Google allows physical goods subscriptions in Shopping ads

Google announced support for physical goods subscriptions in Shopping ads during October 2025, expanding the platform's capabilities for merchants selling recurring delivery products in the United States. The update introduces structured feed attributes that enable businesses to advertise subscription-based offerings for physical items, marking a significant expansion of product types eligible for Shopping campaigns.

According to the policy document, physical goods subscriptions are now available to all eligible Shopping ad merchants in the United States. The update specifically covers eight product categories: apparel and accessories, coffee, healthcare (excluding prescription drugs), home and garden, personal care, pet supplies, prepared foods, and toys.

The implementation requires merchants to modify their product feeds using the subscription_cost attribute and its associated subattributes. These technical specifications include period (accepting values of week, month, or year), period_length, and amount. Google's systems currently support only one subscription price per landing page, and the platform does not yet accommodate sales or discounts on subscription offerings.

This development addresses a growing segment of e-commerce where businesses operate on recurring revenue models rather than one-time transactions. Subscription commerce has expanded significantly across consumer goods categories, with companies seeking predictable revenue streams and customers valuing the convenience of automatic replenishment.

The technical structure Google has implemented requires specific data formatting in product feeds. Merchants must populate the subscription_cost attribute with nested information about billing frequency and pricing. The period attribute accepts three discrete values—week, month, or year—establishing the basic billing cycle. The period_length subattribute allows merchants to specify multiples of these periods, enabling flexibility for subscriptions that occur every two weeks, every three months, or other intervals.

The amount subattribute contains the actual price charged for each subscription cycle. This structure enables Google's advertising systems to display accurate pricing information to potential customers viewing Shopping ads. The limitation of one subscription price per landing page means merchants offering multiple subscription tiers or frequencies must create separate product pages for each option.

Several categories excluded from this policy update reflect regulatory considerations and platform limitations. Prescription drugs remain prohibited from subscription advertising, though other healthcare products qualify. The categories included represent areas where subscription models have gained commercial traction and where automated recurring delivery provides clear consumer value.

For the advertising industry, this update reflects broader shifts in how digital platforms accommodate diverse business models. Shopping ads have historically focused on single-transaction purchases, but subscription commerce represents a substantial portion of online retail revenue. The technical infrastructure required to support recurring billing information in product feeds differs from standard e-commerce data structures.

The policy announcement provides no information about commission structures, eligibility requirements beyond basic merchant standing, or performance metrics specific to subscription products. Merchants interested in utilizing this feature must ensure their product feeds comply with the technical specifications while maintaining existing Shopping ads requirements.

Google's systems will parse the subscription_cost attribute alongside standard product attributes like price, availability, and condition. This creates a scenario where merchants may advertise both one-time purchase options and subscription offerings, depending on their product catalog structure and landing page configurations.

The restriction on discounted subscriptions presents limitations for common marketing strategies. Many subscription businesses offer reduced pricing for annual commitments versus monthly billing, or promotional discounts for new subscribers. The current implementation does not support these pricing variations within the Shopping ads platform, potentially limiting how merchants can present their full value propositions.

The October 2025 timing of this announcement positions it within the fourth quarter, when many merchants finalize their advertising strategies for the upcoming year. Subscription businesses typically see increased acquisition activity during certain periods, and the availability of Shopping ads as an additional channel could influence planning for these campaigns.

From a technical implementation perspective, merchants must ensure their product data management systems can generate and maintain the required subscription_cost attribute structure. Many e-commerce platforms and feed management tools will need to incorporate support for these new attributes, creating a transition period as the ecosystem adapts to the expanded requirements.

The policy document makes clear that this represents a formal allowance of something that previously existed in a gray area or was explicitly prohibited. The phrase "formally allows" suggests that subscription products may have been advertised previously without explicit policy support, and this update codifies the permitted categories and technical requirements.

For merchants operating in the specified categories, the update presents an opportunity to reach customers actively searching for subscription options. Shopping ads appear in response to search queries, meaning users looking for subscription services in categories like coffee or pet supplies could now see relevant subscription offerings directly in search results.

The United States-only availability indicates a phased rollout approach. International expansion would require addressing different regulatory environments, currency handling, and market conditions across various countries. The initial U.S. focus allows Google to refine the technical implementation and merchant experience before broader geographic expansion.

The absence of support for sales or discounts represents a notable limitation that affects competitive positioning. Subscription businesses frequently use promotional pricing as an acquisition tool, and the inability to display discounted rates in Shopping ads may affect conversion rates compared to other advertising channels where promotional pricing can be featured.

Merchants must also consider how this update interacts with their existing Shopping ads performance. Products that can be sold both as one-time purchases and subscriptions will require decisions about how to structure campaigns, whether to create separate product listings, and how to allocate budget between different purchase models.

The policy announcement focuses strictly on mechanics and eligibility without addressing performance expectations, best practices, or case studies. This technical focus suggests merchants will need to develop their own approaches to optimizing subscription product advertising through experimentation and analysis.

Summary

Who: Google and Shopping ad merchants in the United States selling physical goods subscriptions

What: Introduction of formal policy support for physical goods subscriptions in Shopping ads across eight categories (apparel and accessories, coffee, healthcare excluding prescription drugs, home and garden, personal care, pet supplies, prepared foods, and toys), requiring new subscription_cost feed attribute with period, period_length, and amount subattributes

When: October 2025

Where: United States only; available through Google Shopping ads platform

Why: To accommodate subscription-based business models in Shopping ads, providing merchants with more flexibility and customers with access to recurring delivery options for physical goods; addresses the growing subscription commerce segment while maintaining structured product data requirements