Two ways products get onto a profile
Google has a hand-entry route and an automatic one, and which fits depends on how your shop runs.
The product editor is the hand-entry route. You fill out a form per item and publish it. Google pitches it at local stores that sell physical goods and have no online checkout, sell items without barcodes, or don’t track stock in real time. A bakery, a gift shop or a framing studio is the typical fit.
The automatic route runs through Merchant Center. Stores in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland and Australia that sell products with manufacturer barcodes and use a wired scanner or compatible POS can sync stock through the Local Inventory app. Inventory from delivery partners can also show up on its own. Those products can appear on Search, Maps and the Shopping tab, and the service is free.
One catch: if you turn on automatic syncing, the products you typed in by hand get replaced once enough synced items arrive.
Shopping rules apply to every item
Every product you add has to follow Google’s Shopping ads policy. Breaking it doesn’t just cost you that one item; Google says violations can lead to removal of every product you uploaded. Regulated goods like alcohol, tobacco and gambling products aren’t allowed through the editor at all, and sensitive categories such as guns and tobacco are hidden when they come in through inventory sync.
If a product fails review it is marked Not approved. Open it to see the reason and a link to the policy. Edit and save, and Google reviews it again within 24 hours. In some cases you can choose Request review from the issues banner instead.
Google’s help pages don’t publish character limits or photo specs for the product editor, so keep names short and plain and use a clear photo of the item itself.
Product photos with a generated background
US merchants get an extra option: Product Studio can remove the background from a product photo and generate a new scene around it. Using it means agreeing to its terms. A clean, honest photo of the product on a plain surface does the same job.
If you change your mind
Unlinking a Merchant Center source removes its inventory from your profile within 48 hours, and to bring those products back later you have to relink and verify inventory again. Deleting hand-entered products is done one at a time through Menu and Delete.
If it doesn't work
- Product shows Not approved: open it, read the reason, fix it and save. Google re-reviews it within 24 hours.
- You don't see Edit products: the feature depends on your country and business type. Google lists products for the US, Canada, the UK and Ireland on its edit page.
- Your manual products disappeared: signing up for automatic inventory sync replaces products you added by hand.
- Everything is Not approved at once: if the profile is suspended, all products are marked Not approved. Fix the suspension first.
Questions owners ask
Do I need a website to add products?
No. Google describes the product editor as suited to local stores that don't have a website where customers can buy online, sell products without barcodes, or don't keep fresh stock data. You type each product in by hand.
Can my point-of-sale system add products for me?
In some countries, yes. Stores in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland and Australia that sell barcoded products and use a compatible POS can sync stock through Google's Local Inventory app, formerly Pointy. Delivery partners such as Instacart, DoorDash and Uber Eats can also feed inventory.
What happens to restricted items like tobacco?
Restricted products aren't shown. Google says a store that mainly sells restricted products can still sign up, but only its non-restricted items appear, so a tobacco shop's lighters and candles could show while its tobacco would not.
Can I ask Google to look again at a rejected product?
Sometimes. Open the Not approved product, click the issues banner and choose Request review. Google warns that repeatedly requesting reviews for products that do break policy can temporarily disable the option.
Sources
- About product editor (support.google.com)
- Product approval policies (support.google.com)
- Manage products in Merchant Center (support.google.com)
Checked 13 Nov 2026. When the platform changes its process we update this page and log it in What changed.