What is it? #
Google Search users can track packages directly by entering a package ID. Google fetches tracking info from your API and shows it on the search results page.
Availability #
- Available globally where Google Search is supported.
- Early adopters limited to delivery companies based in India, Japan, or Brazil, or exclusive authorized providers servicing those areas.
Technical Requirements #
- API type: RESTful JSON API accepting POST requests only.
- Performance:
- Average API response time under 700ms.
- 95th percentile response time under 1000ms.
- Near-zero downtime expected—failure to meet may result in removal of tracking info.
- Average API response time under 700ms.
- Google prefers to reuse your existing API if it meets requirements.
Required API Content Fields #
- CurrentStatus: Current package status including timestamp and any error states.
Strongly Recommended API Content Fields #
- DeliveredDate
- PromisedDate (expected delivery)
- TrackingNumber
- TrackingURL (for user to check more info)
- SupportPhoneNumbers (region-wise)
- TransitEvents (interim events with date, time, city, state, country)
- CreateDate (when tracking started)
- PickupDate (when carrier picked package)
- TimestampEvent & LocationEvent (details for each event)
- CanReschedule (if package delivery can be rescheduled)
Not Allowed in API Response #
- Personal data about sender or recipient
- Geographical info about sender or recipient
Summary #
If your delivery company operates in India, Japan, or Brazil and can provide a fast, reliable API with the required info, you can apply to this early adopters program and enable users to track packages directly in Google Search.
What is Structured Data Carousel (Beta)? #
- A carousel rich result in Google Search that lets users scroll horizontally through a list of items from your site.
- Each carousel tile can show info like price, rating, images, etc.
- Uses ItemList structured data combined with supported entity types.
Supported Content Types (Entities) #
You must use ItemList + at least one of these types:
- LocalBusiness and its subtypes (e.g., Restaurant, Hotel, VacationRental)
- Product
- Event
Feature Availability #
- Currently beta; requirements and guidelines may change.
- Available only in European Economic Area (EEA) countries and Turkey.
- Works on desktop and mobile.
- Query types supported vary by region:
- EEA: Travel, local, and shopping queries.
- Turkey: Hotels, vacation rentals, local businesses.
- EEA: Travel, local, and shopping queries.
How to Enable & Implement #
- Pick a summary page:
A list or category page showing multiple entities (e.g., “Top hotels in Paris”) linking to detail pages. - Add ItemList structured data on that summary page, including the URLs of the detail pages.
- Use structured data types appropriate to your content:
Use specific types for recommended properties (e.g., Hotel for hotels, VacationRental for rentals).
Generic types like LocalBusiness are allowed but may limit recommended properties usage. - You do NOT need structured data on detail pages, but detail page URLs must be included in the summary page’s markup.
- Validate your markup:
Use the Rich Results Test and URL Inspection Tool in Search Console. - Make sure pages are crawlable:
No robots.txt blocks, no noindex tags, no login requirements. - Submit sitemap for faster indexing.
Important Guidelines #
- Summary page must have at least 3 entities.
- Entities listed in the markup must match those on the page.
- For paginated lists, add an ItemList for each page reflecting its items.
- Infinite scroll: mark up items initially visible in viewport.
- Additional or extra fields are allowed but may not appear in rich results.
- The markup must be on a list-like summary or category page — all-in-one pages with anchor links to details on the same page are not supported.
If your site serves users in EEA or Turkey and fits these criteria, you can apply this beta feature to improve your Search presence with an attractive, scrollable carousel!
Structured Data Troubleshooting Guide #
1. Get Help from Your CMS or Webmaster #
- If you use a CMS (like WordPress) or have a developer, share any Search Console messages or error reports with them.
- They may know how to fix issues within your site setup or plugin.
2. Understand No Guarantees for Rich Results #
- Google does not guarantee that your structured data will generate rich results in Search.
- For common reasons why content might not show as a rich result, check Google’s General Structured Data Guidelines.
3. Check for Structured Data Errors #
- Use the Unparsable structured data report in Search Console to find syntax errors.
- Run your pages through the Rich Results Test to validate markup.
4. Manual Actions #
- If your page has a structured data manual action, Google will ignore structured data on it (though the page can still rank normally).
- Check the Manual Actions report in Search Console to see if this applies.
- Fix any issues flagged to lift the manual action.
5. Check Content & Markup Compliance #
- Revisit Google’s structured data and content guidelines.
- Problems can arise from:
- Spammy or misleading content.
- Spammy or incorrect markup usage.
- Spammy or misleading content.
- These issues might not be detected by syntax tools like the Rich Results Test.
6. Missing or Dropped Rich Results #
- Rich results can disappear or fail to show if Google detects changes or violations.
- Check Search Console for warnings or messages.
- Ensure your content remains high quality and your markup valid.
7. Be Patient #
- After fixes or publishing, Google can take several days or more to recrawl and update your pages.
- Use the URL Inspection tool in Search Console to request indexing if needed.
8. Additional Resources #
- For crawling/indexing questions, review the Google Search crawling and indexing FAQ.