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Availability

Availability is the product feed attribute that tells Google whether a product is in stock, out of stock, on preorder or on backorder.

How it works

Each product in the feed carries one availability value, such as in stock, out of stock, preorder or backorder. For a preorder, a separate availability date gives the day the product can be delivered.

Google compares the feed with the product page. With automatic item updates switched on, Google uses the page’s structured data and its own data extractors to correct availability itself. With them off, Google does not show products whose data does not match the page.

By default, these updates work in one direction only. If the site shows a product as sold out but the feed says in stock, Google switches it to out of stock. The reverse correction is a separate setting.

So the feed has to change as often as the stock on the site. Availability in Merchant Center covers how often to update it and how to avoid mismatches. For what to do with the ads of a sold-out product, see out-of-stock products in Shopping and PMax.

How GetProfit reads it

In the portal’s feed score, availability carries 4 of the 100 points. The score measures how many products have each field filled in. On the feed screen, availability is one of the checks. When it is fine, the portal folds it into one row with category, brand and condition.

Not to be confused with

  • Stockout — the event in the warehouse: the product has run out. Availability is how the feed reports that to Google.
  • Local inventory — stock in a physical shop, sent separately for each store code with its own availability value.

Right and wrong readings

  • Wrong: “Availability gets full points in the feed score, so our stock is in sync.” Right: the score checks that the field is filled in, not that it matches the site. Google checks the feed against the product page to see whether “in stock” is true.

Sources