Google Business Profile Help: A Plain-English Guide
Set-up, verification, categories, service areas, photos, reviews and posts, in the order you need them, with Google's own rules and one warning about moving your map pin.
What is a Google Business Profile, and how do I set one up?
A Google Business Profile is the free listing that shows your business on Google Maps and in the map results on Google Search. It carries your opening hours, phone number, photos and reviews. To set one up, sign in to a Google Account and go to business.google.com/add. If your business is already on Maps, claim that listing instead. Pick the most specific category, and choose whether to show your address or a service area. Then verify the profile with one of the methods Google offers you. This guide puts Google's own steps in order, in plain English.
Key takeaways
- It's free. You need a Google Account, and Google decides which verification methods you're offered.
- Choose the fewest, most specific categories that describe what your business is.
- If you go to your customers and don't serve them at your address, hide the address and list up to 20 service areas.
- Google reviews your edits. It usually takes about 10 minutes, but it can take up to 30 days.
- Be careful with your address and map pin. We've seen a profile show "Permanently closed" to the public within minutes of its map pin being moved.
- Never offer anything in return for a review. Google treats it as fake engagement.
How do I set up a Google Business Profile?
Sign in to a Google Account, go to business.google.com/add, choose "Add your business to Google" and follow the steps. If your business already shows on Google Maps, claim that listing rather than making a new one.
A Gmail address or your business email address both work for the Google Account. Then:
- Check you're not already there. Search Google Maps for your business name and town. Google says there should only be one profile per business, because duplicates cause problems with how your details show.
- If there's an unverified listing, open it in Google Maps and choose "Claim this business", then "Manage now".
- If someone else has already verified it, such as a former employee, you can request ownership through Google.
- If there's nothing there, add your business at business.google.com/add.
Google says you can add or claim a business at no charge.
How does Google Business Profile verification work?
Google picks which verification methods you see, based on your type of business, its public information, your region and your opening hours. They include a phone call or text, email, video and a postcard. Once you've completed the steps, Google says its review takes up to five working days.
What each one involves, from Google's verification help page:
- Phone or text. You'll need to answer the business number or receive the text yourself. Google says automated phone menus won't get the code.
- Email. You'll need access to the email address shown on the verification screen.
- Video. A recorded video or a live call showing where you are, the equipment you use and proof you run the business, such as keys or staff-only areas. If you're offered video, Google recommends it.
- Postcard. Most codes arrive within 14 days, and codes expire after 30 days. While you wait, don't change your business name, address or category. Don't request a new code either, because that cancels the one in the post.
Sometimes Google verifies a profile instantly, for example when you've already verified your website in Google Search Console. Our guide on How to Get Your Website on Google (and Check It's There) explains how to set that up.
One safety point: Google says it will never ask for your verification code, and that you shouldn't share it with anyone, even people who help manage your profile. Anyone who phones asking for it isn't Google.
Which category should I choose?
Choose the most specific primary category that describes what your business is, then add only as many extra categories as you really need.
Google's guidelines are clear on this:
- Pick categories that finish the sentence "This business IS a…", not "this business HAS a…".
- Be specific. Google's own example is choosing "Nail salon" rather than "Salon".
- Use as few categories as possible, and don't use them as keywords.
- You can't make up your own category. If yours isn't listed, choose a broader one.
Google says the categories you choose affect your local ranking. It also warns that adding or changing a category can mean verifying your business again, so settle on them early.
Should I show my address or set a service area?
If customers come to you, show your address. If you go to them and don't serve customers at your address, hide the address and set a service area. If you do both, show the address and add a service area.
Google sorts businesses into three kinds:
| Type of business | What it means | Address | Service area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shopfront | Customers visit you at a location with clear, permanent signage | Show it | Not needed |
| Service-area business | You visit or deliver to customers and don't serve them at your address. Google's examples: plumbers, cleaning services | Hide it | Up to 20 areas |
| Hybrid | You serve customers at your address and also visit or deliver to them. Google's example: a dine-in restaurant that also delivers | Show it | Add one too |
A few rules from Google's service area page that catch people out:
- You can add up to 20 service areas by town, postcode or other area. You can't set a radius.
- Your overall area shouldn't be more than about two hours' drive from where your business is based.
- Google says you should only hide your address if you're a service-area business.
- A virtual office, meaning a postal address you rent but don't work from, isn't eligible.
Plenty of trades and sole traders work from home and visit customers. That's a service-area business: hide the home address and list the towns you cover.
Be careful with your address and map pin
Only change your address or pin when you've really moved. Change one thing at a time, and check what the public sees afterwards in a private browser window.
Google reviews edits to a verified profile. It says this usually takes about 10 minutes but can take up to 30 days. Google also says that if a profile was marked permanently closed as part of a location or name change, you don't simply reopen it. You add a new business, verify it, and contact Google if you want your reviews moved across.
We've seen a profile show "Permanently closed" to the public within minutes of its map pin being moved. So set the pin once, carefully, and don't move it to chase a better spot in the map results. If it does happen to you, read Google's page on reopening a business before you change anything else. Then use the Contact us option on Google's help pages.
What should my business name be?
Use your real-world business name, exactly as it appears on your signs, website and paperwork.
Google says adding unnecessary information to your business name isn't allowed and could get your profile suspended. Leave out towns, services and slogans that aren't part of your real business name. Details like those belong in the other sections of your profile, such as your category and service area.
What photos should I add?
Add a logo, a cover photo and real photos of your work, your team and your premises or vehicle, in JPG or PNG format.
Google's photo guidelines are in the table below, where KB means kilobytes and MB means megabytes.
| Requirement | Google's guideline |
|---|---|
| Format | JPG or PNG |
| File size | Between 10 KB and 5 MB |
| Recommended size | 720 px tall and 720 px wide |
| Minimum size | 250 px tall and 250 px wide |
| Quality | In focus, well lit, with no heavy filters or big alterations |
Photos only show once your profile is verified. Google says it can take up to 24–48 hours before your photos show on your Business Profile.
How do I get more Google reviews without breaking the rules?
Ask every customer, using a review link or QR code from your profile, and never offer anything in return.
Google's rules on reviews are strict:
- Offering anything in exchange for a review, such as payment, a discount or something free, is fake engagement and is prohibited. That includes offering anything in return for changing or removing a review.
- Don't ask only your happy customers, and don't discourage negative reviews.
- Don't pressure people to leave a review while they're with you, or ask them to use particular words.
Reply to reviews once you're verified. Your replies are public, and the reviewer is told when you reply. Keep replies short and polite, never share a customer's private details, and flag a review if it breaks Google's policies.
Are Google Business Profile posts worth doing?
Yes, when you've got something to say: news, an offer or an event. A post puts it in front of people who've already found your profile.
Google offers three kinds: updates, offers and events. Two details from Google's posts page:
- Posts older than six months are archived unless you set a date range.
- A post with a phone number in it can be rejected if Google can't connect that number to your business.
How does Google decide who shows in the map results?
Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity, and that there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. Our Local SEO: The Complete Guide for UK Small Businesses covers ranking in full.
Want it done for you?
Our Google Business Page Setup & Verify add-on is £95 one-off. Harriet talks you through what she'll do, and you share access to your profile with her. She sets it up and takes it through Google's verification with you, either building it from scratch or fixing what's already there. It's a one-off job, separate from SEO Care, and it isn't included in our website builds. It's listed with our other add-ons on our Pricing page.
For ongoing work, SEO Care is our separate monthly SEO service, from £95 a month, and every plan includes Google Business Profile tasks each month.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Google Business Profile free?
Yes. Google says creating a Business Profile and listing your business on Google is free, and you can add or claim your business at no charge. You only pay if you choose to have someone set it up or manage it for you.
How long does Google Business Profile verification take?
Google says that once you've completed the verification steps, its review takes up to five working days, and occasionally longer. Postcard codes usually arrive within 14 days. Sometimes Google verifies a profile instantly, for example if your website is already verified in Google Search Console.
Can I have a Google Business Profile if I work from home?
Yes, if you travel to your customers. Google says a business can have a profile if it has a location customers visit or it travels to customers. If you don't serve customers at home, set up as a service-area business, hide your address and list the towns or postcodes you cover.
Why does my Google Business Profile say permanently closed?
Usually someone marked it closed, or it was marked closed after a change such as a new location or name. Google can also update a profile itself when it gets reports, from various sources, that the details aren't accurate. If it was a mistake, you can reopen it under Edit profile, then Hours. If it followed a location or name change, Google says to add a new business instead.
Can I have more than one Google Business Profile?
Google says there should only be one profile per business, and no more than one for each location. It names some exceptions. A service business with different locations, each with separate service areas and separate staff, is allowed one profile for each location. Individual practitioners and departments within businesses, universities, hospitals and government buildings may also have separate pages.
The bottom line
A good Google Business Profile is mostly accuracy: the right name, the most specific category, an honest address or service area, real photos and real reviews. Set it up once, carefully, and keep it current. If you'd rather hand it over, Start a Project and we'll reply within one business day.
Related reading
Tags
Sam Butcher
Founder, Brambla
Sam is the founder of Brambla (SDB Digital Ltd), a creative digital agency based in Devon. With experience across web design, branding and digital marketing, he works directly with SMEs across Devon, Cornwall, Kent and London to build websites that drive real business results.
See more of us on Google
Add Brambla as a preferred source and Google is more likely to show you our articles in its Top Stories.
Add Brambla on GoogleMore from the Blog
Voice Search and Local SEO: How to Optimise for "Near Me" Queries
Voice searches are conversational and often local. This guide explains how to optimise your local business for voice and "near me" queries, covering Google Business Profile, featured snippets, structured data and AI assistants, plus a 10-minute test of what Siri, Google and Alexa say about you.
How Rural Businesses Can Compete Online: A Devon Perspective
We run a web design agency from a village in rural Devon. Here is what we have learned about helping countryside businesses compete online — and why your location is an advantage, not a limitation.
How to Get Your Website on Google (and Check It's There)
Google finds most sites on its own, but sometimes it needs help. How to check your site is on Google, set up Search Console, submit a sitemap, request indexing and know how long to wait.
READY TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS?
Whether you need a new website, SEO, or a full digital marketing strategy — we're here to help.
START A PROJECT