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Google’s UCP path builds on your existing Merchant Center infrastructure. If you already have an active Merchant Center feed, you are 40–50% of the way to full UCP readiness. What you add on top — a /.well-known/ucp manifest, live checkout endpoints, and higher-quality product data — is what unlocks Google AI Mode and Gemini as transactional surfaces for your store.

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Prerequisites

  • Active Google Merchant Center account with products approved for Shopping
  • Product feed in a Google-supported format (XML, TSV, or API)
  • Domain with HTTPS
  • Ability to host /.well-known/ucp at your domain root

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Step 1: Audit your product feed

Google AI Mode requires higher-quality product data than standard Shopping ads. Run the Readiness Score first to identify gaps in your existing feed: 
curl -X POST https://asva-ai.com/api/audit \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ASVA_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"domain": "yourstore.com", "checks": ["feed", "merchant_center"]}'

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Feed field requirements for UCP and AI Mode

FieldRequiredNotes
idYesStable, unique product ID. Must not change between feed refreshes.
titleYesClear, descriptive — avoid keyword stuffing or promotional language.
descriptionYesMinimum 150 characters for adequate AI comprehension.
linkYesCanonical product page URL.
image_linkYesHigh-resolution, publicly accessible image URL.
priceYesAccurate, in the format 129.99 USD. Must match on-site pricing.
availabilityYesOne of: in stock, out of stock, preorder.
brandYesRequired for most product categories.
gtinRecommendedImproves product match quality and deduplication.
product_typeRecommendedGoogle product taxonomy path (e.g. Apparel & Accessories > Shoes).

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Mapping Merchant Center fields to UCP product schema

Merchant Center fieldUCP product fieldNotes
ididDirect mapping — use the same identifier in both
titlenameDirect mapping
descriptiondescriptionDirect mapping; 150+ chars recommended
linkurlDirect mapping
image_linkimages[0]First element in the images array
priceprice.amount + price.currencyConvert 129.99 USD to { amount: 12999, currency: "USD" }
availabilityavailabilityConvert in stock → in_stock, out of stock → out_of_stock
brandbrandDirect mapping
Item group IDParent product idGroup variants under one product
color, sizevariants[].attributesMap each variant attribute key-value pair
Use the Readiness Score to get a specific list of feed gaps for your domain. It pulls from your live feed and flags missing or malformed fields, including AI Mode-specific requirements that don’t apply to standard Shopping campaigns.
Connect your Merchant Center account to your Google Business Profile so your store is eligible for AI Mode local and contextual results:
  1. In Merchant Center, go to Settings → Business information
  2. Click Verify next to your business profile
  3. Complete phone or postcard verification if you have not already done so

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Step 3: Publish your UCP manifest

Create /.well-known/ucp at your domain root. This tells Google AI Mode what commerce endpoints your store exposes.
/.well-known/ucp
{
  "version": "1.0",
  "capabilities": {
    "product_catalog": {
      "endpoint": "https://yourstore.com/api/ucp/products",
      "format": "json",
      "supports_search": true
    },
    "checkout": {
      "endpoint": "https://yourstore.com/api/ucp/checkout",
      "supported_methods": ["POST"]
    }
  }
}
Generate this file automatically using the Manifest Generator. See UCP capability discovery for hosting instructions.

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Step 4: Implement UCP endpoints

A perfect Merchant Center feed alone is not sufficient. Google AI Mode requires your checkout endpoint to be live for customers to transact. At minimum, implement:
  • GET /ucp/products — your product catalog (can mirror your Merchant Center feed, transformed to UCP schema)
  • POST /ucp/checkout — cart creation and order confirmation
See UCP getting started for full endpoint specifications and code examples.

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Step 5: Validate and submit

Run the full Readiness Score audit: 
curl -X POST https://asva-ai.com/api/audit \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ASVA_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"domain": "yourstore.com"}'
Then in Google Merchant Center:
  1. Go to Products → Feeds
  2. Click your feed and select Fetch now
  3. Open Diagnostics and review any UCP-specific errors or warnings
  4. Submit for verification if prompted

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Common issues

Approval in standard Shopping does not guarantee AI Mode placement. AI Mode has stricter data quality requirements around description length, image quality, and price accuracy. Check the Diagnostics tab for AI Mode-specific warnings and run the Readiness Score to see exactly what needs to change.
The manifest must be hosted at the root domain (yourstore.com/.well-known/ucp), not at a subdomain. Some hosting platforms require explicit routing for .well-known paths — add a server route or rewrite rule if your static hosting blocks dot-prefixed directories.
Cart creation should respond within 3 seconds. Google AI Mode may time out and fall back to a non-transactional result if your endpoint is too slow. Optimize your database queries, use connection pooling, and cache product and pricing data close to the endpoint.
Google requires that prices in your Merchant Center feed match prices on your product pages. If AI Mode detects a discrepancy, your products may be disapproved. Ensure your UCP catalog endpoint and your Merchant Center feed both pull from the same source of truth.

UCP getting started

Full quickstart — manifest, catalog, and checkout endpoints.

UCP capability discovery

Hosting and validating your /.well-known/ucp manifest.

Shopify UCP guide

UCP implementation for Shopify merchants.

Feed specs and formatting

Preparing feeds for Merchant Center and ACP.