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In this Help Centre, you can find content for both Merchant Center Next and the classic Merchant Center experience. Look for the logo at the top of each article to make sure that you're using the article for the Merchant Center version that applies to you. 

Onboarding guide

About Merchant Center guidelines

A custom icon for Merchant Center Classic article header.

If you're looking for information about Merchant Center guidelines in Merchant Center Next, click here.

Before creating a Merchant Center account and setting up your product data, you'll need to make sure that your business complies with the Merchant Center guidelines described here:

Promote products [small icon] Only promote products available for direct purchase

Use official language [small icon] Use an official language

Return policy [small icon] Tell customers about your return and refund policy

Collect user information [small icon] Collect user information responsibly and securely

Follow policies [small icon] Follow the relevant policies

Verify claim URL [small icon] Verify and claim your website URL

Website requirements [small icon] Website requirements

Make sure data meets specs [small icon] Make sure that your data meets the product data specification

Sign in Merchant Center [small icon] Sign in to your Merchant Center account regularly


Promote products [Large icon]

Only promote products available for direct purchase

The products that you promote in Shopping ads and free product listings need to be available for purchase through your shop. You're not allowed to use Shopping ads and free listings to promote affiliate or pay-per-click links to products – except when participating as a Comparison Shopping Service (CSS) in a CSS programme country.

Links promoted in Shopping ads and free listings need to lead users directly to a page that allows them to buy the advertised product.

Note: This doesn't apply to vehicle ads, an ad format which allows vehicle advertisers to promote their entire inventory of new and used vehicles (light passenger cars and trucks) to interested customers shopping for vehicles. Learn more about vehicle ads

Learn more about the 'Abuse of network' policy.

Learn more about marketplaces and agencies.


Use official language [Large Icon]

Use a supported language

When listing your products, use a language that is supported in Merchant Center.

You can also list your products in more than one official language. Just make sure that you submit different product data for each language and that the product data links to landing pages in the same language.

Specifically, use the same language for:

  • Your website
  • The product data that you submit
  • The language that you select when registering your product data

Learn more about supported languages


Return policy [large Icon]

Tell customers about your return and refund policy

Add your return policy information to your Shopping ads and free listings to improve the customer experience. Google may add special features and experiences based on your return policy, especially when a return policy or experience is compelling and competitive.

You can share your return policy with Merchant Center manually, or use the Content API to share it automatically.

Please note that even if you provide your return and refund information in Merchant Center, when users buy from your site, they should be able to access your return and refund policy. Make sure that your return and refund policy is clear and easy to find. Even if you don't offer returns or refunds, still state your policy explicitly.

Your policy should explain exactly how you handle returns and refunds, including:

  • What the user is required to do
  • Under what circumstances you offer returns and refunds
  • Timeframe in which you accept returns
  • When your user can expect a refund

Bear in mind

You'll need to process returns and refunds on your own. Google doesn't approve or handle returns or refunds.

Learn more about the 'Misrepresentation of self or product' policy.


Collect user information [Large Icon]

Collect user information responsibly and securely

Be careful with the information that you collect from users. Specifically, follow these guidelines:

  • Collect personal information, such as credit card numbers, securely on an SSL-protected page
  • Don't sell your users' contact info
  • Don't use users' personal information or images in ads without their consent
  • Your site's primary purpose shouldn't be to collect users' personal information
  • Don't offer free items or incentives except in certain circumstances:
    • With purchase of a product
    • As part of a marketing campaign
    • When the primary purpose is not to collect personal information from users

Learn more about the 'Irresponsible data collection and use' policy.
 


Follow policies [Large Icon]

Follow the relevant policies

Google has other policies not specified in this article about exactly what kind of content you can and cannot include in your Shopping ads and free listings. So, before you sign up for a Merchant Center account, make sure that the products that you plan on listing comply with the relevant Shopping policies.

There are policies for advertising products with Shopping ads, listing products for free on Google and other Merchant Center programmes. Learn more about Shopping ads policies.
 


Verify claim URL [Large Icon]

Verify and claim your website

To ensure that you're the owner of your site and to prevent others from claiming your site, you'll need to claim and verify your domain in Search Console. To verify your URL (also known as your website address), you'll need to be able to edit the HTML of your website or be able to upload files to your server.

Learn more about how to verify and claim your website.


Website requirements [Large icon]

Website requirements

We have a set of policies that outline site-level requirements for your website. Based on the Merchant Center features that you use, we may check your website for some basic requirements which include the following:

  • Accurate contact information. Customers need to be able to find out how to contact you on your website in at least one way. Examples include, but are not limited to, a contact us form, a link to your business profile on social media, an email address or phone number.
  • Secure checkout process. Payment and transaction processing, as well as collection of any sensitive and financial personal information from the user, must be conducted over a secure processing server (SSL protected, with a valid SSL certificate – https://).
  • Payment methods. Make sure that at least one conventional method of payment is available to users during checkout. For example, credit card, debit card, invoicing or payment on delivery.
  • Refund policy. Make sure that you include a return and refund policy which clearly states how you handle these actions, including all requirements and any timelines. If returns and refunds are not accepted, you'll need to clearly state this on your site.
  • Billing terms and conditions. Your site must clearly and conspicuously disclose all related conditions before and after purchase and disclose the payment model and full expense that a user will bear before and after purchase.
  • Complete checkout process. Ensure that users can successfully add products to the basket and fully complete the checkout process. Learn more about landing page requirements.

Make sure data meets specs [Large icon]

Make sure that your data meets the product data specification

When you're ready to submit your products through the Merchant Center, you'll need to format your product data to meet the product data specification. These are formatting guidelines that explain how to submit your data so that we can understand it.

While there's a lot of information in the specification, it can be helpful to read through it now so that you understand what kind of info you'll eventually need to submit.

Learn more about the product data specification.


Sign in Merchant Center [Large icon]

Sign in to your Merchant Center account regularly

Sign in to your Merchant Center account at least once every 14 months so that your account stays active. Signing in every once in a while lets us know that your product data is fresh and not out of date.

Onboarding done celebration [graphic]

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