ACF repeaters hold the rows that make a listing useful: floor plans, FAQs, opening hours, team members, product specs. A flat “one column per field” importer cannot represent that. Import WP Pro treats each repeater (and group) as its own mapping section so you can import CSV and XML data into ACF repeater fields automatically.
For the full ACF field list, unique keys, and how Pro includes ACF, see the ACF importer.
Import CSV data into ACF repeater rows
On Template Fields, each ACF repeater or group appears as a dedicated section. Click Add row to create a repeater line, then map sub-fields the same way as any other ACF field — text, images, dates, and the rest of the group.
Tabular CSVs usually encode repeating data as numbered columns (faq_1_question, faq_2_question) or as a related sheet keyed by listing ID. Map those patterns onto repeater rows once. Re-runs populate the same field group on new or existing posts without a custom importer per client.
Typical CSV → repeater jobs:
- Property listings with a variable number of floor plans
- Directories with hours, prices, or amenity rows
- Product extras stored in ACF rather than WooCommerce attributes
ACF repeater XML import with a repeater node
Nested XML is the cleaner source. If the feed already has repeating child nodes, you do not add a mapping row for every item.
Set Repeater Node to the repeating path (for example /Repeater/item). Map each sub-field once from a child node. Import WP loops the node and writes every matching row into the ACF repeater. Three items in XML become three repeater rows; thirty items become thirty — without thirty empty mapping rows in the UI.
That nested repeater WordPress import is what supplier and MLS-style XML actually looks like. When the schema changes, you adjust the node path rather than rewriting PHP.
Append or replace ACF repeater rows on re-import
A nightly feed should not always wipe editorial rows. Decide the update behaviour for the repeater:
- Replace when the feed is the system of record (supplier specs, portal amenities).
- Append when editors add rows in WordPress that the feed must not destroy.
Combine that with a unique identifier on the parent post so Import WP updates the right listing. Permissions control whether missing records are created, updated, or skipped.
You should not need a acf/update_value hook to get this right. Map the repeater, set the key, run the importer. Details and screenshots: Import ACF repeater fields.