Local Inventory Feed Builder for Google Merchant Center

How to make a Google Merchant Center local inventory feed

A Google Merchant Center local inventory feed tells Google which store has which product, so shoppers nearby see “in stock” in local inventory ads and free local listings. This builder turns your stock export into that file and checks it against Google's local inventory data specification.

1. Add your stock sheet. One row per product per store, or one quantity column per store such as Qty Store-DT01 — both work.
2. Add your store codes. Optional: a Business Profile list lets the builder check every code and fix capital letters.
3. Check the columns. Map the id, store and quantity, plus status, price and pickup columns if you have them.
4. Choose the defaults. Set the currency and, if you offer store pickup, the pickup method and pickup time for rows that don't say.
5. Download. Get the tab-separated feed with one row per product per store. Rows with errors are left out and listed in a separate file to fix.

Local inventory feed availability values and quantity

Google reads availability and quantity together and uses the lower one. When your sheet has only counts, the builder sets availability from Google's classes. Negative stock becomes 0, and “5+” becomes 5.

Local inventory feed pickup method values

Google spells pickup values in two ways: the local inventory specification writes ship to store and same day, while the local product data specification writes ship_to_store and same_day and also lists 7-day. This builder writes the local inventory specification's values and flags 7-day, which that page doesn't list. The older instore_product_location attribute isn't in the current specification, so it isn't offered.

What to do next in Merchant Center

1. Turn on local use of your products. Open Settings > Data sources, select your product source and, in its setup, choose to use the product data for local and online stores.
2. Add the inventory source. Under Settings > Data sources > Supplemental sources, add a local inventory data source. Upload the file once or host it so Google fetches it every 24 hours.
3. Wait for stores to sync. After you link Business Profile or change a store code, allow up to 24 hours before uploading inventory. Products can take up to 2 days to appear.
4. Refresh it daily. Export stock each night and upload the new file, or replace the hosted file.

Common local inventory feed errors and fixes

“Missing store code”

A row has no store_code, so Google can't place the product in a store. Fill it in from Business Profile; rows without one are listed.

Local inventory feed store code not matching

Store codes are case-sensitive: store-hb02 and Store-HB02 are different stores to Google. Stray spaces break the match too. With your store list loaded, the builder fixes capital letters and lists codes that don't exist in Business Profile.

“Missing inventory data”

Google has a product enabled for local use but no inventory row for it. Usually the id differs from the product data, a store code is wrong or the Business Profile link is missing. If you don't sell in stores at all, remove the Local inventory ads add-on.

Unknown availability values

Words like “backorder” or “yes” aren't accepted. Use one of Google's four values in English; the builder converts common spellings and falls back to the quantity.

pickup_sla missing or not allowed

Every item that can be picked up needs a pickup time. 7-day appears only on the product data page, so use 6-day or multi-week in local inventory.

pickup_cost and minimum_order_value in the UK, Switzerland and EEA

From September 30, 2026, if your website charges for pickup or sets a minimum order, Google needs pickup_cost and minimum_order_value for in-store products enabled for pickup in these countries (Google's announcement). Google's pickup cost page asks you to send pickup_cost in your product data source, not per store, so this builder warns you and leaves it out of the local inventory file.