# Missing value: shipping weight The "Missing value [shipping_weight]" issue means the account calculates shipping from weight, through carrier-calculated rates or a weight-based table, but a product arrived without a shipping weight. On Shopify the variant weight is usually zero or blank, or never mapped into the feed. - **Canonical URL:** https://www.feedlab.io/knowledge/errors/missing-value-shipping-weight - **Last reviewed:** 3 November 2026 - **Source:** feedlab knowledge base - **Licence:** free to quote and cite with attribution to feedlab ## How this appears in your account - `Missing value [shipping_weight]` - `Missing shipping weight` - `Missing value for shipping rate [shipping weight]` - `You're missing required shipping information for this product.` ## Why it happens on Shopify ### The variant weight is empty or zero in Shopify Weight is entered per variant in Shopify and is easy to skip, especially on products created in bulk or imported from a supplier sheet. A weight of zero gives Merchant Center nothing to price a weight-based rate from. ### The feed does not submit shipping_weight at all shipping_weight is optional in Google's specification, so many feeds leave it out. It only becomes required once the account uses carrier-calculated rates or weight-based shipping, which is why the issue often appears after a shipping settings change rather than a feed change. ### The value has no unit or an unsupported unit Google accepts lb, oz, g and kg. A bare number or a unit outside that list cannot be read as a weight, and the product is treated as missing one. ### Weight sits on the product rather than on each variant Product-level feeds emit one weight per product, or none. A variant-level feed has to read the weight from each variant, since sizes and bundles genuinely weigh different amounts. ## How to fix it 1. **Confirm the account really uses weight-based rates** — Open the shipping policy for the affected country in Merchant Center. If it uses carrier-calculated rates or a table keyed on weight, every product needs a weight; if a flat rate would do, switching to one removes the requirement entirely. 2. **List variants with no weight** — Export variants from Shopify and filter for a weight of zero or blank. Products that ship as digital goods or services should not be in a weight-based policy at all. 3. **Fill in real packed weights** — Enter the weight in each variant's shipping section in Shopify. Use the packed weight a carrier would charge on, since that is what the rate is calculated from. 4. **Map shipping_weight with its unit** — Submit the value as a number followed by lb, oz, g or kg, for example 1.2 kg. Google supports 0 to 1000 kg or 0 to 2000 lb; heavier items are better handled with a shipping label and a dedicated rate. 5. **Add dimensions if the carrier prices by size** — Carrier-calculated rates can depend on package dimensions as well as weight. If Merchant Center then reports missing dimensions, supply shipping_length, shipping_width and shipping_height together. ## How feedlab handles this feedlab reads weight per variant from the synced Shopify catalogue and can append the unit with a transformation rule, with a conditional fallback for collections where weight is known to be uniform. Validation before publish flags variants whose weight is zero or missing, and the rule preview shows exactly which products those are. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is shipping_weight required for every Google Shopping feed? No. It is optional unless your Merchant Center shipping settings use carrier-calculated rates or a weight-based table. With flat or price-based rates the attribute is not needed. ### What is the difference between shipping_weight and product_weight? shipping_weight is the weight used to calculate shipping cost, so it should reflect the packed parcel. product_weight describes the assembled product itself and is not used for shipping rates. ### My Shopify products have weights. Why is the error still there? Usually because the weights are not reaching the feed: the feed omits shipping_weight, submits it without a unit, or reads one product-level value instead of the variant weights. Check the submitted value for an affected item in Merchant Center. ## Primary sources - [Google: shipping_weight attribute specification](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/6324503) - [Google: How to fix missing shipping weight](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/12468179)