Shopping feeds pricing models explained for UK retailers

What to take away

Why the model matters more than the fee

Most retailers compare headline prices and stop there. The pricing model decides what happens when your catalogue grows or your traffic doubles.

A per-click model grows with demand. A per-SKU model grows with catalogue edits. A flat fee stays still while your orders rise, which suits a shop with steady volume.

For a fuller breakdown of line items, the shopping feeds costs and budget guide sets out where each cost sits in a monthly plan.

The four common pricing models

Cost per click. You pay when a shopper clicks. Google Shopping campaigns work this way, and the platform charges nothing for the feed itself. A small shop spending GBP 600 a month on clicks, an illustrative figure, pays nothing extra when it adds 500 SKUs.

Per SKU or per catalogue. The platform charges by number of products or feed rows, the way DataFeedWatch and Channable price their plans. A 5,000-SKU catalogue at GBP 0.02 per SKU is GBP 100 a month, an illustrative rate. Editing 2,000 products in a month can push it higher.

Flat monthly subscription. One fee covers a set SKU band, the shape most agencies and services such as Shoptimised sell. A team paying GBP 400 a month for up to 10,000 SKUs, an illustrative example, gets predictable cost until it crosses the band.

Revenue share or commission. The provider takes a percentage of attributed sales. This aligns incentives but makes forecasting harder in peak months.

Costs that sit outside the model

Two statutory costs apply whatever model you choose. Organisations processing personal data usually pay the ICO data protection fee, which is tiered by size and staff numbers: GBP 52 in the smallest tier, GBP 78 in the middle tier and GBP 3,763 in the largest, following the increase on 17 February 2025.

VAT registration is the second. Once turnover crosses the GBP 90,000 threshold, you must charge and account for VAT, which changes your margin on every sale. GOV.UK explains the implications of VAT registration for your business, including pricing and record-keeping duties.

Feed quality work also costs time. Google's guidance on the mobile link attribute shows one small example: separate mobile landing pages need their own URLS in the feed.

Before and after a model switch

A retailer moving from per-click to a flat subscription on the same GBP 1,200 monthly budget changes the shape of that spend rather than just its size. The click budget rises and falls with demand, while a fixed fee costs the same in a quiet January and a busy November.

The flat model costs more here. It only wins when click costs rise faster than the fixed fee, so model the crossover before switching.

Matching model to margin

Work backwards from gross margin per order. If you keep GBP 12 on a GBP 40 sale, an illustrative example, a GBP 1.20 click is 10 per cent of revenue but a third of margin.

High-margin catalogues can absorb per-click pricing. Thin-margin, high-volume shops often prefer a flat fee so cost does not track every click.

Seasonality matters too. A per-click model spikes in November. A flat fee does not, which helps cash flow planning.

The shopping feeds budget template lets you test both shapes against your own order values before you commit.

Feed costs also decide whether orders run cleanly. The same catalogue drives Google, Amazon and eBay, and those orders arrive in one queue — often a multichannel platform such as Linnworks — so a feed error over price or stock becomes a cancelled order rather than a quiet cost line.

Common questions

These are the questions UK retailers ask most often when they weigh up the models above.

Which pricing model is cheapest for a small shop?

Usually flat fee or per-click with a low media budget, because per-SKU charges punish large catalogues. Run your own numbers rather than assuming.

Do I pay for the Google Shopping feed itself?

No listing fee applies to Merchant Centre. You pay for ads, feed tools and staff time instead.

Does the model change my VAT position?

The model does not change VAT rules. Your turnover and taxable supplies do, so check the GOV.UK guidance above.

Can I switch models mid-year?

Often yes, but check notice periods. A switch mid-peak can leave you paying twice in one month.