Google product issues
Fix what blocks your products, so more of them show in Google Shopping ads. This page lists every issue the app shows for a Google feed, what it means, and where to fix it.
Critical issues and warnings
Google Merchant Center is the Google account that holds your product listings. It reviews each product and reports problems. The app shows them at two levels:
| Level | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | The product can't show on Google until you fix it | Fix these first |
| Warning | The product can show, but may be shown less or perform worse | Fix these next |
The app also checks your products before Google does. These early results show as Predicted by the app pre-check, so you can fix a problem before Google rejects the product.
Where to find your issues
- Dashboard → Top issues: the most common problems across all your feeds, critical ones first. See Dashboard.
- Feed page → Feed health: the top issues of one feed. Click the product count on an issue to see only those products.
- Product window: click a product, or choose View & edit. The right column lists the errors from Google Merchant Center and the issues Predicted by the app pre-check. Click Learn more on an issue to see how to fix it.
On the feed's Products tab, the Issue type filter shows one problem at a time. The Fix type filter splits issues into Edit in Shopify and Manual fix. See Feed details.
Google writes some issue names itself, so the wording in the app can differ slightly from this page. Match the issue by its meaning.
Where to fix an issue
Each issue below names the place to fix it.
| Where | Use it when | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| In Shopify | The product itself is wrong: price, stock, image, barcode, weight | Your store and every feed |
| Attributes tab of the feed | Many products miss the same detail, like brand or category | That feed only |
| Product window (View & edit) | One product needs its own value | That product in that feed only |
| In Merchant Center | The problem is in your Google account: shipping, tax, store domain | Your Google account |
After a fix, click Update feed at the top of the feed page. Google sees the fix at its next fetch, then reviews the product again. Edits in the app change the feed only. Your Shopify products stay the same.
For the full steps, see How to fix rejected products.
Most common issues
Missing GTIN or MPN
The product has no GTIN (its barcode number) and no MPN (the manufacturer's part number). Google uses them to match your product to what shoppers search for. Without them, the product can show, but Google may show it less.
Missing product category
The product has no Google product category. Google uses the category to decide which searches your product fits. Without one, the product can end up in front of the wrong shoppers.
The GTIN is not valid
The barcode in Shopify is not one Google accepts. It may have the wrong number of digits, a typing mistake, or be a code made for in-store use only. Google rejects the product until the barcode is right.
Missing shipping information
The feed sells in a country that none of your shipping services in Merchant Center covers. Google has no delivery cost to show, so it blocks the product in that country.
Title or description is too long
The app shows Title is over 150 characters, Description is over 5000 characters or Brand is over 70 characters. Google cuts off text that is too long, so shoppers may miss the key details.
Looking for Missing description or Out of stock? See Common issues on the feed details page.
All issues by topic
Identifiers: GTIN, MPN and brand
A GTIN is the barcode number on the packaging. Products with a correct GTIN usually show more often.
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing GTIN or MPN | Warning | The product has no barcode and no part number | Add the barcode in Shopify, or mark the product as having no unique identifier |
| Missing brand | Critical | The product has no brand | In the feed's Attributes tab, fill the brand from the Shopify vendor or your store name |
| GTIN has the wrong length | Critical | The barcode is not 8, 12, 13 or 14 digits | Enter a valid barcode in the Barcode field in Shopify |
| GTIN check digit is wrong | Critical | The barcode has a typing mistake, so its last digit doesn't add up | Retype the barcode in Shopify exactly as printed on the packaging |
| GTIN is for in-store use | Critical | The barcode starts with 2, 02 or 04. Google can also report it as a restricted GTIN | Check the barcode with the manufacturer. Correct it or remove it in Shopify |
| GTIN is a coupon code | Critical | The barcode starts with 05, 98 or 99 | Remove it from the Barcode field in Shopify |
| GTIN is for a bulk pack | Critical | The barcode belongs to a carton or multi-pack | Use the barcode printed on the single unit you sell |
| GTIN is missing a leading zero | Warning | The barcode is one zero short at the start | Add the zero at the start of the barcode in Shopify |
| UPC is not valid | Critical | The UPC barcode is not written correctly | Correct the barcode in Shopify |
| Duplicate GTIN across products | Critical | Two products in the feed share one barcode | Merge the duplicates, or keep them as variants of one product |
| Marked as no identifier, but has one | Warning | The product is marked as having no unique identifier, yet it has a barcode or MPN | Clear that setting, or remove the barcode and MPN if the product truly has none |
| Incorrect identifier | Critical | Google checked the barcode and it doesn't belong to this product | Use the product's real GTIN, MPN and brand |
| Inaccurate identifier | Critical | The barcode doesn't match the official barcode records | Check the barcode with the manufacturer, then correct it in Shopify |
| Brand doesn't match the GTIN | Critical | The barcode belongs to another brand | Check that the barcode is from this brand. Correct the brand or the barcode |
| Identifier reused | Critical | A product ID was used before for a different product | Keep one ID per product. Don't reuse the ID of a removed product |
Price and availability
Price, sale price and availability always come from Shopify. Fix them in Shopify, then click Update feed.
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing or zero price | Critical | The product has no price, or a price of 0 | Set a price above 0 in Shopify |
| Price is not valid | Critical | The price is not above 0, or has more than two decimals | Correct the price in Shopify |
| Sale price is not valid | Critical | The sale price is higher than the regular price | Correct the product's prices in Shopify |
| Suspicious price for category | Warning | The price looks unlikely for this kind of product | Check that the price in Shopify is right |
| Currency doesn't match the country | Critical | The price uses a currency Google doesn't accept for the feed's country | Use the currency of the feed's country. See Create a feed |
| Mismatched price | Critical | The feed price differs from the price on your product page | Show the same price on the product page, then click Update feed |
| Mismatched regional price | Warning | The price for one region differs from your product page there | Show the same regional price on the product page |
| Missing availability | Critical | The product has no in stock or out of stock value | Check the product's inventory in Shopify |
| Availability is not valid | Critical | The value is not in stock, out of stock, preorder or backorder | Use one of these four values |
| Out of stock | Critical | The product has no stock, so it is held back | Restock it in Shopify, or exclude it with an optimize rule |
| Mismatched availability | Critical | The feed says in stock, but your product page says otherwise, or the reverse | Make the product page match your stock, then click Update feed |
| Mismatched regional availability | Warning | Availability for one region differs from your product page there | Make the product page in that region match your stock |
| Unit pricing base measure is not valid | Warning | The base amount for a price per unit is not one Google allows | Use an allowed base, like 100 ml, 1 kg or 1 ct |
| Unit pricing measure is missing | Warning | A base amount is set, but the product's own size is missing | Add the product's size next to it in the feed's Attributes tab |
Images
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing product image | Critical | The product has no image | Add an image to the product in Shopify |
| Image could not be crawled | Critical | The image doesn't load for Google | Upload the image again in Shopify |
| Image blocked by robots.txt | Critical | Your store's robots.txt file, which tells search engines what they may read, blocks Google from the image | Edit robots.txt in your Shopify theme so Google can read your images |
| Image too small | Warning | The image is under 100 x 100 pixels, or 250 x 250 for clothing | Upload a larger image in Shopify. Aim for 800 x 800 or more |
| Image too large | Warning | The image is over 64 megapixels or 16 MB | Upload a smaller version in Shopify |
| Image decoding error | Warning | Google can't open the image file | Save the image again as JPEG, PNG or WebP, then upload it to Shopify |
| Generic image | Warning | The image is a placeholder, not the product | Use a real photo of the product |
| Single-color image | Warning | The image is one flat color | Use a real photo of the product |
| Promotional overlay on image | Warning | The image has text, a logo or a frame on top of the product | Use an image with nothing over the product |
| Same image for varying color | Warning | Variants have different colors but share one image | Give each color its own image in Shopify |
Google may also report Image too small for upcoming enforcement as a critical issue. Google is about to require larger images. Upload a higher-resolution image to the product in Shopify.
Title and description
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing title | Critical | The product has no title | Add a title in Shopify |
| Missing description | Critical | The product has no description | Add a description in Shopify |
| Title is over 150 characters, Description is over 5000 characters, Brand is over 70 characters | Warning | The text is longer than Google allows and gets cut off | Shorten it in Shopify, or in the product window |
| Invalid characters | Critical | The text has odd characters left by a copy-paste or an import | Retype the title or description in Shopify with ordinary letters |
| Promotional text in title | Warning | The title or description has sales text, like "Free shipping!" | Remove the sales text in Shopify |
Want to add the brand or a key detail to every title in one go? Set an optimize rule instead of editing products one by one.
Product page and links
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing product page URL | Critical | The product has no page on your store | Publish the product to the Online Store channel in Shopify |
| Image link must be a full http(s):// URL | Critical | An image link or product link is not a full web address | Use a full address that starts with https:// |
| Link uses an IP address | Critical | A link points to a row of numbers, not your store's domain | Use your store's domain in the link |
| URL does not match homepage | Warning | The product link uses a domain other than the one verified in Merchant Center | Verify your store's main domain in Merchant Center, and don't use the myshopify.com address |
| Landing page not accessible | Critical | The product page shows an error or redirects too many times | Make sure the product page opens normally on your store |
| Mobile landing page not accessible | Warning | The product page doesn't open on a phone | Make sure the product page opens normally on a phone |
| Landing page blocked by robots.txt | Critical | Your store's robots.txt file blocks Google from the product page | Edit robots.txt in your Shopify theme so Google can read product pages |
| Mobile landing page blocked by robots.txt | Critical | Your store's robots.txt file blocks Google from the mobile product page | Edit robots.txt in your Shopify theme so Google can read it |
| URL flagged as unsafe | Critical | Google marked your domain as unsafe for shoppers | Fix the safety warning for your domain with Google, then request a review |
Shipping, tax and market
Most shipping and tax issues are fixed in Merchant Center, not in the app. Weight comes from the variant in Shopify.
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing shipping information | Critical | No shipping service in Merchant Center covers the feed's country | In Merchant Center, open Shipping and returns and add a service for that country |
| Missing shipping | Critical | No shipping is set for the product or for your Google account | Set up shipping in Merchant Center |
| Missing tax | Critical | No tax is set for the product or for your Google account. Applies to the United States | Set up tax in Merchant Center |
| Country not supported | Critical | The feed targets a country Merchant Center doesn't support | Pick a supported country when you create the feed |
| Shipping weight is not valid | Critical | The weight uses a unit Google doesn't accept, or is out of range | Enter the weight in lb, oz, g or kg in Shopify |
| Shipping dimension is not valid | Critical | A size is written incorrectly, or one of the three sizes is missing | Enter length, width and height in the same unit |
| Missing shipping weight | Warning | Your shipping setup needs a weight, and the product has none | Enter the variant's weight in Shopify, then click Update feed |
| Missing shipping dimension | Warning | Your shipping setup needs the package size, and it is missing | Add the product's shipping dimensions |
| Shipping weight too high | Warning | The weight is above what Google allows | Check the variant's weight in Shopify |
| Shipping dimension too high | Warning | A size is above what Google allows | Check the product's shipping dimensions |
| Shipping rate out of range | Warning | A shipping cost looks too high or too low for the currency | Correct the rate in your Merchant Center shipping settings |
| Shipping region is not valid | Warning | A shipping region code is not one Google knows | Use a valid region in your shipping settings |
| Ambiguous shipping service | Warning | Two shipping services in Merchant Center overlap | Edit the services in Merchant Center so their conditions don't overlap |
Category and product details
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing product category | Warning | The product has no Google product category | Set Google product category in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Category not recognized | Critical | The category is not in Google's list | Choose a category from Google's list with Custom category |
| Missing required attribute for category | Critical | This category needs a detail the product doesn't have | Add the detail Google names in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Missing related attribute | Warning | One detail is set, and Google expects a second one with it, like color with size | Add the related detail |
| Missing sub-attribute | Warning | A detail with several parts is missing one part | Add the missing part Google names |
| Apparel: missing color | Warning | Clothing in this market needs a color | Add it as a Shopify option, or in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Apparel: missing size | Warning | Clothing in this market needs a size | Add it as a Shopify option, or in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Apparel: missing gender | Warning | Clothing in this market needs a gender | Set Gender in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Apparel: missing age group | Warning | Clothing in this market needs an age group | Set Age group in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Condition is not valid | Critical | The condition is not new, refurbished or used | Set the condition to one of these three in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Unsupported attribute | Warning | The product carries a detail Merchant Center doesn't support | Remove that detail in the feed's Attributes tab |
| Too many values | Warning | A detail has more values than Google allows | Cut the values down to the allowed number |
| Number out of range | Warning | A whole-number field, like multipack or handling time, is negative, zero or too large | Enter a positive whole number within Google's limit, or leave the field empty |
| Decimal value out of range | Warning | A decimal field, like weight or a dimension, is negative, zero or too large | Correct the value in Shopify, for example the variant weight, or leave it empty |
Selling clothing? Fill Color, Size, Gender and Age group for the whole feed at once. An optimize rule can set them for a group of products, like everything tagged women.
Variants and duplicates
Google treats a product and its variants as one group. Variants in a group must share the group's details and differ in color, size or material.
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duplicate by visible attributes | Critical | Two products look identical to shoppers | Remove the duplicate, or keep both as variants of one product |
| Duplicate variant within item group | Critical | Two variants of one product are identical | Give each variant a different color, size or material in Shopify |
| Conflicting attributes in item group | Critical | Variants of one product disagree on a shared detail, like brand | Give every variant of the product the same shared details |
| Conflicting attributes in item group (by GTIN) | Critical | Products that share a barcode disagree on brand or title | Use the same brand and title across those products |
| Conflicting attributes in item group (by identity) | Critical | Products Google sees as the same item disagree on shared details | Use the same shared details across those variants |
| Item group has a single variant | Warning | A product is sent as a group, but only one variant is in the feed | Include the other variants in the feed. See Create a feed |
Google policy
These products break one of Google's advertising policies. A feed fix alone can't solve them. Change the product in Shopify and request a review in Merchant Center, or take the product out of the feed.
| Issue | Level | What it means | How to fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personalized advertising: personal hardships | Critical | The title, description or images point at a personal struggle, like a health condition, weight or debt. Google won't show the product in personalized ads | Describe the product, not the shopper's problem: "Acne cream 50 ml", not "Tired of your acne?". Then request a review |
| Personalized advertising: Sexual interests | Critical | The product content points at sexual interests. Google won't show it in personalized ads | Describe the product in neutral words in Shopify, or exclude it from the feed |
| Restricted adult content | Critical | The product or its images carry adult content Google restricts | Remove explicit images, or exclude the product from the feed |
| Guns and Parts | Critical | The product is, or reads like, a gun, gun part or accessory | Exclude it from the feed. If it is not a gun, remove gun words, correct the category, then request a review |
| Healthcare and medicine: Prescription drugs | Critical | The product is, or reads like, a prescription drug | Exclude it from the feed. If it is not one, reword it in Shopify and request a review |
| Healthcare and medicine: misleading claims | Critical | The title or description makes a health claim Google sees as misleading | Remove the claim in Shopify, then request a review |
| Healthcare and Medicine: Unapproved supplements | Critical | The product is a supplement Google doesn't allow in ads | Exclude it from the feed |
| Inappropriate title | Critical | The title has wording Google doesn't allow | Remove the wording from the title in Shopify, then request a review |
| Inappropriate image | Critical | The product image is not allowed | Replace it with a plain product photo in Shopify, then request a review |
| Recalled product | Critical | The product is on a government recall list | Exclude it from the feed and stop selling it |
To take a product out of a feed, choose Exclude from feed in its three-dot menu. To exclude a whole group, set an optimize rule with Exclude from feed.
⚠️
Policy decisions are made by Google. The app can't approve a product for you.
No action needed
Google is still working on these. Wait, then hover over the Feed health ring and click Rescan.
| Issue | What it means |
|---|---|
| Image pending crawl | Google hasn't collected the image yet |
| Image crawling slowly | Google is collecting your images slowly |
| Temporary image error | A short-lived image error on Google's side |
| Identifier under review | Google is still reviewing the product's barcode |
Tips to prevent issues
A complete feed gets approved faster and shows for the right searches.
Title. Put the main keyword in the first 70 characters. Don't write in all capitals, repeat keywords or add sales text.
| Store type | Title formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Fashion | Brand + product type + gender + color + size + material | Acme Men's Shirt White Size M Cotton |
| Electronics | Brand + product line + model + key spec | Acme Wireless Headphones X200 Noise Cancelling |
| Home and general | Brand + product type + key feature + size or quantity | Acme Non-Stick Cast Iron Pan 28 cm |
- Description. Say what the product is, its material, size and use in the first 160-500 characters. Use plain text, with no links or sales text.
- Identifiers. Use the real barcode. No barcode? Send the MPN and brand. Mark a product as having no identifier only for handmade or custom items.
- Category. Pick the most specific Google product category you can.
- Images. Use a plain background with no watermark, logo or text. Add up to 10 extra images showing other angles.
- Price and stock. Keep the price and stock on your product page the same as in Shopify. Mismatches are the most common reason for rejection.
- Custom labels. Group products by margin, bestsellers or season to bid smarter. Fill them with optimize rules.
Still have questions?
Chat with us from the app, any time.