Google Local Inventory Feed: Technical Setup and Field Mapping

Overview of Google Local Inventory Feed

The Google Local Inventory feed enables merchants to sync real-time inventory, pricing, and fulfillment information from physical stores directly to Google Shopping and local search results. This feed operates alongside your primary product feed and allows you to advertise local pickup, in-store availability, and store-specific pricing to customers searching near your locations.

Unlike a standard product feed that describes what you sell, the Local Inventory feed describes where and how customers can access those products. When configured correctly, it drives foot traffic to stores, enables local pickup orders, and increases conversion rates by showing availability at nearby locations.

Merchants use this feed when they operate multiple store locations and want to:

• Display local availability in Google Search and Maps results.
• Promote in-store pickup as a fulfillment option.
• Set store-specific pricing or sale prices.
• Show accurate inventory quantities by location.
• Integrate loyalty programme discounts into local listings.
• Manage local shipping or delivery costs from specific stores.

Core Feed Structure and Required Fields

Each record in your Local Inventory feed must link to an existing product in your primary Google Merchant Center feed using the id field. The feed then layers location-specific data on top of that product record.

The feed requires the following essential fields for every record:

Field Specifications and Practical Configuration

id

This field must exactly match the id value from your primary product feed in Merchant Center. Google uses this to join local inventory data to the main product record.

If your primary feed uses SKU numbers as IDs (for example, SKU-12345-BLK), your Local Inventory feed must use the same identifier. If you use UPC codes or internal product IDs, remain consistent across both feeds.

Missing or malformed IDs are the most common reason Local Inventory feeds fail validation. Test your feed by exporting a sample product ID from your primary feed and confirming it appears in your Local Inventory data before uploading.

store_code

This is your internal identifier for each physical store location. It must match the store codes you have registered in Google Business Profile or Merchant Center's store location settings.

Common formats include store numbers (STORE-001, STORE-002), postal codes combined with identifiers (NYC-5TH-AVE), or location names (LONDON-FLAGSHIP). Choose a scheme that is stable and does not change when store names or addresses are updated.

If you use different store codes in different systems (for example, one code in your inventory management system and another in your point-of-sale system), establish a mapping table to ensure consistency when generating the feed. A mismatched store_code prevents Google from associating the inventory record with the correct location.

availability

This field tells Google whether the product is available at the store. Valid values are:

• in stock - Product is available for purchase or pickup.
• out of stock - Product is not currently available.
• preorder - Product can be ordered in advance.

Google uses this value to determine whether to show local pickup as a fulfillment option. If availability is set to out of stock, the product will not be offered for local pickup, even if quantity is greater than zero. This field directly controls whether a customer sees a 'Check nearby stores' button or a 'Pick up today' option in search results.

Update this field in real-time or at least daily to reflect actual store conditions. Stale availability data frustrates customers and increases store traffic for out-of-stock items.

price

The regular selling price of the product at this store location. Format this as a decimal number with the currency code (for example, 19.99 GBP).

If you do not provide a price in the Local Inventory feed, Google uses the price from your primary product feed. However, if a store has a different regular price than your online price, you must specify it here to ensure accurate local listings.

Price mismatches between the feed and in-store signage create friction at the point of sale. Verify that store_code, price, and actual shelf prices are synchronised.

quantity

The number of units of this product available at the store. Provide this as a non-negative integer.

While Google does not display exact stock counts in search results, it uses quantity to inform availability decisions. If quantity is zero, Google may treat the product as out of stock even if the availability field says in stock. Conversely, if quantity is a large number (for example, 999), Google may assume unlimited stock and not show inventory urgency.

For accurate local shopping behaviour, ensure quantity reflects true stock levels. If your inventory system shows 3 units, report 3, not 999 or 1. This helps Google optimise ad delivery and set customer expectations appropriately.

pickup_method

Specifies how customers can obtain the product from this store. Valid values are:

• buy - Customer purchases online and picks up in-store.
• ship - Customer purchases online and store fulfils the order for delivery.
• local delivery - Store delivers to the customer's address.

This field determines which fulfillment badges appear in Google Search and Shopping ads. If you support buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS), set this to buy. If the store acts as a fulfillment centre for online orders, use ship. If you offer same-day or next-day delivery from the store, select local delivery.

You can include multiple pickup methods per store by providing multiple records with the same id and store_code but different pickup_method values. This allows a single store to advertise all available fulfillment options.

pickup_sla

The service-level agreement for pickup, expressed as the number of days required to fulfil a pickup order. Provide this as an integer (for example, 0 for same-day, 1 for next-day).

This field appears in local shopping ads and search results to set customer expectations. If you promise same-day pickup, set this to 0. If pickup is available the next business day, use 1.

Missing or inaccurate pickup_sla values lead to customer disappointment when they arrive to collect an order that is not yet ready. Ensure your fulfillment processes can consistently meet the SLA you advertise.

pickup_cost

The fee charged to the customer for in-store pickup, if any. Format as a decimal number with currency code (for example, 0.00 GBP for free pickup, or 5.00 GBP for a £5 fee).

If pickup is free, you may omit this field or set it to 0.00 GBP. If you charge a pickup fee, you must include it here to avoid misleading customers. Failing to disclose pickup costs can result in feed disapprovals and customer complaints.

local_shipping_label

A custom label you assign to products that are eligible for local shipping or delivery from this store. This field is optional but useful for managing which products can be fulfilled locally.

For example, you might use labels like local-eligible, heavy-item-local-only, or fragile-local-delivery. You then use these labels in your store's fulfillment rules to determine which products can be delivered from which locations.

If you do not use local shipping labels, you can leave this field blank. If you do use them, ensure consistency across all relevant product records and document the label scheme for your team.

sale_price

A temporary promotional price lower than the regular price. Format as a decimal number with currency code (for example, 14.99 GBP).

Sale prices must be lower than the regular price field. If sale_price is equal to or higher than price, Google rejects the record.

Always pair sale_price with sale_price_effective_date to define the promotion period. Omitting the effective date can cause the sale price to persist after the promotion ends, leading to customer confusion and potential policy violations.

sale_price_effective_date

The date range during which the sale_price applies. Format this as YYYY-MM-DD/YYYY-MM-DD (for example, 2025-01-15/2025-01-31).

Google uses this field to control when promotional pricing appears in search results and ads. If the current date falls outside this range, Google ignores the sale_price and uses the regular price instead.

Set end dates conservatively. If you set an end date in the future but the promotion ends early, update the feed immediately to prevent customers from seeing expired pricing. Conversely, if you extend a promotion, update the end date before the original date passes.

loyalty_program

Integrates loyalty programme discounts or benefits into local inventory listings. This field typically contains a loyalty programme identifier or benefit description that appears in search results when a customer is logged into their loyalty account.

For example, you might provide member-exclusive-10-percent-off or loyalty-tier-2-pricing. Google displays this information to eligible customers, encouraging loyalty programme participation and increasing conversion rates.

Ensure that any loyalty programme benefits you advertise in this field are actually available and correctly reflected in your point-of-sale system. Advertising a discount that does not apply at checkout damages customer trust.

Practical Implementation and Optimisation

Feed Generation and Scheduling

Generate your Local Inventory feed from your store inventory management system or point-of-sale platform. Most systems can export store-level stock data in CSV or XML format.

Set up automated daily or hourly uploads to keep inventory data fresh. Real-time inventory sync is ideal for high-velocity categories like apparel or electronics, where stock levels change frequently. For slower-moving categories, daily updates may suffice.

Use a data pipeline that:

• Extracts store inventory data from your source system.
• Maps internal store codes to Google store codes.
• Validates that all required fields are present and correctly formatted.
• Matches product IDs to your primary feed.
• Uploads the file to Merchant Center via SFTP, API, or the web interface.

Monitor upload logs and error reports in Merchant Center daily. Address validation errors immediately to prevent feed disapprovals.

Store Code and Inventory Management

Maintain a master list of store codes and ensure every location has a unique, stable identifier. When you open a new store, add it to this list and register it in Google Business Profile before uploading Local Inventory data for that location.

If you close a store, stop uploading inventory records for that store_code. Do not reuse store codes for different locations, as this confuses Google's matching logic.

For multi-region operations, consider a hierarchical store code scheme (for example, GB-LONDON-001, GB-MANCHESTER-002, US-NEW-YORK-001) to make auditing and troubleshooting easier.

Pricing Strategy and Sale Price Effective Dates

If you run location-specific promotions, use sale_price to advertise them. Ensure sale_price_effective_date precisely reflects when the promotion runs.

Common mistakes include:

• Setting sale_price higher than price (causes rejection).
• Omitting sale_price_effective_date (sale price applies indefinitely).
• Setting an end date in the past (sale price is ignored).
• Forgetting to remove sale_price records after the promotion ends (customers see stale pricing).

Test promotional pricing by checking your local search results 2-4 hours after uploading the feed. Google processes Local Inventory feeds regularly but not instantly.

Pickup Method and SLA Alignment

Choose pickup_method and pickup_sla values that your operations team can reliably deliver. If you advertise same-day pickup (pickup_sla = 0), ensure your store has the staffing and processes to fulfil orders within a few hours.

If you cannot reliably pick and stage orders within your advertised SLA, customers will arrive to find their order not ready, resulting in negative reviews and lost sales.

Document your pickup and delivery commitments in writing and share them with store managers and customer service teams.

Loyalty Programme Integration

If you offer loyalty programme pricing or benefits, ensure your Merchant Center feed reflects those benefits in the loyalty_program field. Coordinate with your loyalty programme team to confirm:

• Which products are eligible for loyalty discounts.
• What discount or benefit applies to each tier.
• How the benefit is communicated to customers at checkout.

Test the end-to-end experience by logging into your loyalty account, searching for a product with a loyalty benefit, and verifying that the discount applies at purchase.

Feed Validation and Error Handling

Before uploading a new Local Inventory feed, validate it against Google's schema:

• Check that all id values match products in your primary feed.
• Verify that all store_code values are registered in Merchant Center.
• Confirm that availability values are one of the allowed options.
• Ensure price and sale_price are formatted correctly with currency codes.
• Validate that sale_price_effective_date follows the YYYY-MM-DD/YYYY-MM-DD format.
• Check that quantity is a non-negative integer.

Google Merchant Center provides detailed error and warning reports. Review these reports after each upload and fix issues before the next upload cycle.

Common issues and resolutions:

Summary

The Google Local Inventory feed connects your physical stores to Google's local search and shopping results. By providing accurate, up-to-date inventory, pricing, and fulfillment information, you enable customers to find products nearby and choose the fulfillment method that suits them.

Key success factors:

• Match all product IDs and store codes exactly to your primary feed and Merchant Center setup.
• Update inventory and availability daily or in real-time.
• Set accurate pickup SLAs and costs that your operations can deliver.
• Use sale prices and effective dates for time-bound promotions.
• Integrate loyalty programme benefits to drive membership growth.
• Monitor feed validation reports and fix errors promptly.

Regularly audit your Local Inventory feed against actual store conditions. Stale or inaccurate data harms customer experience and reduces the effectiveness of local advertising. Treat this feed as a critical operational asset, not a one-time setup task.