Shopping results
What are Shopping results?
Shopping results are product listings that Google shows in search results and the Shopping tab, with an image, price, store name and often ratings. Some are paid Shopping ads; others are free listings that any merchant can earn. Both draw on product data from Google Merchant Center, and Google can also use Product structured data from your pages.
Free product listings have been available since 2020. Organic product results can show in several ways: a product grid, a popular products module, a product knowledge panel, or a rich snippet with price and availability on a normal result.
Why Shopping results matter for SEO
For product searches with transactional intent, shopping results often take the most visible space on the page, above standard organic links. An ecommerce site without accurate product data is missing from the part of the page buyers look at first.
Free listings also cost nothing per click, so they add to your organic traffic.
How to get free shopping listings
- Create a Google Merchant Center account and verify and claim your website.
- Submit a product feed, or let Merchant Center read your product structured data.
- Turn on free listings (the free listings or “Google surfaces” programme) in Merchant Center.
- Keep price, availability and shipping accurate. Mismatches between the feed and the page lead to disapprovals.
- Add good images, GTINs and clear product titles.
Shopping results FAQ
Are Google Shopping results free?
Some are. Shopping ads are paid per click, while free listings are unpaid. Both use product data from Merchant Center.
Do I need Merchant Center for shopping results?
It is the most reliable route, and it is required for Shopping ads. Google can also use Product structured data on your pages for some organic product features.
Related SEO terms
Ecommerce SEO is optimising an online shop’s category and product pages to rank in search, while controlling filters, duplicates and stock changes.
SERP features are the results on Google’s results page that are not plain blue links, such as AI Overviews, featured snippets, local packs and videos.
Paid search results are ads shown on search results pages, labelled Sponsored on Google, where advertisers pay when someone clicks.
Rich snippets are search results enhanced with extra details, such as review stars, prices or cooking times, usually from structured data.
Transactional intent is when a searcher is ready to act: buy, book, sign up or download, with searches like "buy", "price" or "order".