To test code that uses the Content API for Shopping, we suggest creating a separate Merchant Center account devoted solely for testing uses. This allows both manual and automated testing of code that uses the Content API for Shopping without impacting active feeds or Shopping campaigns.
Setting up your test environment
- Create a new Google account that will be associated with the Merchant Center account. Log into and use the new Google account for the following steps.
- Follow the steps in Getting Started to set up a new Merchant Center account. You do not need to validate the website URL for the testing account.
- Create a new developer project in the API Console, and enable the Content API for Shopping for that project.
- Create appropriate credentials for the code you plan to test. For test code, we suggest you use the service account flow described in the Service Accounts guide for your testing framework to avoid having to deal with requesting permission, access tokens, and refresh tokens.
With your new Merchant Center account and credentials, you should be ready to test your code with the Content API for Shopping. If you are just getting started with the Content API, read the Getting Started guide to learn how to use your test environment with the Python client library, or visit our Samples and Libraries page, where you will find code examples with which you can test your new test environment.
We expect that you will not be using a valid storefront website URL for your testing Merchant Center, so your account will eventually be suspended for invalid products. This is expected and will not affect your testing of the Content API. The API will still perform validation checks, which provide feedback to common errors such as missing required fields, but data quality checks will not be performed, as any uploaded products will be automatically disapproved.