Google Merchant Center Shipping Policy Requirements 2026

Updated June 11, 2026 • 7 min read

Inaccurate or inconsistent shipping information is one of the top causes of Merchant Center suspensions. Google does not just check whether you have a shipping policy page. It compares three sources against each other: your website's shipping policy, your Merchant Center shipping settings, and the shipping attributes in your product feed. When these three do not match, Google treats it as misrepresentation. This guide covers every requirement and how to keep all three sources aligned.

What Google Actually Checks

Google's compliance review of shipping covers more than most merchants expect. The checklist includes:

• A dedicated shipping policy page exists on your website and is reachable from the homepage (usually footer)
• The policy page states the countries you ship to, the available methods, estimated delivery times, and the costs for each method
• Free shipping thresholds, if any, are stated explicitly ("free standard shipping on orders over $50")
• Merchant Center account-level shipping settings match the policy page
• Product-level [shipping] attributes in your feed are consistent with both the policy page and the Merchant Center settings
• Checkout shows the same shipping cost that appears in Shopping ads and on the product page

Since April 2026, Google's AI verification layer also crawls your checkout with a headless browser to verify that the shipping cost shown during the purchase process matches what was advertised. This catches discount codes that hide a shipping charge until the final step, or default checkout states that add a fee not shown in the product listing.

Required Contents of Your Shipping Policy Page

Your shipping policy page must be a standalone page (not buried in your FAQ or Terms of Service). It must include all of the following:

• Countries you ship to. List each explicitly. "We ship worldwide" is not specific enough and can be flagged as vague.
• Available shipping methods. Standard, express, overnight, or other named options. Include the carrier names if you use specific carriers.
• Estimated delivery times for each method. Use specific ranges like "5 to 8 business days for standard shipping." Avoid vague phrases like "delivery times may vary."
• Shipping costs for each method. State the cost or explain clearly how it is calculated. If costs vary by weight or destination, describe the formula.
• Free shipping conditions. If you offer free shipping, state the threshold explicitly. "Free shipping on orders over $35 to the United States via standard shipping."
• Handling time disclosure. State how many business days it takes you to process and ship after an order is placed. "Orders ship within 1 to 2 business days."

Google's crawler looks for this information in specific locations on the page. Embedding it only in a terms of service document or hiding it behind a login does not meet compliance requirements.

Shipping Consistency Across All Three Sources

The most common shipping-related suspension comes from a mismatch between sources, not a missing policy. Here are the mismatches Google catches most often:

Feed says free shipping, checkout charges for shipping

If your [shipping_cost] attribute is 0 for a product but checkout adds a shipping fee, this is a direct misrepresentation violation. Verify that your checkout default shipping method matches your feed settings for every product, not just your bestsellers. Pay particular attention to products near a free shipping threshold, since the threshold-based logic in your cart can behave differently than what the feed attribute suggests.

Delivery window in the policy does not match feed calculation

Google calculates your delivery estimate as [handling_time] plus [transit_time]. If your policy page says "arrives in 5 to 7 days" but your feed specifies 1 day handling plus 2 to 3 days transit (totalling 3 to 4 days), that is a discrepancy. Update both your policy page and your feed attributes to show the same range. Use the longer realistic estimate if the two sources disagree.

Multi-country shipping rates are flat when they should be varied

If you ship to multiple countries, Merchant Center expects country-specific shipping settings. Setting a flat worldwide rate when actual costs vary by country is flagged as inaccurate shipping information. Use Merchant Center's country-level shipping configuration to set correct rates for each market where your products appear.

How to Set Up Shipping in Merchant Center Correctly

In Merchant Center, go to Business Information and then Shipping. You can configure shipping at the account level (applies to all products unless overridden) or at the product level (via [shipping] attributes in your feed).

For most merchants, account-level shipping is simpler and less error-prone. Set up each shipping service (standard, express) with the correct cost rules, handling time, and transit time. Then verify that these settings match your policy page exactly. If they do not, update one or the other until they align.

If some products have different shipping rules (like large or heavy items with different costs), use product-level [shipping] attributes to override the account settings for those specific items. And ensure your policy page mentions any product-specific exceptions.

Checking Your Shipping Compliance Before a Suspension

Run a shipping compliance check before you get suspended, not after. Compare three sources side by side:

1. Your website's shipping policy page
2. Your Merchant Center shipping settings (account-level and any product-level overrides)
3. A sample of 10 to 20 products from your feed and their [shipping] attributes

Any mismatch between these three is a potential violation. The free GMCSuspension.com audit checks shipping consistency as part of a 43-point compliance scan. If your account was suspended for misrepresentation and you are unsure what triggered it, start with shipping: it accounts for a large share of misrepresentation cases and is often the issue merchants miss when they fix other things first.

For the complete checklist of suspension causes and how to fix each one, see the 43-point GMC suspension checklist. If your suspension involved price mismatches in addition to shipping issues, see the price mismatch fix guide as well.

Related Guides

• GMC Shipping Policy Missing: How to Fix It
• Google Merchant Center Price Mismatch Fix
• Inaccurate Shipping in Merchant Center
• Missing Return Policy: How to Fix It
• 43-Point GMC Suspension Checklist