Open workspace

Implementation guide

Shopping ads

Shopping ads (AdSense for Search)

Ads with a photo, price and store name that appear in AdSense search units when the search is about shopping.

  • AdSense
  • mobile and desktop (on the site's search results page)
Learn the formatCheck my site
Desktop
Mobile

Understand it in 1 minute

What shopping ads are

Shopping ads are like a shop window that appears inside your site's search. When someone searches for something they can buy, like running shoes, the ad can show the product photo, the price, the store name and even promotions, instead of just text. It is like asking a salesperson for a pair of shoes and having them bring the box right away, with the price tag showing.

In AdSense, this format is a feature of AdSense for search, AFS. This means it does not live on its own: it appears inside the same AFS ad units, on the site's search results page, when the search is related to shopping. Since it uses the same search styles, you do not need to change the site's code to start. When Google launched the feature, in 2020, sites that already used AFS were enrolled automatically and had a deadline to opt out, if they wanted.

You control the look in AdSense, inside the search style: font, text color, background color, spacing, borders, image size and the way to show the price, the store name and the product title. There is also a button to turn shopping ads on or off. Off, only text ads remain. There are also extensions, which bring extra information, such as price ratings.

Google created this format because, when someone searches for a product, seeing the photo and price helps them understand the offer faster. It makes sense on sites with internal product search, such as stores, comparison sites and deal portals. Since it lives inside AFS units, the same search ads policies apply: the units can only be on the results page of a real search, and the ads must be easy to tell apart from the results.

Step by step

How to implement

  1. Get access to AFSShopping ads are an AdSense for search feature. You need to have access to AFS.
  2. Open or create a search styleIn AdSense, click Search ads and then Search styles. Create a new style or edit an existing one.
  3. Style the shopping adsIn the style, click Shopping ads. Keep the option Enable Shopping ads turned on and adjust font, colors, image, price, merchant name and product title.
  4. PreviewIf you want, turn on Preview search and Shopping ads to see how they look together.
  5. Save the styleClick Save style or Save and get code. If your results page already uses this style, you do not need to change the tag.

Implemented example

The code and how it looks on screen

This format needs no new code: you turn it on in the Google dashboard, as the steps above show.

On desktopIt appears inside the search ad units, on the site's search results page, with a product image, price, store name and title.
On mobileIt appears the same way on the results page on mobile, inside the search units, respecting the unit limits for mobile.

What Google recommends

Do and don't

Allowed

  • Turn shopping ads on or off in the search style.
  • Customize the font, text color, background color, spacing, borders and the hover effect.
  • Set the width and height of the product image.
  • Styling the price ratings, which live in the Shopping ads extensions.
  • Preview search and shopping ads together before saving.
  • Change the shopping ad template used in the style.

Not allowed

  • Place the ad units outside the search results page.
  • Leave the search box pre-filled or create links with ready-made searches.
  • Make the ads look like the search results. They must be easy to tell apart.
  • Pay or reward the person to search or to view ads.
  • Show more ads than search results.
  • Use search ads in mobile apps, which Google does not support.

Tips

To do it right

Watch out

Common errors

Looking for a new code

There is no separate tag for shopping. Just turn the feature on in the search style the page already uses.

Feature turned off in the style

If the option to enable shopping ads is off, only text ads appear.

Units outside the results page

AFS units can only be on search results pages. Placing them on other pages goes against the policy.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to change my site's code?

No. Google says you can test shopping ads in search styles without tagging the site again.

Can any AdSense account have them?

They are an AdSense for search feature. You need to have access to AFS.

Where exactly do they appear?

In AFS ad units, on the site's search results page, when the search is related to shopping.

Can I opt out of shopping ads?

Yes. In the search style, turn off the option Enable Shopping ads. This way, only text search ads show up.

Library

Official Google source

Everything on this page follows Google's official documentation. Read it straight from the source:

Does your site use this format the right way?

The audit reads the site as a visitor would, without clicking anything, and shows what to fix.

Run an audit