Google Merchant Center Restricted Products Policy: What You Cannot Advertise

Google divides products into three categories: freely advertisable, restricted (allowed with conditions or approval), and prohibited. Selling prohibited products through Google Shopping triggers immediate account suspension. Selling restricted products without meeting the conditions triggers product disapproval and can lead to account-level action if repeated.

Prohibited Products (Always Banned)

Google bans advertising for products including: counterfeit goods, dangerous weapons and weapon modifications, explosive devices, products facilitating illegal surveillance, tobacco and related products, recreational drugs and drug paraphernalia, and products that facilitate human trafficking. These bans apply regardless of jurisdiction. Listing any of these products will trigger suspension.

Restricted Products (Allowed with Conditions)

Several product categories are restricted rather than banned outright, meaning you can advertise them if you meet specific conditions:

Alcohol: permitted in certain countries for licensed sellers who comply with local laws and have received Google's approval. Requires application and country-specific compliance.

Healthcare and medicines: prescription drugs are prohibited. Over-the-counter medicines are allowed in many markets but may require pharmacy certification. Medical devices require careful compliance with claims made in product descriptions.

Financial products: some financial products require disclosure of terms and compliance with local lending regulations. Short-term loans have specific requirements in each country.

Gambling: permitted in certain jurisdictions for licensed operators with Google's prior approval.

Adult content: permitted in certain countries for approved advertisers with age gating.

The Most Common Mistake

The most common error is selling products that are legal and freely available in your country but fall into a Google-restricted category without realizing it. Supplements with health claims, certain weapons accessories, and some financial products regularly catch merchants off guard. Always check Google's Shopping policies before adding a new product category to your store.

How GMCSuspension.com Helps

Our audit tool includes a check against known restricted and prohibited product categories. If your feed contains products in restricted categories, the audit flags them with the specific policy requirement you need to meet. This catches issues before they become suspensions.