google_product_category [google_product_category]: Definition

All products are automatically assigned a product category from Google's continuously evolving product taxonomy. Providing high-quality, on-topic titles and descriptions, as well as accurate pricing, brand and GTIN information will help make sure that your products are correctly categorised.

When to use

Optional for each product.

Google will only accept a product category override in the following cases:

1. Calculation of US taxes. For products sold in the US, you can override Google's automatic categorisation to make sure that the correct US tax rate is applied to your product.
2. Enforcement of category-specific attribute requirements. Some product categories (such as Apparel & Accessories, Mobile Phones or Software) impose additional required fields. If Google incorrectly assigns your product to one of these categories, use this attribute to override the categorisation and remove the category-specific requirements.
3. Targeting of Google Ads campaigns. If you've defined any of your ad campaigns based on Google's product categories, you can use this attribute to reassign products within your campaign structure.  Learn more about managing a Shopping campaign with product groups.

Format

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

For format API information, please see Content API for Shopping.

Guidelines

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

• Use only a predefined Google product category. You can choose to submit either the ID or the full path of the product category. If you want to submit your own product category, use the product_type [product_type] attribute.
• Use the one category that best describes your product. Choose the category based on your product's main function. For example, even though an MP3 player might have other functions, like a clock, its main function is as an MP3 player. So you would use the MP3 player category: Electronics > Audio > Audio Players & Recorders > MP3 Players (233). 
• Use the most specific category possible. For example, for an MP3 player charger, use the MP3 player accessories category: Electronics > Audio > Audio Accessories > MP3 Player Accessories (232). Don't just use: Electronics (222)
• Use categories published after August 2011. Don't use categories that were published before August 2011. Use the links above for the latest values.

Best practices

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

• Use the latest categories. In Google Ads, bidding on Shopping campaigns is based on the latest categories. While you can submit any version of the categories published after August 2011, we'll translate these to the latest version. So if you use out-of-date categories, what you submit might not match what you see. 

Additional guidelines

Review each section closely to determine whether the requirements apply to your country or product. If you don't follow requirements that apply to you, we'll disapprove your product and let you know in the Diagnostics page of your Merchant Center account.

Examples