You already have a Merchant Center account and want to catch problems before Google flags them. This guide is for store owners and marketers, and after reading it you’ll be able to run a Google Merchant Center audit across six areas and know which findings to fix first.
Check, in this order, the account-level banner, the Needs attention tab, whether your website matches your product data, your business setup, your product data quality and your data sources. Do it on a regular schedule (that’s our view, not Google’s advice). Tick off the checklist at the end as you go.
We use Merchant Center’s own issue labels throughout, so what you see on screen should match what’s written here.
Step 1: check account-level issues
Open Merchant Center and look at the top of the page. Account-level issues appear in a banner there, and they affect all your products, not just one[1]. Start here, because a single account problem can make a clean product list irrelevant.
- Open your Merchant Center home page.
- Read any banner at the top.
- Note the issue name and write down the date you saw it.
A bad result is any banner at all. Think of it as a path: a warning about your website or business details comes first, and if it’s ignored, it can end in a suspension. Fixing it while it’s still a warning is far easier than asking for a review later. If you do need a review, Google explains how to request one[2].
Watch out
Don’t dismiss a banner because your products still show today. A warning is the time to act.
Banner there and your products are missing too? Our guide to fixing products not showing on Google Shopping at https://oxfordimpulse.com/fix-products-not-showing-google-shopping/ covers that, so we won’t repeat it here.
Step 2: review product-level issues
Product-level issues affect single products. You’ll find them on the Needs attention tab[1].
Warnings versus disapprovals
A warning means products can still show, but performance may be limited. A disapproval means the product stops showing[1]. Read disapprovals first, then warnings that hit many products.
Use Priority fixes
Merchant Center also has a Priority fixes view. It only lists issues of medium or high impact where Google can estimate the effect on performance[1]. An issue with no estimate won’t appear there, so still scan the full Needs attention list.
A bad result is a growing count of disapproved products, or one issue label repeated across hundreds of items.
Don’t dive into every label yet. For this audit, you just need a list: issue name, number of products, warning or disapproval.
Step 3: check your website matches your product data
Google compares your product data with what shoppers see on your landing pages. If the price or availability differs from the landing page, it can cause a preemptive item disapproval[1]. In plain terms, Google may remove the product before a shopper ever clicks.
Pick 10 products at random, including a few on sale and a few low on stock. For each one:
- Open the product in Merchant Center and note the price and availability.
- Click through to the landing page and compare. Include sale prices and out-of-stock labels.
- Check the link works and doesn’t redirect to a generic page, such as your home page or a category.
- Check the page loads quickly.
Google lists several website problems that cause issues: placeholder content, broken links, inconsistent information, inaccurate descriptions, mismatched categories, robots.txt blocking Googlebot or Googlebot-image, unavailable or slow landing pages and redirects to a generic page[1]. Open your robots.txt file (yourdomain.com/robots.txt) and make sure it isn’t blocking those two crawlers.
Turn on automatic updates
Automatic item updates can reduce price and availability mismatches[1]. It’s a safety net, not a substitute for keeping your data fresh.
Tip
Do this check after every sale or price change on your store, because that’s when mismatches happen.
Step 4: check your business setup
Google asks you to keep business details clear and consistent. Put your contact details, shipping policies and return details in your website footer. Match your business name, address and contact details across your website, Merchant Center settings and payment profiles. And make prices and availability match landing pages[2].
- Website verified and claimed. Check your website shows as verified and claimed. If not, follow our guide to verifying and claiming your website at https://oxfordimpulse.com/verify-claim-website-google-merchant-center/ .
- Identity verification. Check whether Merchant Center is asking for it. It may be needed before you can request a review[2]. Our walkthrough on completing identity verification at https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center-identity-verification/ shows the process.
- Shipping and returns. Open Shipping and returns and check rates, delivery times and return policy match what your site says. Need help? See how to set up shipping and returns at https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center-shipping-settings-returns/ .
- Footer and name match. Open your site’s footer. Phone, email, address, shipping and returns links should be there. Compare the business name with Merchant Center and your payment profile.
A bad result is a different company name in each place, a returns policy that says one thing on the site and something else in Merchant Center, or contact details buried three clicks deep.
Step 5: check product data quality
Check three things: identifiers, titles and images.
Identifiers
Look at your GTINs (Global Trade Item Numbers, the barcode numbers on branded products). Spot-check a few against the packaging or supplier sheet. Our explainer on GTIN, MPN and identifier_exists at https://oxfordimpulse.com/what-is-gtin-google-merchant-center/ covers what to enter and when.
Titles
Read 10 titles as a shopper would. Are the brand, product type and key detail (size, colour, model) near the front? Our guide on how to write Merchant Center product titles at https://oxfordimpulse.com/how-to-write-merchant-center-product-titles/ shows what to aim for.
Images
Open product pages and check images are clear, show the actual product and have no promotional overlays or watermarks. Compare them against the Merchant Center image requirements at https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center-image-requirements/ .
Start with your best sellers.
Step 6: check your data sources
This is where your product data comes from: a file, a Shopify or WooCommerce connection, or an API. Check two things.
- How fresh it is. Look at the last fetch or update time for each source. Check the schedule still matches how often your store changes.
- Duplicates. Look for more than one source supplying the same products, for example an old spreadsheet still running next to your store integration. If you find an old one, switch it off and remove stale items. Our guide on deleting products in Merchant Center at https://oxfordimpulse.com/delete-products-google-merchant-center/ shows how.
A bad result is a source with errors on every fetch, two sources with the same product count, or a source nobody on your team recognises.
What to fix first
Work from the top down. Fix account-level issues first, because they affect everything. Then disapprovals, then website mismatches on price and availability, then business setup gaps. Warnings and data quality come after, starting with your best sellers.
An audit won’t guarantee approval or performance. It shows you where the risks are while you can still fix them. Put a date in your calendar to repeat it.
If you’d rather have someone else go through the account, Oxford Impulse offers a Merchant Center audit at https://oxfordimpulse.com/google-merchant-center/ .
Merchant Center audit checklist
FAQs
What should I check in my Merchant Center account regularly?
Start with the account-level banner, then the Needs attention tab, then compare a sample of products against your website. After that, check business settings, product data quality and data source freshness. Doing it in that order puts the highest-risk problems first.
How often should I audit Google Merchant Center?
Our view is to check on a regular schedule, and to do a quick check after any sale, price change, site redesign or platform migration.
What is the difference between a warning and a disapproval in Merchant Center?
A warning means the product can still show, though performance may be limited. A disapproval means the product stops showing[1]. Fix disapprovals first.
What are account-level issues in Merchant Center?
They appear in a banner at the top of Merchant Center and affect all your products[1]. Product-level issues, by contrast, affect single products and sit on the Needs attention tab.
What does Priority fixes show in Merchant Center?
It shows only medium or high impact issues where Google can estimate the effect on performance[1]. Issues without an estimate don’t appear, so still read the full Needs attention list.
Why does Google disapprove products for price mismatch?
If the price or availability in your data differs from the landing page, Google can disapprove the item preemptively[1]. Turning on automatic item updates can reduce these mismatches.
What website problems cause Merchant Center issues?
Google lists placeholder content, broken links, inconsistent information, inaccurate descriptions, mismatched categories, robots.txt blocking Googlebot or Googlebot-image, slow or unavailable landing pages and redirects to a generic page[1]. Check each on a sample of products.
Do I need identity verification before requesting a review?
It may be needed before you can request a review[2]. Check Merchant Center for a verification prompt and complete it first, so a review request isn’t blocked.
What business details should match across my website and Merchant Center?
Google says to match your business name, address and contact details across your website, Merchant Center settings and payment profiles[2]. Shipping policies and return details should also be clear and consistent in your website footer.
Will an audit guarantee my products are approved?
No. An audit helps you find and fix problems before Google flags them, but approval is Google’s decision. Keep records of what you changed so a review request is easier if you need one.
Sources
- Google Merchant Center Help: Issues in Merchant Center support.google.com
- Google Merchant Center Help: Request a review of your issues support.google.com
