What is Google Product Identifier and How to Use Them?

Google product identifiers are the backbone of accurate product listings and high-performing Shopping Ads. If you sell on Google Merchant Center, mastering these codes is essential.

What you’ll learn in this guide: ● What are Google product identifiers ● The most common types of identifiers ● How to add and manage identifiers in Merchant Center ● Best practices to keep your data clean and compliant

What are Product Identifiers?

Product identifiers are standardized strings of characters assigned to certain products in order to uniquely identify them across different platforms, retailers, or marketplaces. These identifiers essentially serve as a “fingerprint” for each product, which means, when an item is searched for or listed, the correct product will show up there.

This may include GTINs, UPCs, EANs, ISBNs, or MPNs. These codes differ from the SKUs that your store uses internally in that they are universally recognized and, therefore, vital for sales via Google Shopping, Amazon, and eBay.

In Google’s ecosystem, a product identifier refers to standardized codes such as GTIN or MPN that Google Merchant Center uses to match your product to its catalog to ensure correct ads and listings.

Why Google Requires Unique Product Identifiers

In Google Shopping, precision is everything. Google uses Google’s unique identifiers to match your products with the right searches, prevent errors, and maximize ad performance.

1. Accurate Product Matching

Google relies on unique product identifiers to match your listings with the correct product among its vast catalog. In this way, whenever a shopper clicks on an ad or a search result, they always see the right image, description, and specifications.

Well-matched identifiers also reduce confusion when multiple sellers list the same product, which can only help to make your listing stand out in such a competitive market.

2. Fraud Prevention and Brand Trust

Verified product identifiers enable Google to verify the authenticity of products and prevent listings of counterfeit or duplicate goods. Protection against fake products is afforded to the consumer, as well as brand protection on your behalf.

Over time, such trust translates into higher clickthrough rates and stronger customer loyalty, where consumers trust in the name and buy only legitimate products.

3. Compliance and Campaign Approval

Product listings require valid product IDs to be approved in Google Merchant Center nearly always. Auction listings may be disapproved or even withdrawn entirely from Google Shopping without product IDs.

By staying compliant, your compliance assures that your advertisements will run smoothly and ensure that your ads reach the right audience as intended, without costly disruptions.

Types of Google Product Unique Identifiers

Google Merchant Center is restricted in the unique identifiers it can accept to fit your listings into its product catalog; the identifiers themselves help Google verify the product details and finish the configuration of your Shopping Ads. 

To determine which identifiers are required for your products, refer to Google’s official guidelines. The main types include:

GTIN (Global Trade Item Number)

GTIN is the serial number for identification most recognized across Google and includes UPCs (used in North America), EANs (used in Europe), and ISBNs (used for books). This code allows Google to line up your product with the actual item in its database so that images, titles, and specifications are properly matched.

Example: Nutella sold in France with a 750g jar bears the EAN 3017620425035; this allows Google to refer without delay to the suitable listing in Shopping results.

MPN (Manufacturer Part Number)

When a GTIN is not available, Google accepts the Manufacturer Part Number along with the brand. MPNs become useful for parts, accessories, and stand-alone products that are not assigned GTINs.

Example: The Dell XPS 13 battery with MPN 4GVGH will make sure that the proper replacement part gets displayed in Shopping Ads by Google.

Brand Name

If you use an MPN for your products instead of a GTIN, the brand becomes a requirement in Google Merchant Center. It helps Google distinguish between somewhat different products from different manufacturers.

Example: Listing “4GVGH” without the Dell brand name would make it harder for Google to ascertain the product’s authenticity.

How to Add Google Product Identifier in Merchant Center

Getting your product identifiers set up correctly in Google Merchant Center (GMC) is essential for maximizing your Shopping campaign performance. Here’s the up-to-date process as of 2025:

Step 1: Sign in to Google Merchant Center

Access GMC via your Google account. Once inside, go to your product feed or primary data source where the product listing resides.

Step 2: Ensure Required Identifiers are Included

Add the GTIN, MPN, and brand fields to your product data feed. Each variant (e.g., different size or color) should have its own unique identifier.

If your product lacks these identifiers, use the identifier_exists attribute set to “no”. GMC will then allow listings with justified reasons.

Step 3: Use Correct Formats for Identifiers

GTIN should be numeric with the appropriate length: GTIN‑12 for UPC, GTIN‑13 for EAN, or GTIN‑14.

Never assume or fabricate values; erroneous identifiers can result in listing disapproval or limited visibility.

Step 4: Submit the Feed with Identifiers

If you own a spreadsheet feed, simply enter the correct “GTIN” values along with the GTIN column.

For Shopify, enter GTIN into the Barcode field or utilize supported apps such as product feed tools to help with mapping automatically.

Step 5: Use Attribute Rules When Needed

Apply any needed rules in GMC’s Feed Settings under Attribute Rules for automatically populating or modifying identifiers, such as default brand or GTIN, based on SKU patterns.

Step 6: Validate and Troubleshoot

Use GMC’s diagnostics or feed status to identify disapproved products due to identifier problems.

Reference official GS1 validation tools to confirm check digits and GTIN formats.

Best Practices for Managing Google Product Identifiers

Managing Google product identifier properly is necessary for keeping the accuracy of Merchant Center listings, their search quality, and compliance with Google’s policies. These best practices are meant to keep your product data clean and consistent.

Always Use Manufacturer-Issued Identifiers

Using the official GTIN or MPN assigned by the manufacturer ensures your products are recognized accurately in Google Shopping. This not only boosts listing approval rates but also prevents mismatches when customers compare similar products.

Besides that, Google considers manufacturer-assigned codes as unique identifiers. Using such unique identifiers will help increase the probability of matching to the right entry in the catalog, which can finally help better ad placement and Shopping performance.

Audit and Sync Your Product Data Regularly

Updating Google product identifiers is essential to avoid disapproval. Changes can go in suppliers, packaging alterations, and product updates that might affect the correctness of your codes.

Therefore, a monthly audit could catch those errors before they harm your campaigns. That would ensure consistency through channels while decreasing the possibility of a sale being skipped.

Use Barcode Scanning Tools to Avoid Manual Errors

Typing in GTINs or MPNs generally results in typos that break product matching in Merchant Center. Instead, barcode scanners can save time and guarantee accurate data capture every time.

In addition, integrating barcode scanning into your product upload or inventory process saves time and minimizes costly listing mistakes. It’s a small investment that delivers long-term accuracy.

Leverage Identifiers for Better Product SEO

Google uses product identifiers to find the items that correspond to a particular search query or filter in Shopping. Thus, having the right GTIN or MPN enhances visibility and drives capable traffic in. A proper set of identifiers guarantees click-through rates to be high, as these are based on the ads being shown in the right searches.

Finally, any slight improvement in matching accuracy can be synonymous with higher sales.

Streamline Identifier Management with FeedNexa

If you want to simplify Google product identifier management, FeedNexa (Google Shopping Feed Pro) can help. It derives GTIN, MPN, and brand info from your Shopify store and streams them to Google Merchant Center, Facebook, and Bing in real time.

In addition, FeedNexa supports custom metafield mappings for niche products, multi-language feeds, as well as instant error alerts to ensure that your identifiers remain correct without requiring any form of endless couple of manual edits from you.

Conclusion

Using a Google product identifier correctly is one of the simplest yet most powerful ways to improve your eCommerce performance. It ensures your products are matched accurately across Google Shopping and other marketplaces, leading to better visibility, higher click-through rates, and improved return on ad spend.

Ultimately, accurate product data is the foundation of Google Shopping success. By keeping your identifiers consistent and error-free, and by leveraging feed management tools to track and update them effortlessly, you set your store up for long-term growth and more profitable ad campaigns.