real projects show the complete move, from data to page. The shortest one lasts forty-four seconds.
How to try it
65bit Software distributes a trial that is free for 30 days, with no feature restrictions: it is the complete product, for one month. There is also a free, permanent module, EasyCatalog Reader, which lets you open and edit an EasyCatalog document while preserving its field markers and data — useful for a service provider or printer who receives a file without owning the full licence; updating the data, however, remains reserved for the full licence. The downloads page gathers the official installers and the compatibility table with InDesign versions.
Frequently asked questions
Is EasyCatalog a standalone application?
No. It is a plug-in: it installs into Adobe InDesign and is used from within InDesign. Without InDesign, it is of no use. You therefore need a working InDesign licence, in a version compatible with the installed version of EasyCatalog.
What is the difference between EasyCatalog and InDesign's Data Merge?
Native Data Merge produces a document once, from a file: the link with the source is lost afterwards, and any update means regenerating everything. EasyCatalog keeps the link: the document remains attached to its data and can be updated, checked and repaginated without starting over. It is this persistence of the link that makes the difference on a catalogue that lives for several weeks and goes through several rounds of corrections.
Do you need a perfect file to start?
No, but you need a usable file. The most frequent blocking points are merged cells, headers spread over several rows, interspersed empty rows, formulas that have not been frozen, and the absence of a unique identifier. These issues are fixed before import; they cannot be fixed comfortably once the document is in production.
Can several people work on the same catalogue?
Yes, with the same precautions as a standard InDesign document split into chapters or books. The question that matters is that of the data source: it must remain single and authoritative, otherwise two layout artists are working from two different truths. This is one of the points examined during a project validation.
Does EasyCatalog run on both Mac and Windows?
Yes, on both platforms. 65bit Software releases a Mac installer and a Windows installer for each version. The version to choose depends on the InDesign version, not on the operating system.