Google Ads Suspended Because of Google Merchant Center, or the Other Way Round

Google Ads suspended, Merchant Center blocked: you open Merchant Center to request a review and find the account is held up by a suspended Google Ads account. Or it’s the other way round, and a Merchant Center suspension has quietly stopped your Shopping ads. Google’s own page on the first case is short and firm: The Google Ads suspension must be fixed first before your Merchant Center suspension can be reviewed. (How to fix: Linked account suspension.)

Update, 29 October 2026: Google has reworded several of the help pages quoted in this post since it was first published. The quotes are Google’s current wording, checked on 29 October 2026. Where a rule itself is newer than this post, we say so.

This post covers both directions: how each account affects the other, what doesn’t help, and the order to appeal in.

For the Merchant Center side on its own, see what a Google Merchant Center suspension means.

Google Ads suspended, Merchant Center suspended: which way does it run?

Google Ads and Merchant Center are separate accounts with separate policies and separate appeals. They touch in two ways.

1. A suspended Google Ads account can suspend Merchant Center. Google’s Abuse of the network policy lists, under “Linked account suspension”: Having a suspended account linked to your Merchant Center account is not allowed. Its example is a suspended Google Ads account. Google added this status in August 2024 and explained it like this: The “Linked account suspension” status indicates that a suspended Google Ads account is linked to your Merchant Center account. (Policy update: Linked account suspension.)

Google calls violations of this policy egregious, and says Merchant Center accounts will be suspended upon detection and without prior warning. So there may be no warning period first.

2. A suspended Merchant Center account stops product-based ads. When a Merchant Center account is suspended, Google says your products won’t appear across Google (Issues in Merchant Center). Google Ads’ own troubleshooting page says the same from the ads side: You need to resolve any of these account issues before the shopping campaign can serve. (Troubleshooting: Merchant Center account issues.)

Google’s pages we read don’t say that a Merchant Center suspension suspends the Google Ads account itself. They also don’t say what happens to Search or other campaigns that don’t use your product data. Plenty of guides say those keep running. Google doesn’t say so on these pages, so we won’t either.

Why doesn’t unlinking Google Ads help?

It’s the first thing most merchants try, and Google rules it out in plain words: Removing or unlinking the suspended Google Ads account from your Merchant Center account won’t unsuspend or resolve your Merchant Center account issue.

The Google Ads side looks past the link too. Its suspension overview says: Before appealing, ensure that all linked (or previously linked) and all related accounts comply with Google’s policies, as outlined in our Terms of Service. (Google Ads account suspensions overview.) “Previously linked” matters: removing a link doesn’t remove the history.

Opening fresh accounts doesn’t help either. Google Ads says Accounts related to the suspended account may be suspended. And Merchant Center’s page on deleting an account says It’s not recommended to delete your suspended account and create a new one for the same business.

Which appeal goes first: Google Ads or Merchant Center?

If Merchant Center shows a linked account suspension, Google Ads goes first. Google’s steps, with our notes:

1. Read both notices. In Merchant Center, read the account issue. In Google Ads, read the notification and the email. Google says The email notification will identify all policies the advertiser has been suspended for violating and a link to submit an appeal. The Ads reason can be a policy, a billing problem such as an unpaid balance, or something else. Google’s linked account page doesn’t say which reasons count, so treat any suspended Ads account as the blocker.
2. Fix the cause before you appeal. If the Ads suspension is about your website (misrepresentation, counterfeit, unacceptable business practices), the same website is what Merchant Center reviews. Our reading: fix the site once, for both. If the Ads reason is billing, settle the billing first.
3. Appeal in Google Ads, once. Google says In your Google Ads account, select the Contact Us link in the notification at the top of your screen. Don’t send many: If you file too many appeals for the same account suspension, we may not process them to ensure the overall stability of our systems operations. Several suspended Ads accounts need a separate appeal for each suspended account.
4. Wait for Google Ads. Google’s Merchant Center page says Our support team will reach out to you in 5 business days regarding your account status.
5. Then request the Merchant Center review. Google’s next step: Once your Google Ads account is unsuspended, log in to your Merchant Center account to request a review if that account is still suspended.

Why not request both reviews at once? Google says the Merchant Center suspension can’t be reviewed until the Ads one is fixed, and unsuccessful reviews have a cost: If your issues aren’t resolved by the second review attempt, a one-week cool down period may begin. (Request a review of your issues.) Our reading: don’t spend a Merchant Center review while the Ads account is still suspended.

If only Merchant Center is suspended, for its own reasons, there’s no Ads step. Fix the issues it lists and request a review in Merchant Center. Your Shopping ads stay off until the account is back.

If the Ads appeal is rejected, the Merchant Center review stays blocked. Google’s pages offer no way around that order. Google also says We only reinstate accounts in compelling circumstances, such as in the case of a mistake, so it’s important that you take the time to be thorough, accurate, and honest.

What happens to Shopping and Performance Max campaigns meanwhile?

While Merchant Center is suspended, Google says your products won’t appear across Google, so any campaign that shows them has nothing to show. That covers Shopping campaigns and, in our reading, the product listings in Performance Max campaigns that use your Merchant Center data. Google’s pages we read don’t say what the rest of a Performance Max campaign does in that time.

During a review, Google adds: Your ads may not show while your account or products are under review.

When the Google Ads account itself is suspended, everything in it stops: If we suspend your account, all ads in the suspended account will stop running, and you will no longer be able to advertise from your suspended account until the account is reinstated.

On Shopify, WooCommerce and other platforms

The two appeals happen in Google’s own accounts on every platform. What differs is where you request the Merchant Center review.

Shopify (Google & YouTube app)

1. Appeal the Google Ads suspension in Google Ads, as above.
2. When the Ads account is back, request the Merchant Center review. Google’s page for Shopify stores says to open the Settings tab in the Google & YouTube app and, under your Google account, select Request review, then complete the form that opens.
3. Google’s Shopify page doesn’t describe Google Ads appeals from the app. Our reading: the app requests the Merchant Center review; the Ads appeal stays in Google Ads.

WooCommerce (Google for WooCommerce)

WooCommerce’s Google for WooCommerce documentation says you can connect a Google Ads account and run Performance Max campaigns from your WooCommerce dashboard. So a store can have a Google Ads account linked to its Merchant Center account that was set up from WordPress. Appeal in Google Ads, then request the review in Merchant Center itself.

Other platforms

Wix, Squarespace, BigCommerce and custom stores follow the same order. Check which Google Ads accounts are linked in Merchant Center’s settings (Google’s page on linking accounts), appeal any suspended one in Google Ads, then request the Merchant Center review.

What we see in real cases

From merchant posts in Shopify’s community, paraphrased:

• One merchant fixed their policies, address, phone number and About page, and the Merchant Center misrepresentation suspension was lifted. Google Ads stayed suspended, and the merchant traced it to “related accounts”, including an old Merchant Center account set up for the wrong country. Repeated Ads appeals didn’t move it. Our reading: Merchant Center coming back doesn’t lift a Google Ads suspension; each account is reviewed on its own.
• A print-on-demand store was suspended in Google Ads for counterfeit over brand names in product titles. After three appeals, helpers suggested starting over with new accounts. Google says accounts related to a suspended one may be suspended, so that advice carries real risk. More on the counterfeit side in why Google Ads can be suspended when Merchant Center is fine.
• Merchants with a suspended Ads account often ask how to reach a person at Google. How to reach Google Merchant Center support lists the routes Google documents.

For the Ads side step by step, see our guide to Google Ads suspensions. Before either appeal, a free store check reads your policy pages, contact details and checkout the way a visitor sees them, since the same website stands behind both accounts.

FAQ

Can a suspended Google Ads account get my Merchant Center suspended?

Yes. Google’s Abuse of the network policy says Having a suspended account linked to your Merchant Center account is not allowed, and its example is a suspended Google Ads account. Merchant Center then shows a “Linked account suspension” status.

Will unlinking Google Ads fix my Merchant Center suspension?

No. Google says Removing or unlinking the suspended Google Ads account from your Merchant Center account won’t unsuspend or resolve your Merchant Center account issue. The Google Ads suspension has to be resolved first.

Which appeal do I send first, Google Ads or Merchant Center?

With a linked account suspension, Google Ads first. Google says to appeal the Google Ads suspension, and once your Google Ads account is unsuspended, request a review in Merchant Center if that account is still suspended.

Do my Google Ads campaigns stop if Merchant Center is suspended?

Campaigns that need your products do: Google says a suspended account’s products won’t appear across Google, and that you need to resolve the account issues before the shopping campaign can serve. Google’s pages we read don’t say what happens to campaigns that don’t use your products.