Advanced account (Merchant Center)

How it works

Each sub-account is a full Merchant Center account with its own products. The advanced account sits above them and links to each through an account aggregation service, which gives it full access. Older Google documentation calls the same set-up a multi-client account (MCA).

Google lists the typical users: marketplaces, store builders, businesses with several brands, retailers selling in several countries and channel partners. A brand typically gets its own sub-account with its own website claim and product data, while user access and reporting stay central. A retailer with one domain and a path for each country usually claims the domain once, at the advanced account, and the regional sub-accounts inherit it. With a separate domain for each country, each sub-account claims its own.

Merchant Center for agencies shows how an agency or the owner of several stores can organise these accounts.

Not to be confused with

• Manager account — a Google Ads account that manages other Google Ads accounts and their campaigns. An advanced account manages Merchant Center accounts and their products.

Right and wrong readings

• Wrong: “We will put every client’s store under our advanced account.” Right: aggregation gives the advanced account full, unrestricted access. Google names marketplaces, multi-brand retailers and international retailers as the typical users of aggregation. For ecommerce platforms and channel partners that run accounts on behalf of merchants, Google recommends account management instead: an account the merchant owns, linked to the partner.
• Wrong: “The stores sit under one advanced account, so their totals add up.” Right: regional sub-accounts keep their own localised prices and availability, so a sum across countries can mix currencies.

Sources

• Overview of Accounts sub-API (Merchant API) — what an advanced account is; typical users; set-ups for multi-brand and international retailers; domain claims. Checked 2 October 2026.
• Manage account relationships (Merchant API) — account aggregation gives full, unrestricted access; account management recommended for platforms and channel partners. Checked 2 October 2026.
• Account status (Content API for Shopping, sunset 18 August 2026) — the earlier name, multi-client account (MCA), with sub-accounts for stores or brands on separate websites. Checked 2 October 2026.
• Get Account Hierarchy (Google Ads API) — manager accounts manage client accounts and other manager accounts. Checked 2 October 2026.