Can I advertise sales, free shipping, and limited-time offers?
Direct answerYou can advertise a real sale, a real “from” price, and real free shipping. You cannot advertise a discount, SKU, or shipping offer that a typical clicker cannot find or that hides the true cost until checkout. Google names dishonest pricing and unavailable offers. Meta and TikTok fail the same facts as a mismatched destination.
Three different promo fails
| Fail | What Google (or Meta/TikTok) actually names | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Unavailable offer | Promising a deal that is not stocked, expired, or inaccurate | Align price and inventory, or pause the ad |
| Dishonest pricing | Omitting the full expense or creating a false impression of cost | Show min-spend, region, and mandatory fees before checkout |
| Destination / offer mismatch | Page shows a different product or discount — see landing-page mismatch | Same offer on creative and first screen |
Google’s unavailable-offers example is concrete: the ad reads “Buy tablets from $40,” and the click finds no tablets at $40. That is not a creative-quality debate.
Risky vs safer ecommerce lines
| Risky | Safer if true |
|---|---|
| “Free shipping” (paid over $49, HI/AK excluded) | “Free standard shipping on $49+ in the contiguous US” |
| “70% off sitewide” (one clearance rack) | “Up to 70% off clearance — see marked items” |
| “Was $199, now $49” (never sold at $199) | Use the actual prior selling price your records support |
| “Ends tonight” on an always-on campaign | Pause when the sale ends, or drop the deadline |
Strikethrough “was/now” honesty is also an FTC and state-law issue. Platforms will not save a reference price you cannot substantiate. That last sentence is advertiser best-practice and consumer-law, not a Google bullet.
Meta and TikTok
Meta’s landing-page guidance expects the destination to work and to match what the ad promised. TikTok’s misleading and false content policy covers exaggerated claims and inconsistency with the landing page. Neither needs a separate “ecommerce” heading to reject a 40%-off story that checks out at full price.
Google also has a technical destination policy (redirects, display-URL domain). Promo honesty and URL hygiene are different tickets — both can fire on one Shopping click.
Merchant Center is not a Search loophole
If you run Merchant Center promotions, Google requires promotions that add value, accurate titles, and — for shipping promotions — a valid redemption code in the promotions source rather than treating everyday free shipping as a “promo.” Those feed rules do not authorize an RSA that says “free everywhere” when the cart charges $8.99.
A 10-minute cart diagnostic
- Write down every number in the ad: price, percent off, ‘from $X,’ free shipping, stock, and end date.
- Open the final URL logged out on a phone. Confirm each number is true for a typical clicker without a logged-in coupon.
- Disclose material conditions (min purchase, excluded SKUs, shipping region) on the first screen — not only in a footer accordion.
- If the deal expired, pause the ad. Do not leave ‘today only’ on an evergreen campaign.
- For Merchant Center promotions, follow Google’s promotions policies in the feed; do not assume an RSA headline is a Shopping promotion.
If Google already labeled the RSA Unreliable claims or Misrepresentation, use the disapproval playbook after the price is true.
Frequently asked questions
Can I say ‘free shipping’ in a Google ad?
Yes if shipping is actually free for the advertised items on the destination, with any material conditions (minimum order, regions) clear before purchase. Google’s Misrepresentation policy disallows dishonest pricing practices: failing to disclose the full expense a user will bear, or creating a false impression of cost. If ‘free shipping’ applies only over $75 and only in the lower 48, the ad or the immediately visible page has to say so. Merchant Center free-shipping promotions have extra feed rules (redemption codes) that do not replace Search-ad honesty.
The ad says 50% off but the product is full price. What policy is that?
Google’s Unavailable offers policy: promising products, services, or promotional offers in the ad that are unavailable or not easily found from the destination — including an inaccurate price or a deal that is no longer active. Its example is ‘Buy tablets from $40’ when none are $40. Meta and TikTok treat the same fact pattern as destination / offer mismatch. Fix the price or the ad; do not clone a new campaign to the same URL.
Is a countdown timer allowed?
Platforms do not publish a universal ‘no timers’ rule. What they do publish is a ban on unavailable or inaccurate offers. A timer that resets on every visit while the discount never ends is a best-practice risk under misleading representation — not a clause we will invent. If the sale ended Tuesday, the ad cannot still say ‘ends tonight.’
Does this apply to catalog / Shopping ads too?
Shopping and Merchant Center have their own promotions and editorial specs (specific titles, codes in the promotions source, not generic ‘spring sale’). Paid Search RSAs and Meta/TikTok traffic ads are reviewed under misrepresentation and destination policies. Feed errors and RSA errors can both stop the same SKU.
Sources
- Google: Misrepresentation (including dishonest pricing)
- Google: Unavailable offers
- Google Merchant Center: Promotions policies
- Meta: About landing pages
- TikTok: Misleading and false content
Pricing and promotions law sits underneath platform rules. This page reflects public Google, Meta, and TikTok articles as of September 18, 2026. Not legal advice.
Check the offer against the live cart
Scan the ad copy and the destination URL so “50% off” and “free shipping” still exist for a logged-out mobile click.