How to set up Google Shopping for a Shopify store in Australia

Google Shopping runs on a product feed stored in Google Merchant Center. Shopify's Google and YouTube app builds that feed from your catalogue and keeps it in sync. From the one feed you can show products in free listings, in Shopping ads, and in Performance Max campaigns. The cleaner the feed, the more of those surfaces you can use.

Google's help page for the Shopify app describes the order: install the app, link your Merchant Center account, then choose to sync products automatically or manually. If you create the Merchant Center account through the app and your store is eligible, approved products can start appearing on the Shopping tab. If you created the account elsewhere, check in Merchant Center whether your products qualify.

Free listings let shoppers see your products in unpaid results. Google says they can appear on the Shopping tab, YouTube, Google Search, Google Images and Google Lens. Australia is on Google's list of eligible countries for Shopify merchants using the app. You do not need a Google Ads account to use free listings.

• Free listings cost nothing per click, but you do not control when or where products appear.
• Shopping ads cost per click and give you bids, budgets and reporting. They use the same Merchant Center data.
• Start with free listings while you fix feed errors. Paid ads magnify problems in a feed, since you pay to send traffic to a page with a mismatched price.
• Check that Free listings is ticked under Destinations. In Merchant Center, go to Products, then Feeds. If it is not shown, enable free listings in the app's settings for your target country.

Free listings are part of search engine optimisation for a product store. Our Shopify SEO checklist covers the on-site work and our SEO service covers the ongoing job. Neither guarantees any particular ranking or traffic.

1. Step 1

   Prepare the store first

   Before you connect anything, make sure your store has a working checkout, clear shipping and returns pages, a privacy policy, contact details and a live domain.

2. Step 2

   Install the Google and YouTube app

   Add the app from the Shopify App Store and sign in with the Google account you want to own the Merchant Center. Use a business account that more than one person can reach, not a personal login that will be lost if someone leaves.

3. Step 3

   Connect or create the Merchant Center account

   Follow the app's prompts. Verify and claim your website URL, and set Australia as the target country with AUD as the currency.

4. Step 4

   Choose sync settings

   Pick automatic sync so price and stock changes flow through. Choose which collections or products to include, and exclude gift cards and anything that breaks Google's policies.

5. Step 5

   Set shipping and returns in Merchant Center

   Add shipping and return policies for Australia. See the sections below.

6. Step 6

   Review the Diagnostics tab

   Wait for the first review, then fix issues listed on the Needs attention tab. Check back weekly in the first month.

The feed is built from your Shopify product data, so the fix for most problems is in Shopify, not in Merchant Center. Google's retail guidance for feeds recommends rich descriptions and good images, and keeping price and availability current if they change often.

• Titles: lead with what the product is, then brand, key attribute and variant such as colour or size. Avoid promotional text, all capitals and symbols.
• Descriptions: write real descriptions of the product. Do not paste a supplier blurb used by every reseller.
• Images: use clear photos on a plain background for the main image, with no watermarks, logos or promotional text laid over the product.
• Price and availability: the price and stock on the page must match the feed. Mismatches lead to disapproval, so let the app sync automatically and avoid editing prices with a tool the app does not see.
• Categories and attributes: fill in Google product category, condition, colour, size, gender and age group where they apply. Apparel feeds need these.
• Variants: each size and colour combination is a separate item in the feed with its own identifier. Keep option names consistent across the catalogue.
• Landing page: the link must open the product the ad shows, on a page that loads quickly. See the speed guide.

Product identifiers cause more Merchant Center warnings than anything else. Google's GTIN help page says you might be required to submit brand and MPN as well as GTIN, that products without identifiers are hard to classify and may not be eligible for all Shopping programmes or features, and that products sold in multiple colours or sizes need a different unique identifier for each variant.

• A GTIN is the barcode number (UPC, EAN or ISBN) that the manufacturer or brand owner assigns. Take it from the product packaging or your supplier, and enter it in the Shopify variant Barcode field.
• Never invent or buy random GTINs to clear an error. Wrong values are likely to be disapproved.
• For products you make yourself or for custom items, a manufacturer GTIN may not exist. In that case give the brand and a model or part number as the MPN, and mark the identifier as not existing, following Merchant Center's guidance for your category.
• If you resell branded goods, you need the real GTIN from the supplier. Ask for it when you set up the range.
• Give each variant its own barcode. Variants of one product share a title but not an identifier.
• Check the Diagnostics tab for invalid GTIN warnings, which can mean a wrong digit or a code for a different pack size.

The rules for which products require a GTIN depend on category and country, and Google changes them. Check the current GTIN help page rather than relying on a blog, including this one.

Merchant Center shows shipping cost and speed in listings, so it needs to match your store. Google's help page says shipping settings are managed under Shipping and returns, with up to 20 shipping policies per country, and that carrier-based rates are available for Australia. Delivery speed by region can be set by postcode in Australia.

1. Step 1

   Match your Shopify shipping rates

   Enter the same rates, free shipping thresholds and handling times you use in Shopify. If you offer free shipping over a set order value, set the same rule in Merchant Center. Our shipping guide explains how to set up rates and carriers.

2. Step 2

   Set transit and handling times

   Handling time is the time before dispatch. Transit time is carrier time. Use realistic numbers for metro and regional postcodes, since an estimate you cannot meet leads to unhappy customers.

3. Step 3

   Add a return policy

   Create a return policy in Merchant Center that matches your site, with a window and a link to the policy page. Google applies a default return policy to products with no matching label, and flags a return window below the minimum for the target country.

4. Step 4

   Keep it consistent

   The policy in Merchant Center, the policy on your website and the structured data on your pages should say the same thing. Our returns policy guide covers what Australian Consumer Law requires you to honour regardless of wording.

If you also sell to New Zealand, add NZ shipping separately and check it in the feed. See selling to New Zealand.

Performance Max is Google's automated campaign type. Google says retailers can use it with a Merchant Center feed to promote online and local inventory, and that Shopping ads and local inventory ads still appear in Search and Shopping results while Performance Max extends reach to other channels. Google's developer documentation says the Google Ads account must be linked to a Merchant Center account.

• Wait until the feed is approved and error-free. A poor feed teaches the campaign the wrong products.
• Start with the bestsellers and products with healthy margin. Do not push the whole catalogue on day one.
• Set a daily budget you can afford to lose while the campaign learns. Treat the first weeks as a test.
• Measure with purchase conversions imported from Google Analytics 4 or tracked by the Google and YouTube app, not clicks.
• Add good assets such as images, logos and headlines, since the campaign draws on them.
• Review search terms and placements, and use brand exclusions if you do not want to pay for people who already search your name.
• Check results weekly. If spend rises without sales, pause, fix the feed or landing page, and restart.

Paid ads are one lever among several. Read our guide on conversion rate optimisation first, since sending traffic to a weak product page wastes the spend. The product page checklist is a good place to start.