Google product taxonomy · 2021-09-21

298

Handheld Devices

The Google product category ID for Handheld Devices is 298. It sits under Computers and has 3 subcategories of its own, so it is a predefined value you can send as it stands — but one of those 3 is usually the closer answer, and an interior category fits when a product genuinely spans the ones below.

Category ID
298
Direct subcategories
3
Categories below it in total
3
Depth, on a branch that runs 4
3 / 4
Others at this level
9
Parent category
Computers
Taxonomy version
2021-09-21
Sent in your feed as
google_product_category

Where this sits in the taxonomy

Measured by how much sits beneath them, Handheld Devices is the largest of the 10 categories under Computers, with 3 categories below it. Size is not correctness — a small category is the right answer when it is the right answer — but it does tell you how much of the taxonomy you are still choosing between once you pick this branch.

Handheld DevicesData Collectors

The longest route down from here runs 1 more level, ending at Data Collectors (5256) on level 4: Handheld Devices › Data Collectors. Most branches stop sooner than that — the figure to compare it against is the seven levels Google's taxonomy allows, not the depth of the branch next door.

Every category at the same level as Handheld Devices, compared by id, direct subcategories, total categories below and how many levels each one runs.
CategoryIDDirectBelowLevels
Handheld Devices — this page298331
Desktop Computers325000
Laptops328000
Computer Servers331000
Tablet Computers4745000
Barebone Computers5254000
Interactive Kiosks5255000
Thin & Zero Clients8539221
Smart Glasses500002000
Touch Table Computers502995000

Using this value

Either form of this value goes in the google_product_category attribute: the numeric ID (298) or the full path ("Electronics > Computers > Handheld Devices"). Both are predefined values for the same category. The ID is the sturdier of the two, because renaming any segment above this one changes the path text and leaves the number alone. Before sending it, check whether one of the 3 subcategories below fits — a narrower category groups the product with fewer, closer things.

Bear in mind that google_product_category is an optional attribute. Google assigns a category automatically, and your value is treated as a signal rather than an override. When an override actually applies.

In your feed, it looks like this

Either row below is accepted. The first is the one to send.

products.csv3 of your columns
idtitlegoogle_product_category
SKU-1001Your product title298
SKU-1001Your product titleElectronics > Computers > Handheld Devices

This path has no comma, so an unquoted cell holds it as it stands — which is not true of every category in the taxonomy. The numeric ID, 298, is the form that does not depend on how the file is quoted.

What sits under Handheld Devices

3 subcategories. A narrower category groups the product with fewer, closer things, so prefer one of these when it fits.

All 3 of them are leaves: none of the subcategories under Handheld Devices continues any further, so one of those 3 names is the most specific value this branch can give you.

Questions about Handheld Devices

What is the Google product category ID for Handheld Devices?

298. The full path, "Electronics > Computers > Handheld Devices", is the same category written the other way. The ID is shorter, and renaming a segment above this one changes the path text while leaving the number alone.

Should I use Handheld Devices or one of its subcategories?

Prefer a subcategory when one fits: Handheld Devices has 3 directly below it, starting with Data Collectors (5256), E-Book Readers (3539), PDAs (3769), and 3 in total further down. 298 is itself a predefined value, so an interior category is not an error — it just groups the product more broadly than a subcategory would.

Where does Handheld Devices sit in the taxonomy?

At level 3, under Computers (278). The chain from the top is Electronics → Computers → Handheld Devices. If your product does not belong under Computers, it does not belong here either — check the level above before going deeper.

What should I use if Handheld Devices is not quite right?

Look across the rest of Computers first — there are 9 other categories at this level: Barebone Computers (5254), Computer Servers (331), Desktop Computers (325), Interactive Kiosks (5255), Laptops (328), Smart Glasses (500002), and 3 more. If none of them fits either, the problem is higher up: go back to Computers (278) and pick a different branch from there rather than settling for the closest thing on this one.

How much more specific can I get than Handheld Devices?

1 level more. The longest route down from Handheld Devices is Handheld Devices > Data Collectors, ending at Data Collectors (5256) on level 4. Not every branch below Handheld Devices runs that far, so the category that fits your product may stop earlier than this one does.

How big is Handheld Devices compared with the categories next to it?

It is the largest of the 10 at its level, carrying 3 categories below it. A bigger category is not a better one — it just means more of the taxonomy is still open below you after you pick it.

Not sure this is the one?

Describe the product and get the category with its ID, a confidence figure and the runners-up it was weighed against.

Free, no account. Or map a whole catalog

Canonical URL: https://sellersort.com/google-product-category/298-electronics-computers-handheld-devices

A sentence of detail is what separates near-identical sibling categories.