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Troubleshooting Common Google for WooCommerce Product Feed Errors

26 threads Sep 22, 2025 Plugin → Google for woocommerce

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If you're using the Google for WooCommerce plugin to sync your products to Google Merchant Center, you've likely encountered some frustrating feed errors. These issues can prevent your products from appearing in Google Shopping results and disrupt your advertising campaigns.

Based on common community reports, here are the most frequent product feed problems and how to resolve them.

1. Product ID and SKU Mismatch

The Problem: The plugin sometimes generates its own product IDs (prefixed with gla_) instead of using your existing WooCommerce SKUs. This creates a mismatch between your Merchant Center feed and other systems like Google Analytics, breaking tracking and remarketing campaigns.

The Solution:

  • Resync Products: First, try unsyncing all products from your Google Merchant Center account. Then, re-enter the correct SKU in the WooCommerce product data and save the changes. Finally, perform a full product resync.
  • Check Attribute Mapping: Ensure you are filling in the correct fields. The plugin looks for the 'SKU' field in the product data, not custom attributes like 'Article number' or 'GTIN'.

2. "Too many values" or "Missing value" Errors

The Problem: Attributes like size, age group, or brand can throw errors if they contain multiple values, are incorrectly formatted, or are missing entirely. Google's specifications require specific data formats.

The Solution:

  • Use Single Values: For attributes like 'size', ensure each product variation has only one value assigned.
  • Create Correctly Named Attributes: To fix a 'Missing value [age group]' error, you may need to create a product attribute with the exact name age group and assign it to your products.
  • Map Custom Taxonomies: If you use a plugin for brands (e.g., as a taxonomy), the plugin may not automatically map it. You might need custom development to ensure this data is passed correctly to the feed.

3. Product Images Not Found

The Problem: If your product images are hosted externally on a CDN and are not part of the WordPress Media Library, the plugin may fail to map them, resulting in a "This value should not be blank [image]" error.

The Solution: The plugin requires product images to be registered in the WordPress Media Library. You will likely need to import your CDN images into the media library so the plugin can properly include them in the feed.

4. Feed Sync Failures and Connection Errors

The Problem: You may see generic errors like "An error occurred while retrieving your product feed" or "Google Merchant Center has not been set up correctly" in your logs. This often points to a broken connection.

The Solution: A complete disconnection and reconnection often resolves this.

  1. Go to your site's debug page: your-domain.com/wp-admin/admin.php?page=connection-test-admin-page
  2. Under 'Merchant Center', click MC Disconnect.
  3. Under 'Google Account', click Disconnect Google Account.
  4. Go to Marketing > Google Listings & Ads and set up the connection again from scratch.
  5. After reconnecting, use the 'Sync all products' button on the debug page to force a full sync.

5. Variable or Custom Product Types Not Syncing

The Problem: Products of certain types, like 'Variable Subscription' or custom types created by other plugins (e.g., 'Mix and Match'), may not appear in the feed.

The Solution: The Google for WooCommerce plugin officially supports standard 'Simple' and 'Variable' product types. Support for custom product types is limited and may require custom code to integrate properly. Check the plugin's documentation for the latest supported product types.

General Troubleshooting Steps

  • Check the Logs: Always check WooCommerce > Status > Logs for specific error messages from the google-listings-and-ads log file.
  • Manual Sync: If products are stuck, manually trigger a sync from the connection test admin page.
  • Review Merchant Center: Many details about feed errors and product disapprovals are only visible directly within your Google Merchant Center account.

By methodically working through these common issues, you can resolve most product feed errors and get your products syncing correctly with Google.

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