How to Set Up Google Merchant Center and Get Your Products Listed on Google

Step 1: Create your Merchant Center account

Go to merchants.google.com/mc and sign in with the Google Account you will use to manage the store. During sign up, Google asks you to tell it about your business and where you sell (online, in a physical store or both), to select checkout options, and to choose how product information gets from your website to Google. If you use a platform such as Shopify, you can connect it here and it will sync your products automatically.

Choose the country in your business address carefully. Google’s documentation says it cannot be changed later, and the time zone fills in from it.

Step 2: Add your business information

Select Business info under Settings, then select Edit business details. Enter a short Business name that represents your business, fill in the Business address fields and select Save. Then fill in the Customer service details. Google asks you to include your domain name in the email field, so use an address such as help@yourstore.com rather than a free mailbox.

Use the same name and contact details your website shows. A false identity or false contact details is one of the issues Google’s misrepresentation policy lists.

Step 3: Verify and claim your website

Select Settings, then Business info, then Edit online store. Enter your store URL starting with http:// or https:// and select Continue. Use a domain you own and maintain. Google offers several ways to verify it: through your ecommerce platform, by email, by adding an HTML tag or file to your site, or through Google Tag Manager or Google Analytics.

If you already use Google Analytics, Merchant Center may verify the site automatically. A URL can be claimed by only one account.

Step 4: Set up shipping and return policies

Go to Shipping and returns under Products & store, open the Shipping policies tab and select Add shipping policy. Choose the countries and products it covers, set the shipping speed and the cost, such as a flat rate or free shipping over a specific order value. Shipping settings or a shipping attribute in your product data are required for free listings in many countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, France and Australia.

Then select Return policies and Add return policy, add your policy URL, return window and method, and select Save. Google recommends a return policy, and it must be readable on your site without logging in.

Step 5: Add your products and choose how they stay updated

Go to Products under Products & store. Under All products, select Add products, or Add another product source if you already have one. Then pick the method that fits your store:

• From your online store. Google reads the structured data on your product pages at least once every 24 hours. Your site must be verified and must not block Googlebot.
• From an ecommerce platform. Connect it and follow the on screen instructions. All products may take up to 3 days to appear.
• Google Sheets. Select Use Google Sheets, then Use template, fill it in and set a sync schedule (every 24 hours by default).
• A file. Use a .txt, .xml or .tsv file up to 4 GB. With Enter a link to your file, Merchant Center fetches it every 24 hours by default. A file uploaded from your computer must be uploaded again after every change.

Whatever the method, each product needs the required attributes: id (up to 50 characters, ideally the SKU), title (up to 150), description (up to 5,000), link on your verified domain, image_link, availability and price. In the US and Canada, leave tax out of the price. In most other countries, include VAT. A tab-delimited file starts like this:

id	title	description	link	image_link	availability	price
A2B4	Merino Wool Beanie, Charcoal	Soft merino beanie with a ribbed cuff.	https://www.example.com/beanie	https://www.example.com/img/beanie.jpg	in_stock	15.00 USD

Plan ahead for images: Google has announced that every product image must be at least 500 x 500 pixels, with enforcement starting January 31, 2027. Placeholder or generic images are not allowed.

Step 6: Fix flagged products and go live

Open Products and check the Needs attention tab. Select an issue to open its Issue Details Page. It explains the cause, the impact on your account and the fix, and for applicable violations you can request a review on the same page.

Free listings are turned on by default in most accounts. To check, select Marketing methods under Marketing and look at the Free listings card. If you also want to run Shopping ads, go to Access and services under Settings, select Apps and services, then Add service, choose Google Ads and follow the steps to link your account.