Short answer
Google has opened Universal Cart in Search and the Gemini app, letting shoppers collect products from different stores in one cart. They can pay inside Google or move the filled cart to the store's own site. For e-commerce sites, the buying journey and its measurement can now start and finish on Google's side.
Highlights
- Universal Cart works across Search (including AI Mode) and the Gemini app; for now it is live in the US.
- Checkout happens inside Google or by transferring the cart to the store's site; the merchant stays the seller either way.
- In the first release the cart transfer is one-way, and Shopify says analytics tags do not fire on Direct Checkout.
2 min readAuthor: UNIT Journal EditorEditor-in-chief: Uğur Deniz İlhan
Google has launched Universal Cart in the US through Search and the Gemini app. According to Search Engine Journal users can collect products from different stores in one cart and receive price-drop and back-in-stock alerts. Checkout is completed with Google Pay inside Google or on the participating store's own site.
What does Universal Cart do?
The cart is kept on the same account across Search (including AI Mode) and the Gemini app. Because it is built on Google Wallet, it can suggest which card to use based on each card's perks and shows promo codes in the cart. Google does not become the seller: with both methods the merchant is.
How does the cart reach the merchant?
Google's developer documentation ties the cart transfer option to the Cart API of the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP). The API creates a cart on the merchant's system when a shopper transfers their items. The first release is one-way: updating, deleting or syncing cart contents is not supported. Participating merchants choose their option in the UCP integration hub in Merchant Center.
What should you watch in measurement?
The UCP reports in Merchant Center track the funnel from Buy button clicks to purchases and cancellations, and the Merchant API lists metrics such as the number of cart transfers. No metric is listed for products saved to a cart. Shopify states that Google Analytics and custom pixels do not fire on Direct Checkout in Google's AI channel; how in-cart payment is handled in Universal Cart is not clear from the source.
What should e-commerce companies do?
Universal Cart is limited to the US and participating merchants for now, and the source gives no timeline for Turkey. Still, a shopping journey that runs all the way to the cart on Google's own surfaces means e-commerce SEO has to treat product data and measurement together:
- Keep your Merchant Center product data (price, stock, images, identifiers) current and complete; price and stock alerts rely on it.
- Do not read purchases from site analytics alone; assume payments completed inside Google may not fire your analytics tags and watch the Merchant Center reports too.
- Ask your platform provider about UCP and cart transfer support, and test the cart creation flow once it is announced.
- Prepare a fast, single-step checkout page for visitors who arrive with a filled cart.
Frequently asked
- Who is the seller in Universal Cart?
- The merchant is the seller with both payment methods. Google provides the cart and checkout flow; the sale happens in the merchant's name.
Sources
- Search Engine Journal ·
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