Fix: missing required attributes (gender, age group, color, size)
6 min read
Google disapproves a product when a required attribute is missing. Which attributes are required depends on what you sell: there's a baseline every product needs, and extra ones for categories like apparel.
The fix is to map each one at the feed level so it's never blank, including for new products you add later.
Required for every product
- id — a unique, stable identifier per product
- title — clear, descriptive product name
- description — what the product is
- link — the product page URL
- image_link — a clean product image URL
- availability — in stock, out of stock, or preorder
- price — with currency
Required for apparel and accessories
If you sell clothing, shoes, or accessories, Google additionally requires these so it can build size and gender filters:
- gender — male, female, or unisex
- age_group — adult, kids, toddler, infant, or newborn
- color — the dominant colour
- size — with a size system where relevant
Why mapping beats manual entry
Filling these in by hand on a spreadsheet means every new product is a chance to forget one and get disapproved again. Mapping the attribute to a source field once means the value is pulled automatically for every product, now and in future.
Where the data isn't clean in your store, a feed tool lets you derive it — for example, pulling colour or size out of the variant name with a rule — instead of editing the catalog.
Recommended attributes worth adding
Beyond the required set, attributes like product_type, google_product_category, gtin, and brand aren't strictly required for every item but materially improve performance. Treat the required list as the floor, not the goal.
Common questions
What attributes are required for Google Shopping?
Every product needs id, title, description, link, image_link, availability and price. Apparel additionally needs gender, age_group, color and size. Missing any required attribute disapproves the item.
Why are only my clothing products disapproved?
Apparel has extra required attributes — gender, age_group, color and size. If those aren't mapped, only your clothing items fail while the rest run fine.
What if my store doesn't store color or size as separate fields?
You can derive them in the feed — for example, extract colour and size from the variant title with a rule — rather than restructuring your catalog. A feed tool with a rules engine does this without touching the source data.
Rather not deal with this yourself?
On our Pro plan, our team builds, configures and runs your feeds for you — zero touch. Or start free and do it yourself with the tools above.