In October 2025, Google officially expanded its Shopping ads capabilities. It now allows U.S. merchants to promote physical goods sold through subscription models. This move is designed to help brands generate recurring revenue, improve customer loyalty, and compete with Amazon’s “Subscribe & Save.”
Effective this month, the new policy marks the first time that physical subscription products (coffee deliveries, pet supplies, personal care items, or household essentials) can be marketed directly within Google Shopping ads.
This change positions Google more competitively against e-commerce giants like Amazon, Shopify, and TikTok Shop. It’s also a strategic play into one of the fastest-growing e-commerce segments: subscription-based retail, expected to surpass $450 billion globally by 2027 (according to various industry forecasts).
By enabling subscriptions within Shopping ads, Google is creating a new opportunity for both merchants and consumers: predictable, recurring sales for brands and seamless “set-it-and-forget-it” convenience for shoppers.
What’s New: How the Subscription Feature Works
Eligible Product Categories
Initially, subscriptions are limited to select physical goods categories that align well with recurring purchase behavior, including:
- Healthcare (excluding prescription drugs)
- Personal care products
- Apparel & accessories
- Coffee and beverages
- Home & garden
- Prepared foods
- Pet supplies
- Toys
The decision to restrict to certain categories reflects areas where subscription models are already accustomed to repeat buying patterns and are logistically manageable.
Feed & Technical Requirements
To enable subscriptions, merchants must update their product feeds in Google Merchant Center with a new attribute:
- subscription_cost, which includes three key sub-attributes:
- period (week, month, or year)
- period_length (the number of periods, e.g. 2 for “every two months”)
- amount (the recurring billing cost)
Some restrictions apply:
- Only one subscription price per landing page is permitted.
- Discounted or promotional subscription offers (e.g., “first month free” or “20% off the first order”) aren’t supported yet.
- Subscription landing pages must clearly display the recurring billing terms.
Google has also updated its Merchant Center announcements change log to reflect this policy addition.
Eligibility & Rollout
The feature is currently limited to U.S. merchants in Google Shopping ads.
Only eligible Shopping ad merchants may participate (i.e., merchants already meeting feed, account, and policy compliance standards)
Because this is a new extension, Google may phase in features, refine policy, or expand to other geographies over time.
Why This Update Matters
This is more than a tweak. It’s a potentially transformative opportunity. Below are the key implications:
1. Recurring Revenue and Predictable Cash Flow
Subscription models shift revenue from one-time purchases to predictable and recurring income streams. For merchants, this means better inventory forecasting, more reliable cash flow, and higher lifetime customer value.
2. Customer Lifetime Value & Retention
Acquiring a customer via subscription often yields higher lifetime value (LTV). Once customers are “locked in”, retention becomes the key growth factor rather than acquiring fresh customers. It encourages habitual engagement, brand loyalty, and trust, especially in categories like coffee, vitamins, and pet food.
3. Lower Acquisition Costs Over Time
The longer a customer remains subscribed, the lower the acquisition cost per transaction. Google’s Shopping ad channel becomes part of that retention funnel. Subscription ads can be served to new users but also potentially remarketed to existing users or lapsed subscribers.
4. Competitive Advantage
Early adopters of Google’s subscription model could benefit from greater visibility and differentiation before the feature becomes crowded. For small to mid-sized DTC brands, this could be a shortcut to competing with larger retailers in Google Shopping results.
5. Data & Insights for Optimisation
This move gives Google more visibility into long-term consumer behaviour. Google can provide more refined insights: subscription take-up rates, retention/churn metrics, and cohort analysis, etc. Brands can use that to optimise pricing, bundling, and offerings.
How to Launch a Subscription Campaign on Google Shopping
For merchants looking to take advantage of this new opportunity, here’s a practical roadmap to get started:
Step 1: Identify Suitable Products
Start with your most replenishable items. Identify which SKUs are good fits for subscription offers, such as grooming supplies, snacks, cleaning products, or vitamins.
Step 2: Update Product Feeds
In your Google Merchant Center feed, add the new subscription_cost attribute for each eligible product. Ensure accuracy in billing period, frequency, and amount.
Step 3: Optimise Landing Pages
Create dedicated landing pages for each subscription product. Since only one subscription price can appear per page, make sure the page clearly communicates:
- The billing frequency
- Terms and cancellation policy
- The recurring cost
Step 4: Sync with Your Backend
Your payment and order management systems must support recurring billing, customer cancellations, and subscription lifecycle management. Integration with subscription tools or e-commerce platforms (e.g., Shopify or WooCommerce) can simplify this.
Step 5: Launch Campaigns
Once your feed and pages are ready, include these products in your Shopping ad campaigns or Performance Max campaigns. Test messaging that highlights convenience, consistency, and reliability rather than discounts.
Step 6: Measure & Optimise
Monitor key subscription metrics such as:
- Conversion rate from Shopping ads
- Subscription tenure (average months active)
- Lifetime value (LTV)
- Churn rate
Adjust your pricing and creative strategy based on early performance data.
Challenges and Limitations
While the new feature is exciting, merchants should also be aware of its constraints:
- No promotional pricing yet: Google currently doesn’t allow sale or discount messaging for subscription offers in Shopping ads.
- One-price limitation: Each landing page can feature only one subscription tier, limiting flexibility for multi-tier plans.
- Operational readiness: Managing recurring billing, fulfillment, and customer retention requires backend infrastructure and customer support.
- Policy enforcement: Merchant Center will closely monitor feed accuracy and subscription disclosures to prevent misleading claims.
Despite these limitations, the feature provides a strong foundation for recurring-revenue experimentation.
Best Practices & Recommendations
- Start small and test: Launch with your highest-confidence SKUs or consumer favourites.
- Segment by frequency: If some customers prefer monthly vs. yearly, consider separate product pages (each with its own subscription_cost).
- Emphasise flexibility: Clearly communicate ability to cancel or pause, as customers hesitate to commit without reassurance.
- Bundle incentives: Offer value-adds (e.g. free samples, bonus gifts) for longer-term subscriptions to drive lock-in.
- Optimise retention: Use post-purchase communications, refill reminders, and upsell/cross-sell to keep the relationship active.
- Watch for policy changes: Google’s policies, especially around misrepresentation and pricing, remain strict. Stay updated.
The Bigger Picture: How To Compete in a Subscription-Driven Economy
Google’s move shows its intention to keep subscription commerce within its sphere rather than letting third-party subscription platforms dominate the purchase space.
Amazon’s “Subscribe & Save” has become a major growth driver, while Shopify and TikTok Shop are rolling out their own recurring purchase tools.
By opening up Shopping ads to subscriptions, Google is effectively positioning itself as a neutral marketplace for both one-time and repeat purchases, giving merchants flexibility without platform lock-in.
This is also strategically valuable for Google:
- It deepens merchant dependence on Google’s ecosystem.
- It improves ad performance data (with richer customer lifecycle insights).
- It positions Google to expand into AI-driven subscription recommendations, potentially using predictive algorithms to suggest optimal reorder frequencies for consumers.
Looking Ahead: What to Expect Next
Merchants and analysts expect Google to:
- Expand the feature to international markets by 2026.
- Support multi-tier and promotional pricing for subscription products.
- Introduce new analytics dashboards in Merchant Center for churn, lifetime value, and retention metrics.
- Integrate subscription support into Performance Max campaigns and AI-driven Smart Bidding models.
As these updates roll out, the ability to blend convenience, personalisation, and retention will separate winners from laggards.
Conclusion: A Strategic Shift for Merchants
Google’s decision to open Shopping ads to physical goods subscriptions is more than a feature release. It’s a statement about where online commerce is heading.
For merchants, it’s an opportunity to:
- Diversify revenue streams
- Deepen customer relationships
- Build predictable, repeatable sales pipelines
The key to success will lie in how businesses design their subscription experience: balancing simplicity, transparency, and customer value.
As Google continues to evolve its Shopping ecosystem, early adopters who experiment now will be best positioned to capture long-term advantage when the subscription model becomes mainstream across Google’s global ad infrastructure.
Need a fresh perspective? Let’s talk.
At 360 OM, we specialise in helping businesses take their marketing efforts to the next level. Our team stays on top of industry trends, uses data-informed decisions to maximise your ROI, and provides full transparency through comprehensive reports.
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