product_type: Definition

Use the product_type attribute to include your own product categorization system in your product data. Unlike the google_product_category attribute, you choose which value to include. The values you submit for product_type can be used to organize the bidding and reporting in your Google Ads Shopping campaign. 

When to use

Optional for each product

Format

Follow these formatting guidelines to make sure we understand the data you're submitting. 

Type	String (Unicode characters. Recommended: ASCII only)
Limits	0 - 750 characters
Repeated field	Up to 5 times, but keep in mind that only the first product_type value will be used to organize bidding and reporting in Google Ads Shopping campaigns. Separate multiple product types, with a comma ( , ). Don't use a comma ( , ) within a submitted product type value, since we would interpret this as separate product types. (For example, if you submit House, Garden & Kitchen, the value House is interpreted as a separate product type from Garden & Kitchen.)

 

File format	Example value
Text feeds	Home > Women > Dresses > Maxi Dresses
XML feeds	<g:product_type>Home &gt; Dresses &gt; Maxi Dresses</g:product_type>

To format your data for Content API, see the Content API for Shopping.

• Learn more about the format requirements for repeated and/or group attributes in text feeds
• Learn more about the format requirements for repeated and/or group attributes in Google sheets

Guidelines

Follow these guidelines to make sure you submit high-quality data for your products.

Minimum requirements

These are the requirements you'll need to meet to show your product. If you don't follow these requirements, we'll disapprove your product and let you know in the Diagnostics page in your Merchant Center account.

• There are no minimum requirements for this attribute. Keep in mind that you still need to follow the formatting guidelines or the information you submit can't be used.

Best practices

These best practices can help you go beyond the basic requirements to optimize your product data for performance.

• Use > to separate multiple levels in a category. Also, include a space before and after the > symbol. For example: Home > Women > Dresses > Maxi Dresses.
• Submit product_type for products used in any campaign type. When you submit a product_type, we can better understand what you're selling, and when we understand what you're selling, we can help connect users with your products. Plus, you can also use the values you submit to organize your Shopping campaign by values of your own choosing.
• If you use product_type to organize your bidding and reporting in Google Ads, we recommend that you don't submit more than 1 value. Only the first value will be used. Learn about managing your product groups with product type
• If your own product categorization includes multiple levels, include all the levels. For example, if your products belong in Maxi Dresses, list the full string: Home > Women > Dresses > Maxi Dresses.
• Use the full “breadcrumb” information. Wherever possible, we recommend you include more granular categories as it classifies your product more precisely.For example, Books > Non-Fiction > Sports > Baseball is better than Baseball. Learn more about using product type to organize your Shopping campaigns
• It's OK to give us the same values for google_product_category and product_type attributes, but the google_product_category value has to be a supported Google product category.

Examples

Product type with multiple levels

Product	Maxi Dress
product_type	Home > Women > Dresses > Maxi Dresses

 

Product	Google Pixel 3
product_type	Product > Mobile Phones > Android

 

Product	SLR Camera Lens
product_type	Home > Photography > Lenses > SLR Lenses