How to Add Products to Google Shopping: A Step-by-Step Guide

Shayak Hossain
July 14, 2026
Google Shopping
About 8 Min Read

Adding products to Google Shopping means creating a Google Merchant Center account, submitting a product feed with required attributes such as id, title, price, availability, and image link, and then linking that account to Google Ads to run Shopping campaigns. WooCommerce store owners typically generate this feed with a plugin such as CTX Feed, which maps product data automatically instead of building the file by hand.

Here’s the process in five steps:

Set up a Google Merchant Center account
Optimize product images and videos
Upload product data to Google Merchant Center
Link Google Ads with Merchant Center
Create a Google Shopping campaign

How to Add Products to Google Shopping Using CTX Feed

Step 1: Set Up a Google Merchant Center Account

Go to the Google Merchant Center homepage and select “Get Started” if you’re new, or sign in if you already have an account. Note: Google removed the “Next” label from Merchant Center in July 2026, so you may see it referred to simply as Google Merchant Center in newer documentation. The underlying setup process is unchanged.

You’ll need to provide:

Business name: Your legal business name.
Business country: The country your business operates from.
Time zone: Your local time zone.
eCommerce platform: Details about the platform you sell on (for example, WooCommerce).

After you accept the Merchant Center Terms of Service, click “Create account.”

Next, verify and claim your website. You can do this using any of the following methods:

Business code: A verification code sent to your business email.
eCommerce platform integration: A code applied directly through your platform.
HTML tag: A tag pasted into the <head> section of your homepage.
Google Tag Manager: A container snippet added to your homepage’s <head> section.
Google Analytics: Your existing tracking code, if it’s already installed on your homepage.

The Google Analytics or HTML tag methods are usually the fastest if you already have either set up.

Step 2: Optimize Product Images and Videos

Product images are one of the most common reasons listings get rejected, so it’s worth getting the specs right before you submit a feed.

Current Google Shopping image requirements:

Non-apparel products: Minimum 100 x 100 pixels.
Apparel products: Minimum 250 x 250 pixels.
Maximum image size: 64 megapixels.
Maximum file size: 16MB.
Recommended size: 800 x 800 pixels or larger for better display quality.

Google is rolling out a new 500 x 500 pixel minimum for all product categories, with warnings appearing on smaller images starting mid-2026 and a hard enforcement deadline of January 31, 2027. If you’re photographing products now, shoot at 800 x 800 or larger so you don’t need to redo this work later.

These same specs work across most other marketplaces, including Amazon, eBay, and Walmart, so one properly sized image set covers multiple channels.

Step 3: Upload Product Data to Google Merchant Center

You can add products to the Merchant Center two ways: individually, one at a time, or as a product feed containing every item in a single file. For any catalog beyond a handful of products, a feed is faster and easier to keep current.

If you run WooCommerce, a feed plugin such as CTX Feed handles this without manual file building. Install CTX Feed from the WordPress plugin directory, then go to CTX Feed > Make a Feed and fill in the required fields. Click “Update and Generate Feed” and the plugin builds the file for you. Generation time depends on catalog size but is typically quick.

Google organizes shopping feed attributes into categories such as:

Basic product information: id, title, description, link, image_link.
Price and availability: price, availability, condition.
Product identifiers: gtin, mpn, brand.
Shipping: shipping cost, weight, dimensions.

The full attribute list is long and gets updated periodically, so check Google’s current product data specification before finalizing your feed rather than relying on a fixed count.

Once your feed is ready, go to Merchant Center > Products > Feeds to upload it. You have three options:

Uploading via Google Sheets

Choose the Google Sheets template as your feed input method, select a Google account, and either create a new spreadsheet from the template or use an existing one. Fill in your product information (ID, title, description, price, and so on), then return to the Merchant Center and click Continue to generate your listings.

Uploading from a file

Submit a link to a spreadsheet or XML file. A username and password are only needed if the file URL itself is password-protected. You can also upload via sFTP (files must stay under 4GB) or upload directly from your computer in TXT, XML, or TSV format, also under 4GB. Files submitted this way refresh automatically every 24 hours. CTX Feed can also auto-update the file on a schedule you set, anywhere from every hour to once a week or longer.

Uploading via API

For frequent changes or large catalogs, the API route is more efficient than manual re-uploads. Note that the legacy Content API for Shopping is being retired, with a shutdown date of August 18, 2026. Google’s replacement, the Merchant API, is the one to build against now if you’re starting fresh or planning a new integration.

Once your feed is approved, products appear in the Google Shopping tab for relevant searches. To actively promote them rather than waiting for organic traffic, continue to Steps 4 and 5.

Step 4: Link Google Ads with Merchant Center

In your Google Ads account, go to Ad Campaigns, then find “Link to Google Ads” and click Link. Select the Google Ads account you want to connect to. Once linked, your Ads account can pull product data directly from Merchant Center for Shopping campaigns.

Step 5: Create a Google Shopping Campaign

Click “Campaigns” in the left menu.
Select “+New campaign.”
Choose “Shopping” as the campaign type.
Click “Next.”
Set your advertising preferences.
Click “Save and continue.”
Build an ad group.
Set your bid.
Click “Save.”

A well-optimized feed matters more here than campaign settings alone. Accurate titles, current pricing, and correct availability data directly affect whether your ads get approved and how they perform.

5 Key Benefits of Adding Products to Google Shopping

Free listings: Since 2020, Google has let merchants list products for free on the Shopping tab, in addition to paid ads.
Strong ROI potential: Google’s own economic-impact estimates cite returns as high as $8 for every $1 spent in well-optimized accounts, though the more typical industry average sits closer to $2 for every $1.
High share of retail ad activity: Shopping ads account for roughly 76% of retail search ad spend and around 85% of clicks across Google Ads and Shopping campaigns.
Visual-first discovery: Product images let shoppers evaluate items at a glance, which is part of why Shopping ads tend to outperform text-only search ads for retail queries.
Remarketing built in: Once someone has viewed or clicked your listing, Google Ads makes it straightforward to re-target them with follow-up ads.

Best Practices for Google Shopping Feeds

Title and description: Keep titles around 150 characters with the most important product details up front. Write descriptions that state specific features rather than generic marketing language.
Feed accuracy: Keep pricing, availability, and product identifiers current. Mismatched data between your site and your feed is one of the most common causes of disapprovals.
Audience targeting: Narrow your Google Ads settings by location, demographics, and device so your budget reaches people who are more likely to convert.
Image quality: Follow Google’s current image specs and shoot for 800 x 800 pixels or larger so your listings are ready for the 2027 minimum.
Performance review: Check Merchant Center’s diagnostics regularly for feed errors, and review Google Ads conversion data to see which products are actually driving sales.

Best WooCommerce Product Feed Plugin for Google Shopping

If you’re running WooCommerce, CTX Feed generates and maintains your Google Shopping feed without manually building an XML or spreadsheet file. It maps WooCommerce product data to Google’s required attributes and keeps the feed updated on a schedule you set.

The plugin is built specifically around the pain points of feed management: filtering out unlisted or incomplete products, keeping large catalogs current across multiple channels, and adjusting product data conditionally without changing anything in WooCommerce itself.

Key Features

Automatic attribute mapping to Google Shopping’s required fields.
Product filtering to exclude out-of-stock, incomplete, or unwanted items from your feed.
Scheduled auto-updates, adjustable from hourly to weekly.
Dynamic attributes for combining or adjusting fields, such as merging brand and title, without editing product data directly.
Multi-language and multi-currency feed support for stores running WPML or similar plugins.

Check CTX Feed’s current pricing and free-version limits on the official plugin page before deciding which tier fits your catalog size.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I manually add products to Google Shopping?

Log in to the Merchant Center, go to Products, then All products. Click “Add products” and choose the option to add products individually. This works fine for a handful of items, but a feed is faster once your catalog grows past a few dozen products.

What are the Google Shopping feed requirements?

Your feed needs core fields such as id, title, description, link, image_link, price, condition, availability, and brand. A feed plugin like CTX Feed maps these automatically, but check Google’s current product data specification since required fields can change by category.

I don’t run Google Ads. Do I still need a Merchant Center account?

Yes. Merchant Center account creation and free product listings don’t require an active Google Ads account. You only need to link Google Ads if you want to run paid Shopping campaigns in addition to free listings.

Can I use Google Shopping to advertise products I sell on Amazon?

Not directly. Google Shopping requires a product feed tied to your own website through Merchant Center; it doesn’t pull listings from Amazon or route traffic there. If you sell the same products on your own WooCommerce store, you can list those independently on Google Shopping.

Why are my products not showing on Google Shopping?

The most common causes are feed errors (missing required attributes), disapproved images (wrong size or a promotional overlay), or a product still in Google’s review queue. Check the “Needs attention” section in Merchant Center first, since it usually names the exact issue.

How long does it take for products to appear on Google Shopping?

New Merchant Center accounts typically see products go live in a few business days once a feed is approved, though full features can take a few weeks to activate for brand-new accounts.

Key Takeaways

Adding products to Google Shopping starts with a verified Google Merchant Center account, not a Google Ads account.
A product feed is faster to manage than adding items individually once your catalog grows beyond a few dozen products.
Image size minimums are shifting toward 500 x 500 pixels by January 2027, so it’s worth photographing at 800 x 800 or larger now.
The Content API for Shopping is being retired on August 18, 2026 in favor of the Merchant API for any new API-based integrations.
Google Shopping listings are free by default; linking Google Ads is only required if you want to run paid Shopping campaigns.
Feed accuracy, not campaign settings, is usually the biggest factor in whether products get approved and perform well.

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