Frequently Asked Questions

CSS stands for Comparison Shopping Service. In the Google Shopping context, this refers to websites or providers that collect product offers from merchants and allow users to compare prices and product features.

The background is an EU antitrust case: In 2017, the European Commission fined Google 2.42 billion Euros because its own price comparison service was preferentially treated over competing services. In response, Google organizationally separated its comparison service and opened Shopping ads to other price comparison services through the Comparison Shopping Services program.

Google Shopping is Google's own price comparison service. A CSS Partner is an alternative price comparison service through which merchants can also place Shopping ads on Google. The only visible difference is the notice at the bottom of the ad (“by <CSS-Name>” instead of “by Google”). According to Google, Google Shopping deducts a fixed margin from the merchant's bid before it enters the auction; with a CSS Partner like us, this margin does not apply, and you pay 20% less per click at the same position. Beyond that, providers differ in service, support, billing model, feed optimization, and campaign management.

CSS providers can place Shopping ads on general Google search results pages on behalf of merchants. CSS is important for merchants because Shopping ads are served in CSS program countries via such a price comparison service.

Yes, in the countries participating in the CSS program, merchants must work with at least one CSS to place Shopping ads or free product listings. This can be Google Shopping itself or another CSS provider.

Yes. Google Shopping is itself a Comparison Shopping Service and offers services on behalf of the merchants it represents, just like other CSS providers.

Generally, for all merchants running Shopping ads – regardless of budget size. Since we charge a fixed monthly fee instead of a margin, the higher your Shopping budget, the more significant the effect. Mathematically, the fee typically pays for itself with a Shopping budget of about 200 € per month, because 20% lower click costs then already exceed the basic fee.

Yes. In the Google Merchant Center help, it states that Google Shopping currently ensures its profitability by deducting a fixed margin from each merchant bid before it participates in the auction. This can be read in the official Google help about comparison shopping engines (support.google.com/merchants/answer/12653197). We do not deduct such a margin but submit the full bid to the auction.

For example: With a bid of 1 €, only 80 cents reach the auction via Google Shopping – 20 cents are deducted as a margin. With a 1.000 € monthly Shopping budget, this amounts to 200 €, and with a 50.000 € budget, 10.000 € per month that does not go into clicks. With us, the full bid goes into the auction; for this, you pay a fixed monthly fee.

According to Google, CSS providers can place Shopping ads and free product listings in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, among others. Google continuously expands the list of countries.

The basic technical function is the same for all: The CSS transfers the offers from the Merchant Center to the Google Shopping auction. Differences exist in the pricing model (fixed, per click, or percentage-based), level of service, quality of support, additional services such as feed tools or reporting, and market experience.

Because operating a CSS incurs costs and must be financed somehow – often through a surcharge on the click price, a share of the budget, or bundled agency services. Therefore, check how the provider earns money, how transparently billing is done, what cancellation periods apply, and how stable the provider is in the program. Google places ongoing requirements on CSS Partners; a provider can also lose its license.

That depends on the provider and your account setup. If your Google Ads account still belongs to you and is managed as before, support generally remains unchanged. If campaign management is handed over to a CSS or an agency, the contact person may change. Clarify this before switching; with us, you retain your Google Ads account and campaign control.

Premium Partner is the highest of three tiers in Google's CSS Partner Program. It includes CSSs in the top 10% of all CSSs by Shopping impressions that agree an annual partnership plan with Google. csspartner.io is a Premium Partner. The status changes nothing about how Shopping ads work or about the CSS advantage: You get that with any CSS.

Yes. Merchants can generally work with multiple CSS providers simultaneously. However, it is important to note: A single Merchant Center account can only be associated with one CSS; the association in the Merchant Center determines which CSS is credited with the Shopping ads and free listings of that account.

Usually not. Google tries not to display the same offer from the same merchant multiple times within a Shopping unit. Thus, little additional reach is generated, but rather more confusing reporting and the risk of your own ads cannibalizing each other. We therefore recommend a clearly assigned setup.

Google strives to identify identical offers from the same merchant and display only one instance in the Shopping unit. In rare cases, where identical offers are not technically recognized as the same, two entries may appear in the same block.

For Shopping ads in CSS program countries, it is indicated which CSS provider uploaded the offer. A notice with the name of the price comparison service appears in the ad; clicking on it leads to the respective CSS's website. Clicking on the ad itself, as usual, leads directly to your shop.

Not automatically. The 20% advantage affects your effective bid in the auction; actual performance additionally depends on competition, bids, campaign structure, product data, and tracking. Google points out that all CSS providers fundamentally have the same opportunities to place ads on general search results pages; no ad slot is exclusively reserved for a specific CSS.

CSS providers can use different pricing models. Possible options include fixed click prices, different click prices per category, percentage surcharges on the CPC, separate service fees, or commission-based models where costs only arise upon a sale. We operate with a fixed monthly fee without a share of the click price.

That depends on the chosen setup. Often, the CSS provider pays Google for the clicks and then bills the merchant. In other models – including ours – the merchant pays the Google Ads costs directly and pays a separate fee to the CSS provider.

Typical models include Managed Service, Self-Service, and Hybrid models. In Managed Service, the CSS provider often handles feed, Merchant Center, Google Ads, and campaign optimization. In Self-Service, the merchant largely manages their feeds and campaigns themselves. Hybrid models combine both variants.

Google provides a Comparison Shopping Partners Portal where merchants can search for suitable CSS Partners. Providers can be filtered by criteria such as countries, industries, languages, API feed technology, technical certification, and conversion tracking support.

Yes, an existing Merchant Center account can be switched from one CSS to another. The new CSS can initiate the switch; subsequently, an administrator of the Merchant Center account can confirm or decline the switch.

The switch is an association change in the Merchant Center: The CSS submits a request, and a Merchant Center account administrator confirms it. Product data, feeds, campaigns, budgets, bids, and history are retained – no data is lost. We set everything up and submit the request within 60 minutes; as soon as an administrator confirms it in the Merchant Center, your Google Shopping runs through our CSS. Ads keep running throughout.

No, not necessarily. According to Google, the Google Ads account does not automatically need to be switched when changing CSS. The crucial factor is the association of the Merchant Center account, as this determines which CSS the Shopping ads and free listings are attributed to.

Yes. Merchants can place free product listings in Europe via a CSS. However, for free listings in Europe, only one CSS can be selected in the CSS Dashboard.

By default, a CSS can place products in the Shopping unit on general Google search results pages. Some CSS providers can also use other Google surfaces, such as the Display Network, the Shopping tab, YouTube, and other interfaces, provided they are enabled for them.

Yes. According to Google, all CSS providers have access to features like Conversion Reporting and automated bidding strategies. The prerequisite is a suitable tracking setup, for example, via Google Ads Conversion Tracking, a manager account, or Google Analytics.

No. Shopping ads and product data must still comply with Google Shopping policies and product specifications. For example, ads must lead users directly to a merchant landing page where the advertised product can be purchased.

The CSS Center is a Google platform for Comparison Shopping Services. CSS providers can use it to manage their participation in the CSS program, access associated merchants, and work with Merchant Center accounts.

An overview of all participating providers is available on Google's Comparison Shopping Partners Portal (comparisonshoppingpartners.withgoogle.com). Google describes the technical and formal framework conditions in the Merchant Center help (support.google.com/merchants/answer/7558973).