XML / Google Shopping

Google Shopping

Google Shopping XML is the most widely supported product feed format. If your shop already generates one for Google Merchant Center, you can use the same URL in SoloSearch with no changes.

A Google Shopping feed is an RSS 2.0 file where each product is an <item> inside a <channel>. Product attributes use the g: namespace.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0" xmlns:g="http://base.google.com/ns/1.0">
  <channel>
    <title>My Shop</title>
    <link>https://myshop.com</link>
    <item>
      <g:id>SKU-001</g:id>
      <title>Running Shoes</title>
      <g:price>89.99 EUR</g:price>
      <g:sale_price>69.99 EUR</g:sale_price>
      <link>https://myshop.com/running-shoes</link>
      <g:image_link>https://myshop.com/images/shoes.jpg</g:image_link>
      <g:brand>Nike</g:brand>
      <g:gtin>0123456789012</g:gtin>
      <g:product_type>Footwear &gt; Running</g:product_type>
    </item>
  </channel>
</rss>

SoloSearch reads both the g: namespace and the default namespace. For each field it checks the g: version first, then falls back to the plain element.

SoloSearch field Typical XML element
id g:id
title title or g:title
link link
image g:image_link
price g:price
sale_price g:sale_price
brand g:brand
gtin g:gtin
mpn g:mpn
description description or g:description
categories g:product_type or g:google_product_category

If your feed uses different element names, update the Feed name column in Configuration → Feeds → [your feed] → Fields.

Prices can include the currency code (89.99 EUR) or not (89.99). Both are handled correctly. European decimal format (89,99) is also supported.

The g:product_type field often contains a full path like Footwear > Running > Road. SoloSearch splits this into individual terms so users can filter by any level of the hierarchy.

Where to find your feed URL

Most ecommerce platforms generate a Google Shopping feed automatically:

  • WooCommerce — via the Product Feed PRO plugin or similar
  • Shopify — via the Google channel app or a feed app
  • PrestaShop — via the Google Merchant Center module
  • Magento — via an extension or a custom export

Copy the feed URL and paste it in Configuration → Feeds → URL.

Generic XML

If your shop produces an XML export that is not in Google Shopping format, SoloSearch can parse it as a generic XML feed. You will need to map your field names manually.

SoloSearch looks for products under the following element names, in this order:

Root element Product element
<rss> <channel> → <item> (Google Shopping)
anything <product>
anything <item>
anything <entry>
anything direct children of the root

If your file uses a different structure, contact support — custom parsers can be added per plan.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<products>
  <product>
    <ref>SKU-001</ref>
    <name>Running Shoes</name>
    <url>https://myshop.com/running-shoes</url>
    <price>89.99</price>
    <discount_price>69.99</discount_price>
    <manufacturer>Nike</manufacturer>
    <img>https://myshop.com/images/shoes.jpg</img>
  </product>
</products>

For this feed the field mapping would be:

Internal name Feed name
id ref
title name
link url
price price
sale_price discount_price
brand manufacturer
image img

Update these mappings in Configuration → Feeds → [your feed] → Fields.

CDATA sections (<![CDATA[...]]>) are handled automatically. Namespaces other than the Google g: namespace are not resolved automatically — map field names without the namespace prefix and SoloSearch will attempt to match them in the default namespace.