Use the item_group_id
attribute to group product variants in your product data. Variants are a group of similar items that only differ from one another by product details like size
, color
, material
, pattern
, age_group
, and gender
.
When you use an item_group_id
to group your products, you can ensure that your product and its variants are shown to users as a group, instead of separately.
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When to use
Required for enhanced free listings for product variants
Required for Shopping ads for product variants targeting the following countries:
- Brazil
- France
- Germany
- Japan
- United Kingdom
- United States
Format
Follow these formatting guidelines to make sure we understand the data you're submitting.
Type | Unicode characters (Recommended: ASCII only): alphanumeric, underscores, and dashes |
---|---|
Limits | 1–50 characters |
Repeated field | No |
Schema.org property (What’s this?) |
Product.inProductGroupWithID , Type: Text |
File format | Example value |
---|---|
Text feeds | AB12345 |
XML feeds | <g:item_group_id>AB12345</g:item_group_id> |
To format your data for Content API, see the Content API for Shopping.
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.
- Use the same value for
item_group_id
for all variants of the same product. For example, a T-shirt comes in 9 variants: 3 sizes (small, medium, and large) and 3 colors (red, blue, and green). Submit each variant as a separate product (for example, 9 separate products), and submit the same value ofitem_group_id
for each product to indicate that these are variants. - Each distinct item group must have a unique value for
item_group_id
.- Don’t rely on casing to make
item_group_id
unique. For example, we interpret theitem_group_id
abc123 and ABC123 as the same product. - Don’t reuse or recycle the same
item_group_id
for different products.
- Don’t rely on casing to make
- Submit a variant attribute along with
item_group_id
. So when submittingitem_group_id
, make sure that your variants use at least one of the variant attributes:color
,pattern
,material
,age_group
,gender
, andsize
. - Use the same variant attributes for all products with the same
item_group_id
. For example, if you submit a dress in 2 colors and 2 sizes, each product you submit must provide a value for thecolor
attribute and thesize
attribute. Don't just provide the color or size for one dress, but not the others. - Make sure that the product details displayed on your landing page match the values you provide for each attribute like
title
,color
,pattern
,material
,price
,availability
, andimage_link
. Learn more about requirements for landing pages
Best practices
These best practices can help you go beyond the basic requirements to optimize your product data for performance.
- Use the parent SKU as the
item_group_id
for all variants of the same product. Don't submit a parent SKU as a separate product. If you'd like to group variants using a parent SKU, use the parent SKU as the value foritem_group_id
for all products in the variant group. - Don’t mix up
item_group_id
andid
attributes. Use theid
attribute to uniquely identify a single product, and useitem_group_id
to group together several products as variants. - Don’t submit
item_group_id
if your product is not a variant. If your product is similar to other products, but not specifically a variant, don’t submititem_group_id
. Some examples of products that are not variants include assorted items (a suit consisting of a jacket and pants) or any other set of dissimilar items that are sold together (a set of bath accessories). - Use a stable
item_group_id
for each group of product variants. Once you've assigned anitem_group_id
to a product, don't change it. Ifitem_group_id
changes often, it could cause inconsistency in the way variants are grouped and shown to users. - Don’t use
item_group_id
for unsupported variants. If your product varies by an unsupported attribute (such as car make and model), or if your product is a build-to-order custom good with a large number of variants (more than 30), then don't useitem_group_id
to indicate your variants. Review best practices for submitting unsupported variants
Examples
General examples
Submit variant details through the variant attributes. For example: |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Small - Red |
id |
12345-S-R |
color |
red |
size |
S |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Medium - Blue |
id |
12345-M-B |
color |
blue |
size |
M |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Don’t submit variants without variant attributes. For example, don’t do this: |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Small - Red |
id |
12345-S-R |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Small - Blue |
id |
12345-S-B |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Apparel products
Apparel products typically come in variants. Use the same item_group_id
for each variant. Here’s an example that comes in 2 colors, each in 3 sizes.
Note: The gender
attribute may be mandatory depending on the country of sale, and is required in order for variant attributes to be displayed accurately.
For this example, you’d submit these 6 variants:
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Small - White |
id |
12345-S-W |
color |
white |
size |
S |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Small - Black |
id |
12345-S-B |
color |
black |
size |
S |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Medium - White |
id |
12345-M-W |
color |
white |
size |
M |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Medium - Black |
id |
12345-M-B |
color |
black |
size |
M |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Large - White |
id |
12345-L-W |
color |
white |
size |
L |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Google logo T-shirt |
title |
Google Logo T-shirt - Large - Black |
id |
12345-L-B |
color |
black |
size |
L |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Shoes
Submit shoes in the same way as other apparel products. Group variants of the same product by adding the same item_group_id
to each variant.
Product | Low top shoes |
title |
Low Top Shoes - 8 Narrow |
id |
12460-8b-blu |
color |
blue/orange/green |
size |
8B |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Low top shoes |
title |
Low Top Shoes - 8 |
id |
12460-8-blu |
color |
blue/orange/green |
size |
8 |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Product | Low top shoes |
title |
Low Top Shoes - 8 - Wide |
id |
12460-8w-blu |
color |
blue/orange/green |
size |
8W |
item_group_id |
12345 |
Electronics can be submitted as variants. For example, if a phone is available in multiple colors, you can submit each as a variant by using the same value for item_group_id
.
Product | Google Nexus 6 |
title |
Google Nexus 6 - 32 GB - Midnight Blue - unlocked |
id |
2345-32gb-midblu |
color |
midnight blue |
item_group_id |
2345 |
Product | Refurbished Google Nexus 6 |
title |
Google Nexus 6 - 32 GB - Cloud White - With contract |
id |
2345-32gb-cldwh |
color |
cloud white |
item_group_id |
2345 |
Furniture can be submitted as variants. For example, if a couch is available in multiple fabrics, you can submit each as a variant by using the same value for item_group_id
.
Product | Mid-century sofa |
title |
Mid-Century Microfiber Sofa - Dot Pattern - Yellow and Gray |
id |
3456-dot-yllw-gry |
color |
yellow/gray |
material |
suede |
item_group_id |
3456 |
Product | Mid-century sofa |
title |
Mid-Century Microfiber Sofa - Leather - Green |
id |
3456-lth-grn |
color |
green |
material |
leather |
item_group_id |
3456 |
Product | Molded plywood lounge chair |
title |
Molded Plywood Lounge Chair - Walnut |
id |
1a2b3c-wal |
color |
walnut |
material |
plywood |
item_group_id |
1a2b3c |
Product | Molded plywood lounge chair |
title |
Molded Plywood Lounge Chair - Ash |
id |
1a2b3c-ash |
color |
ash |
material |
plywood |
item_group_id |
1a2b3c |
Makeup products can be submitted as variants. For example, if makeup comes in multiple colors, you could submit each color as a variant by using the same value for item_group_id
.
Product | Blend liquid makeup |
title |
Blend Liquid Makeup - Beige |
id |
0987-b |
color |
beige |
item_group_id |
0987 |
Product | Blend liquid makeup |
title |
Blend Liquid Makeup - Beige Medium |
id |
0987-bmed |
color |
beige medium |
item_group_id |
0987 |
Groceries
item_group_id
. Product | Basmati Rice |
title |
Basmati Rice - Extra long grain |
id |
575185159 |
item_group_id |
123456 |
price |
$11.20 |
unit_pricing_measure |
5 lbs |
unit_pricing_base_measure |
1 lb |