TL;DR
- Google's help page on commerce audience sharing lets retailers and marketplaces share first-party audience segments with the brands and sellers that advertise through them.
- Shared audiences work only in eligible commerce media network campaigns, and every such campaign must send traffic to the retailer's approved domain.
- Accepting the Data Manager link creates new conversion actions for purchases reported by the retail partner; retailers do not get access to the brand's Google Ads account.
- PPC News Feed covered the help page on 8 October 2026; Google lists no countries, so availability in Thailand is not stated.
Google Ads now documents a feature called commerce audience sharing, which lets retailers and marketplaces share their first-party audience segments with the brands and sellers that advertise through them. According to the Google Ads Help page "About commerce audience sharing through Google Ads", the shared audiences can only be used in eligible commerce media network campaigns, and any campaign using them can only send traffic back to the retailer's own website. The accounts are connected through Data Manager, and accepting the link creates new conversion actions for purchases reported by the partner.
What commerce audience sharing is
Google's help page uses two terms throughout. A commerce partner is a retailer or marketplace. An advertising partner is a brand or seller whose products are sold through that retailer. Commerce audience sharing lets the commerce partner pass selected first-party data segments to its advertising partners, which Google says helps the brand reach new consumers and drive sales of its goods sold through the retailer's platform.
Google describes the value on both sides. Commerce partners can share segments "to improve campaign performance, drive traffic to your website, and build meaningful relationships" with trusted partners. Advertising partners get access to the retailer's segments and can combine them with their own first-party data segments across supported commerce media campaign types.
PPC News Feed, which spotted the page, described the feature as part of Google's retail media strategy. Google's separate help page on commerce media through Google Ads says commerce partners can reach customers through YouTube, Search, Shopping, Performance Max and Demand Gen campaign types, and that the commerce media suite is only available to participating merchants.
When Google says to use it
The help page lists two situations. The first is when commerce partners want to share audiences with campaigns they run on behalf of their advertising partners, which is a managed-service model. The second is when commerce partners want to share audiences with advertising partners who run campaigns in a self-service capacity, where the brand operates its own Google Ads account.
How the account linking works
Two links are needed before any audience can be shared. The advertising partner's Google Ads account must be linked to the commerce partner's Google Merchant Center and to the commerce partner's advertising data sharing account. Both are managed in Data Manager, under the Tools menu, in a section called "Connected Products".
- Merchant Center link: the brand opens Data Manager, finds "Google Merchant Center" under Connected Products, selects Manage & link, and approves the pending request on the "Received" tab.
- Data sharing link: the brand finds "Advertising partners" under Connected Products, selects Manage & link, and approves the request on the same "Received" tab.
- Approved domains: when a commerce partner creates the invitation to its data sharing account, it can specify the approved domain for any shared audiences.
- Conversion actions: accepting the data sharing link creates new conversion actions, such as a purchase reported by the partner.
- Access limits: Google says accepting the linking requests does not give commerce partners direct access to the brand's Google Ads account.
Google says links can be reviewed and managed at any time through Data Manager in the Tools menu.
Sharing and using the audiences
Once the accounts are linked, the retailer works in Audience Manager. It selects the data segments, opens the "Share with partners" dropdown, chooses Share, picks from the list of actively linked advertising partners, reviews a summary and confirms. Shared segments then show a "Shared" badge, and hovering on the badge reveals which commerce partner is sharing it. The same flow, with Stop sharing, removes access.
On the brand side, the advertising partner also opens Audience Manager, looks for segments with the "Shared" badge, selects them, uses the "Add to" dropdown, picks campaigns and targeting settings, and selects "Add audience segments".
Who sees what, and the main limits
The table below summarises who sees what and the main restrictions, as written on Google's help page.
| Topic | What Google's help page says |
|---|---|
| Campaigns allowed | Only eligible commerce media network campaigns can use shared commerce audiences |
| Where traffic can go | Only back to the commerce partner's website, on the domain the partner approves |
| What the retailer sees | Performance and spend metrics on ad impressions, clicks and conversions |
| What the brand sees | Segment name, customer type, list size, membership status and conversion data |
| Audience types | All available and eligible Google Ads audience types; standard requirements apply, for example Customer Match |
The restrictions that matter most
The single most important line on the page is this one: "Any campaign utilizing a commerce partner's audience can only direct traffic back to the commerce partner's website." A brand cannot take a retailer's shopper segment and point it at its own direct-to-consumer store. The audience is lent for one purpose, which is selling the brand's goods on the retailer's platform.
The "Keep in mind" section repeats the scope. Advertising partners can only use audiences shared this way for commerce media network campaigns. Brands can combine shared audiences with their own first-party data, but every campaign that uses a shared audience must direct traffic to the approved domain. And brands only get access to the audiences the retailer chooses to share.
The eligibility rules also carry over from the underlying audience type. Google gives Customer Match as the example: if the shared segment is a Customer Match list, both the brand and the retailer must meet the criteria to use Customer Match. So an account that cannot use Customer Match today should not expect this feature to open that door.
The data both sides can see
The split of visibility is worth reading carefully, because it shapes the commercial relationship. The retailer can see campaign performance, including spend, impressions, clicks and conversions. The brand can see details of the segments shared with it, such as segment name, customer type, list size and membership status, plus conversion data from the retailer's website. In other words, the retailer learns how much the brand is spending against its audiences, and the brand learns how those audiences convert on the retailer's site.
The conversion side is the closed-loop part. Because accepting the data sharing link creates purchase conversion actions reported by the partner, a brand can measure sales that happen on a site it does not own.
What to check before you rely on it
If you are a brand that sells through a retailer, or a retailer with an ad business, these are the practical questions to answer first, based on the help page:
- Is your retailer set up as a commerce partner? The feature depends on the retailer having a Google Merchant Center account, an advertising data sharing account and relevant data segments inside it.
- Do you run eligible commerce media network campaigns? Google links to a separate guide on creating a commerce media through Google Ads campaign. Shared audiences cannot be used outside that campaign type.
- Do both accounts meet the audience requirements? Check the requirements for the audience type in question, such as Customer Match, for both sides.
- What happens to your conversion setup? Accepting the link adds new conversion actions. Review how they interact with your bidding goals and reporting before they start counting.
- Is the approved domain the right one? All traffic from shared audiences must land on the domain the retailer specified in its invitation.
For brands planning retail and marketplace growth, our ecommerce marketing service covers marketplace and retailer channel strategy, and our Google Ads management team can review conversion actions and campaign setup before a data link goes live.
What Google did not say
- No country list. The help page does not list the countries or markets where commerce audience sharing is available.
- No launch date. The page carries no announcement date. Trade outlets including PPC News Feed covered it on 8 October 2026.
- No pricing or fee model. The page does not say how retailers charge brands for access to their audiences, if at all.
- No minimum list size beyond the standard rules of each audience type.
What this means for Thai marketers
Google's help page gives no country list, so Thailand availability is not stated. Google's commerce media page says the suite is only available to participating merchants and tells advertisers to check availability with their Google sales team or their commerce partner. Treat the feature as something to ask about, not something to plan a budget around yet.
The rest of this section is our analysis, not Google's. For a brand that sells through retailers, department stores or online marketplaces rather than mainly through its own website, commerce audience sharing, if and when it is available locally, would add partner-reported purchase conversions for sales on a site the brand does not control.
For Thai retailers, the feature is a way to offer first-party shopper segments to brands inside Google Ads. The retailer keeps control: it decides which segments to share, with which brands, and to which domain the traffic must return. Retailers would also need relevant data segments in their advertising data sharing account and would need to meet the audience requirements, including Customer Match rules and local data protection obligations such as Thailand's PDPA, which the help page does not address.
Even before availability is confirmed, brands can prepare. Clean product feeds, a clear view of which retailers drive most sales, and agreed conversion definitions with retail partners will all be needed whichever retail media route a brand takes.
Frequently asked questions
What is commerce audience sharing in Google Ads?
It is a Google Ads feature that lets retailers and marketplaces share first-party audience segments with the brands and sellers that advertise through them. The brands can use those segments only in eligible commerce media network campaigns that send traffic back to the retailer's website.
Can a brand use a retailer's audience to drive traffic to its own website?
No, it cannot. Google's help page says any campaign using a commerce partner's audience can only direct traffic back to the commerce partner's website, on the domain the partner approves.
Is commerce audience sharing available in Thailand?
Google has not stated it. The help page does not include a country list, and Google's commerce media page says the suite is only available to participating merchants, so check with your Google sales team or your retail partner before planning around the feature.
Does the retailer get access to the brand's Google Ads account?
No, accepting the Data Manager linking requests does not give commerce partners direct access to the advertising partner's Google Ads account. The retailer does see performance and spend metrics for campaigns using its audiences, including impressions, clicks and conversions.
Can shared audiences be used in Search, Shopping or Performance Max campaigns?
Only as part of eligible commerce media network campaigns. The help page says advertising partners can only use audiences shared this way for commerce media network campaigns, and Google's separate commerce media page says those campaigns can reach customers through YouTube, Search, Shopping, Performance Max and Demand Gen campaign types. Neither page says shared audiences can be used in ordinary campaigns outside commerce media, and all traffic must go to the retailer's approved domain.
The bottom line
Commerce audience sharing brings retailer first-party audiences into Google Ads with clear rules on where traffic goes and who sees which numbers. For brands that sell through retailers, the partner-reported purchase conversions are the most useful part. For now the feature has no published country list, so Thai advertisers should confirm availability first. If you want to map out a retail media plan alongside your Google Ads, talk to our ecommerce marketing team.
