If you manage product feeds for several clients, access can get hard to track: a personal Gmail address on one account, a shared login nobody remembers creating on another. This guide is for agencies, freelancers and in-house teams who run Merchant Center for more than one business. After reading it you’ll be able to choose between a simple user invite and Merchant Center for Agencies, set up whichever fits and explain to clients how they stay in control.
Agencies either get invited as a user on each client’s account, or they use Merchant Center for Agencies, which provides a centralised system to manage client account connections and team permissions in one place[1][2]. The invite is the simplest route[5]. Which one fits depends on how many clients and team members you manage.
Step 1: Decide which route fits your agency
Start with the diagnosis, not the tool. Access gets hard to manage when it’s tied to individuals. If a team member leaves, every client account they were invited to needs cleaning up by hand. Managing team permissions in one place is what Merchant Center for Agencies is for[1][2].
Here’s how the two routes differ in practice.
- User invite: the client’s admin adds your email address under People and access, and you accept the invite. It gives you access to that one account[5].
- Merchant Center for Agencies: Google describes it as a centralised system to manage client account connections and team permissions in one place. It’s available exclusively to agencies, and the agency must be linked to at least one active Merchant Center account[1][2].
Our rule of thumb is opinion, not Google guidance. If you have one to three clients and a small team, invites are simple and good enough. If you have more clients than you can list from memory or several people who need different levels of access, move to the agency account.
Tip
The two routes can overlap. If you are already an Admin on a client’s account through an invite, your agency link request for that client is approved automatically[1].
Step 2: Get a Merchant Center for Agencies account
Google introduced Merchant Center for Agencies on 11 March 2026, and wrote on 11 May 2026 that it was generally available worldwide[3]. Check Google’s current help pages before you request an account[2][3].
New agencies request an account through a contact form[1][2]. To get started:
- Make sure your agency is linked to at least one active Merchant Center account. This is a stated requirement[2].
- Find the contact form that Google’s help pages point new agencies to[1][2].
- Fill in your agency details and submit the form.
Watch out
Google makes this account available exclusively to agencies[1][2]. A team managing a single brand’s store can work with users added to that account instead[5].
Step 3: Set up your team roles in the agency account
Inside the agency account there are two agency roles: Admin and Standard[1]. Keep Admin for as few people as you can and give everyone else Standard.
It helps to understand how this interacts with client-side access. On each client account, the access levels are “Admin” and “Standard and performance and insights”. An agency user’s access on a client is capped by the agency’s own level on that client[1]. So a team member’s access can’t go above the level the agency has on that client.
Watch out
Making everyone an admin because it’s quicker is a mistake. A junior with admin rights can change settings that affect a client’s live products. Start low and raise access when someone needs it.
Step 4: Link a client account to your agency
This is the core step. You’ll need the client’s Merchant Center ID, so ask them for it. Then:
- Open your agency account and go to All client accounts.
- Select Add an account.
- Enter the client’s Merchant Center ID.
- Select Next[1].
Google’s help page says you can link up to 1,000 client accounts[1].
What happens next depends on who you are in the client’s account. If you’re already an Admin on that merchant account, the request is approved automatically. If not, the merchant’s admin has to approve or reject it in the Partners table on People and access[1].
Tell clients before you send the request. An unexpected request from an agency they haven’t spoken to recently looks suspicious, and it should. Explain what’s coming, what you’re asking for and where to approve it.
Step 5: Use the simple user invite when it’s enough
If you’ve decided the agency account is overkill, the invite route is straightforward. The client’s admin does this, not you:
- In Merchant Center, go to People and access.
- Select Add person.
- Enter your email address.
- Choose admin or standard access.
- Select Add user[5].
The invite stays pending until you accept it[5]. If a client says they’ve invited you and nothing arrives, ask them to check the email address for typos, then check your spam folder.
Use a shared agency mailbox only if your policies allow it. Better still, invite named individuals so you know exactly who has access. For a deeper walkthrough of roles, see our guide to adding users: https://oxfordimpulse.com/add-user-google-merchant-center-access/ .
Good to know
The access levels and what each can do are covered in Google’s help page on managing people and access[5]. Read it before choosing between admin and standard for a new contact.
Step 6: Link Merchant Center to Google Ads
Getting into the account is only part of the job. If your client runs Shopping ads, Merchant Center also has to be linked to Google Ads, and the link has a few rules[6].
- Only a Merchant Center admin can start a link request[6].
- You approve the request in Google Ads under Data manager[6].
- You can’t link a Google Ads manager account to Merchant Center. The link goes to the individual Google Ads account[6].
That last point matters if you work from a manager account: you still need to link each client’s own Google Ads account. We’ve written the full process here: https://oxfordimpulse.com/how-to-link-google-merchant-center-to-google-ads/ .
Watch out
Only a Merchant Center admin can start a link request, so if you only have standard access, ask the client’s admin to send it or get admin access first[6].
Step 7: Check account structure and advanced setups
Some accounts use an advanced account setup, which has its own request route[4]. It’s worth knowing the process.
The route is Settings, then General, then the Account setup tab, then Advanced account setup, then Request Conversion, then Request. You must be an account admin, have no account-level policy violation and have a verified and claimed website[4].
Fix any policy violations first. A request from an account with an open account-level issue won’t meet the stated conditions[4]. We explain what an advanced account is and when you’d want one here: https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center-advanced-account/ .
Step 8: Show clients how they stay in control
Be open with clients about access. Tell every client, in plain language, these three things:
- You work in their Merchant Center account with access they approve[1][5].
- They keep control of the connection at agency level and can remove your access at any time in the Partners section[1].
- Your team’s access is capped by the level they granted you[1].
Putting this in your onboarding email gives clients the answer before they ask.
Offboarding works the same way in reverse. When a contract ends, ask the client to remove you from Partners or People and access, depending on how you were connected[1][5].
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using personal logins. Access tied to a person breaks when they leave. Use named agency users with the lowest access they need.
- Sending link requests without warning. Tell the client first and explain where to approve.
- Confusing the two links. The link between Merchant Center and your agency and the link between Merchant Center and Google Ads are separate connections with separate approvals[1][6].
- Trying to link a manager account to Merchant Center. Google says you can’t link a Google Ads manager account to Merchant Center[6].
- Skipping the audit. Review who has access to each client every few months and remove anyone who shouldn’t have it.
Agency access checklist
Set up access once, document it and review it regularly. If you’d like more on the platform itself, our Merchant Center hub is a good next stop: https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center/ .
FAQs
How do agencies manage client accounts in Merchant Center?
What is Merchant Center for Agencies?
Who can use Merchant Center for Agencies?
How do you link a client’s Merchant Center account to your agency account?
Go to All client accounts, select Add an account, enter the client’s Merchant Center ID and select Next[1]. If you’re already an Admin on their account, the request is approved automatically. Otherwise their admin approves or rejects it in the Partners table.
How many client accounts can you link to one agency account?
Google’s help page says you can link up to 1,000 client accounts[1]. Check that page for the current wording before you plan around it.
Can a client remove an agency’s access?
Yes. The client keeps control of the connection at agency level and can remove access at any time in the Partners section of People and access[1]. Tell clients this up front.
What access levels do agency users get?
Within the agency account, roles are Admin and Standard. On client accounts, the access levels are “Admin” and “Standard and performance and insights”. An agency user’s access is capped by the agency’s own level on that client[1].
How does a client invite an agency as a user?
The client admin goes to People and access, selects Add person, enters the agency’s email address, chooses admin or standard, then selects Add user. The invite stays pending until it is accepted[5].
Can you link a Google Ads manager account to Merchant Center?
How do you request an advanced account setup?
Go to Settings, General, then the Account setup tab, then Advanced account setup, Request Conversion and Request. You must be an account admin with no account-level policy violation and a verified and claimed website[4].
Sources
- Google Merchant Center Help: Managing user access in Merchant Center for Agencies support.google.com
- Google Merchant Center Help: About Merchant Center for Agencies support.google.com
- Google Merchant Center Help: Merchant Center for Agencies available globally support.google.com
- Google Merchant Center Help: Request an advanced account setup support.google.com
- Google Merchant Center Help: Manage people and access levels in Merchant Center support.google.com
- Google Ads Help: Link a Google Ads account to Merchant Center support.google.com
