What is a GTIN on Google Shopping?

A GTIN is the global identifier behind a product's barcode, such as a UPC or EAN. Google uses it to match your product to the same item elsewhere. You must provide it for any product the manufacturer assigned one to.

What if my product does not have a GTIN?

Do not invent one. Set the identifier_exists attribute to false (or no) so Google knows the absence is intentional, and provide brand and mpn instead. This is normal for custom, handmade, or unbranded products.

Why is my GTIN being rejected even though I added it?

It is probably invalid: a dropped leading zero, the wrong number of digits, a failed check digit, or a SKU pasted into the GTIN field. Confirm the value is a real, correctly formatted UPC or EAN with its leading zeros intact.

Fix: missing GTIN on Google Shopping

A missing or invalid GTIN is one of the most common Google Shopping disapprovals. Here is what a GTIN is, when you need one, and how to fix it.

What a GTIN is and why Google wants it

A GTIN (Global Trade Item Number) is the unique numeric identifier printed under the barcode on most retail products. It includes formats like UPC (12 digits, common in North America), EAN (13 digits, common in Europe), and ISBN for books. Google uses the GTIN to match your product to the same item sold elsewhere, which helps it understand, classify, and price-compare your listing.

Because GTINs power that matching, Google requires them for any product that has one assigned by the manufacturer. When a product that should have a GTIN is missing it, Google may disapprove the product or limit its reach with a warning.

When you do and do not need a GTIN

Not every product has a GTIN, and Google accounts for that. The rule is: if the manufacturer assigned a GTIN, you must provide it. If the product genuinely has no GTIN, you handle it differently rather than inventing one.

Branded, manufactured products: a GTIN almost always exists; you must include it.
Custom, handmade, or one-of-a-kind products: often have no GTIN.
Your own private-label products without a barcode: may have no GTIN.
Never make up or reuse a GTIN; an invalid one is worse than a declared absence.

How to fix a missing GTIN disapproval

There are two valid paths depending on whether the product actually has a GTIN. Work through them in order.

1Find the real GTIN: check the product packaging, the manufacturer's site, or your supplier data for the UPC or EAN.
2Add it to the gtin attribute in your feed for every affected product.
3Make sure brand and mpn are also present; Google uses these together for matching.
4If a product genuinely has no GTIN, set identifier_exists to false (or no) so Google knows it is intentionally absent, and provide brand plus mpn instead.
5Re-run the feed and let Google re-review.

Validate the GTIN, not just its presence

A GTIN that is present but wrong still fails. Google validates the number, including its check digit (the final digit calculated from the others), so a typo or a truncated value gets rejected. The most common mistakes are dropping a leading zero (spreadsheets love to do this), having the wrong number of digits, or pasting an internal SKU into the GTIN field.

Treat the GTIN as a strict format, not free text. Confirm it has the right length for its type (12 for UPC, 13 for EAN), preserve leading zeros, and never put a SKU or model number in the GTIN attribute.

Fixing it for the whole catalog with MartechFlow

If GTINs live in your source data under a different column name, the fix is a one-time mapping: point your gtin attribute at the right source field and every product is fixed at once. If some products legitimately lack GTINs, a rule can set identifier_exists to false for exactly those products while leaving the rest untouched.

MartechFlow lets you do both with simple field mapping and rules, and it preserves leading zeros and validates format so a spreadsheet quirk does not silently break your GTINs. You fix the GTIN problem once, and it stays fixed for every future product.

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