Google Simplifies Shipping Policies with New Structured Data
▼ Summary
– Google Search now supports shipping policy markup that lets ecommerce sites display delivery costs and transit times in search results and knowledge panels.
– The markup uses ShippingService structured data to define shipping costs and delivery times based on product weight, dimensions, order value, or destination.
– Shipping policies can be set at the organization level with product-specific overrides, and Google recommends placing the markup on a single page.
– When multiple shipping options apply to a product, Google displays the lowest cost and associated speed, with support for fixed fees, percentage-based fees, and transit time specifications.
– Existing shipping settings in Merchant Center or Search Console will override the markup when both are present, and the markup must follow Google’s structured data policies to be eligible for search features.
Google has introduced a new structured data markup specifically for shipping policies, providing ecommerce businesses with a direct method to showcase delivery costs and estimated transit times within search results and knowledge panels. This update allows online retailers to embed shipping details directly into their website’s code, ensuring that potential customers see accurate delivery information before they even click through to a product page.
The newly documented ShippingService structured data enables merchants to define their shipping rules based on a variety of factors. You can now set costs and delivery timeframes according to product weight, physical dimensions, total order value, or the customer’s destination. A general, organization-wide shipping policy is established using the `hasShippingService` property. For products that require different shipping rules, you can create specific overrides using `OfferShippingDetails` under the Offer schema, although this method supports a more limited set of fields.
For implementation, Google advises placing all shipping policy markup on a single, dedicated page on your website. Each ShippingService you define can contain one or more ShippingConditions objects, which spell out the exact scenarios when a particular shipping rate becomes applicable. If multiple shipping conditions could apply to a single product, Google’s system will automatically select and display the option with the lowest cost and its associated delivery speed. You can specify fixed shipping fees using `MonetaryAmount` or set up percentage-based charges with `ShippingRateSettings`. To define transit times, you would use `ServicePeriod`, which can include details like the number of business days for delivery and any order handling cutoff times.
The system allows for detailed destination targeting. You can set policies by country using ISO 3166-1 codes. For greater granularity, you can optionally use region codes, though this is currently limited to the United States, Australia, and Japan. Postal code-level targeting is available for the US, Canada, and Australia. It is important to note that you should not specify both a region and a postal code within the same shipping condition.
When this new structured data markup is used alongside other Google shipping configurations, a specific order of precedence is applied. For instance, if you have both the new page markup and shipping settings configured in Google Search Console, the Search Console settings will take priority. Google has clarified that the strongest source in this hierarchy is the Content API for Shopping, whose settings will override all others.
This development is significant because it offers a standalone, code-based method for publishing shipping policies that Google Search can directly interpret. This can be particularly useful for keeping delivery information up-to-date, even for products that have not yet been submitted through a product feed. If you are already managing your shipping settings through Google Merchant Center or Search Console, you can continue to do so. However, you must be aware that those sources will override the information provided by your page’s structured data markup when both are present.
As with all rich result features, your markup must strictly adhere to Google’s structured data policies, the general Search Essentials guidelines, and the specific technical instructions provided in the documentation. Following these rules is mandatory for your shipping information to become eligible for display in Google Search results.
(Source: Search Engine Journal)