Create and set up a merchant account

This guide explains how you can use the Merchant Accounts API to create and configure your own merchant account.

If you need to create sub-accounts on behalf of other merchants, see Create and manage sub-accounts.

Create a sub-account

To create your own merchant sub-account, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.createAndConfigure and provide your business details in the Account resource for your request.

To create a sub-account, you must authenticate with a Google Account. For example, Gmail. If you don't have a Google Account, go to accounts.google.com and click Create account. If successful, this call returns your Account instance.

For more information, see Create and configure a sub-account.

You can also use the Merchant Center UI.

Accept the Merchant Center Terms of Service

All merchants must accept the Merchant Center Terms of Service. Here's how to accept the Terms of Service for your own merchant account:

1. Call accounts.v1beta.accounts.termsOfServiceAgreementStates.retrieveForApplication to find out which Terms of Service are required for your account.

2. Call accounts.v1beta.termsOfService.accept to accept the Terms of Service.

Caution: Don't accept the Terms of Service on behalf of another merchant. Instead, display the Terms of Service to the merchant and ask them to accept.

We recommend building a UI where you display the TOS to the merchant, and ask them to accept.

1. Find the TOS the merchant needs to accept using accounts.v1beta.termsOfService.retrieveLatest with the regionCode of the business.
2. Display the TOS from the fileUri to the merchant.
3. When the merchant accepts the TOS in your UI, call accounts.v1beta.termsOfService.accept with the name of the TOS to accept.

After the merchant accepts the TOS, you can use the Merchant API to set up the rest of their account information. For details about what account information you can manage with the Merchant Accounts API, see the Account resource.

Claim your website

You can use the Merchant Accounts API to add and claim your business's Homepage.

1. To add a homepage to your account, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.updateHomepage with a Homepage resource containing your homepage URL.
2. To claim ownership of the homepage, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.homepage.claim with the name from your Hompeage resource.

You can't use the Merchant API to verify your homepage. For more information, see Verify and claim your store's website.

Update your business details

You can use the Merchant Accounts API to edit your business PostalAddress, CusomerService, and BusinessIdentity.

Business information:

• To view your business information, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.getBusinessInfo.
• To edit your business information, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.updateBusinessInfo.

Business identity:

• To view your business identity, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.getBusinessIdentity.
• To edit your business identity, call accounts.v1beta.accounts.updateBusinessIdentity.

What's next

• Learn how you can create and manage sub-accounts.
• To understand how relationships between merchant accounts work, see Relationships between accounts.