How can Service markup distinguish the provider from the seller?

Definition: In Schema.org, Service.provider identifies the organization or person that provides, operates, performs, or produces the service or goods. A separate Offer.seller identifies the entity that offers the service or goods for a transaction, and Schema.org allows one entity to hold both roles.

Key facts

• Schema.org defines Service as “A service provided by an organization, e.g. delivery service, print services, etc.” (Service).
• Service.provider accepts an Organization or Person and describes the service provider, operator, performer, or goods producer (Service).
• The provider definition states that another party may offer the service or goods on the provider's behalf, and that a provider may also be the seller (Service).
• Offer.seller accepts an Organization or Person and identifies an entity that offers, sells, leases, lends, or loans the services or goods (Offer).
• Schema.org describes an Offer as an offer to transfer rights to an item or provide a service, with businessFunction recording whether the transaction is a sale, lease, repair, or another form (Offer).

What does Service.provider identify?

Start with a Service node for the activity being described. Its provider value points to the organization or person responsible for providing, operating, or performing that service. Schema.org also uses the property for the producer of goods. The definition therefore describes the operational or production role, rather than the party that merely presents a commercial offer.

Schema.org's own Service example places a LocalBusiness inside provider and gives it the name “ACME Home Cleaning.” The same example uses serviceType for “Weekly home cleaning.” Those fields show the intended shape: the service node identifies what is provided, while the nested entity identifies who provides it.

Where does the separate seller go?

Use an Offer node when the page describes a transaction or an offer to provide the service. Schema.org's offers property describes an offer to provide the item, including an offer to perform a service, and points to Offer or Demand. The Offer type also covers an offer to provide a service.

Put seller on that Offer. Schema.org defines the seller as the entity offering the services or goods and states that a seller may also be a provider. This gives the graph two distinct relationships: Service.provider describes who performs or produces the service, while Offer.seller describes who makes the commercial offer. If the same entity holds both roles, Schema.org's provider definition allows that arrangement.

The transaction type can be made explicit with businessFunction. Schema.org defines that property for the offer's function and gives sell, lease, repair, and dispose as examples. Its documented default is http://purl.org/goodrelations/v1#Sell.

How can the JSON-LD show both roles?

The following pattern uses the documented property locations. The names are illustrative, and the seller is attached to the Offer, not directly to the Service node.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Service",
  "serviceType": "Home cleaning",
  "provider": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Cleaning provider"
  },
  "offers": {
    "@type": "Offer",
    "itemOffered": {
      "@type": "Service",
      "serviceType": "Home cleaning"
    },
    "seller": {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "name": "Booking company"
    },
    "businessFunction": "http://purl.org/goodrelations/v1#Sell"
  }
}

For a direct sale by the service provider, the provider entity can also serve as the seller, as the Service definition states. For an intermediary arrangement, keep the provider and seller as separate entities so each relationship carries the role documented by its property.

Related terms

• Structured data
• JSON-LD
• Offer structured data
• Organization structured data

FAQ

Is seller a replacement for provider?

No. provider describes the service provider, operator, performer, or goods producer. seller describes the entity that offers the services or goods on an Offer.

Can one organization be both provider and seller?

Yes. Schema.org says that a provider may also serve as the seller. Use the two properties according to the roles represented by the page.

Should a marketplace name itself as the provider?

Only when it actually provides, operates, performs, or produces the service described. When it only makes the commercial offer, the documented role is Offer.seller, while Service.provider identifies the service provider.

Sources

1. Schema.org, "Service - Schema.org Type", 2026-09-16
2. Schema.org, "Offer - Schema.org Type", 2026-09-16
3. Schema.org, "seller - Schema.org Property", 2026-09-16

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