What is Google Business Profile?

What is Google Business Profile, and where can customers see it?

A Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is a business listing that may show information about an eligible company on Google Search and Google Maps. Customers can find out what services you offer, where you operate, when you're available and how to contact you.

Think of someone searching for “car repair near me”. Google may show nearby businesses on a map with opening hours, call options and customer reviews. These are Google-managed local business listings, not copies of company websites.

What information and features might appear on a Business Profile?

Available fields depend on the type and eligibility of the business and Google's current interfaces. Not all profiles have the same buttons or features.

• Real business name and category: help customers understand what you do.
• Address or service area: depending on whether you genuinely receive customers at your address or travel to them.
• Opening hours and contact details: phone number and sometimes other contact methods.
• Website link: if you have a site, prospects can read more there.
• Photos and activity information: real business premises, services and, in some cases, additional information.
• Customer reviews: genuine customer experiences and business responses, in line with Google's policies.

The aim isn't to fill every field with invented copy. Provide only accurate information about your real operations that helps customers make decisions.

Is Google Business Profile free?

Yes. Google allows eligible businesses to create, claim and manage their Business Profiles free of charge. You do not need to pay Google a monthly Business Profile subscription simply to have a listing on Maps.

There may be other costs: hiring someone to check eligibility, manage profile details, develop your website or handle marketing are separate services. Your Google Ads advertising budget is also a separate paid platform, not a maintenance fee for Business Profile.

Do you need your own website to have a Google Business Profile?

No. An eligible business can create or manage a Business Profile without owning a website. The listing may display the essential local details, making it useful even for new businesses, provided the eligibility rules are met.

Your website plays a different role: you control detailed service descriptions, how references are presented, the quotation process and content structure. Business Profile is a Google-managed presence; your own domain offers different control and possibilities.

If you're already on Facebook but aren't sure you need a website, read the Facebook versus your own website decision guide. The answer depends on your business needs, not an obligation to be everywhere.

Who qualifies for Google Business Profile? The most important first question

Google Business Profile is primarily intended for businesses that have face-to-face contact with customers as part of their operations. This can happen at a genuine business location or when a service provider visits customers. A shop or publicly accessible office isn't always required.

Simplified business-owner screening based on Google's eligibility rules. For unusual operating models, current official guidance and exceptions take precedence.

A plumber who regularly works at customers' homes may qualify even without a shop open to visitors. By contrast, a purely online digital service without face-to-face customer contact doesn't become a local business by putting an arbitrary address on Maps.

A 90-second eligibility and next-steps check

1. Do you meet customers in person? Consider whether you welcome them at your premises or regularly provide services at their locations. If there's never face-to-face contact, check Google's exclusion rules first.
2. Is the address you want to show a genuine customer-facing location? If not, don't present it as a public shop address. Use the appropriate address settings for a service-area business.
3. Does a Business Profile already exist for the company? Search for its real name and address on Google Search or Maps. There's no reason to open a second listing automatically.
4. Who will be the primary owner? Long-term business control matters more than who performs the initial setup.
5. What are you trying to achieve? Local discovery, calls, directions or detailed quote requests? The answer helps determine what your own website adds.

The check can lead to three outcomes: you're probably eligible and can begin verification; you first need to clarify how you operate or use your address; or another online presence tool is probably more appropriate. The last outcome doesn't mean your business can't appear prominently in web searches.

Google Business Profile, your website or Google Ads: what does each do?

The three tools can complement one another, but they offer different things and not every business needs all three.

A local tradesperson may use an eligible Business Profile alongside a service website. A purely online business can operate with its own site and marketing without being eligible for Business Profile. Match your online presence to your real business model.

How do you get started safely?

A separate Knowledge Base guide covers registration and verification in detail because the interface and available verification methods can change. For now, remember three things:

1. Check whether a listing already exists Search for your real business name. If someone else created a listing, claiming it may be right rather than creating a duplicate.
2. Provide truthful and consistent information The name, address or service area, category and contact details should reflect actual operations.
3. Follow the verification method offered by Google Google may choose the method based on the business and situation. Don't assume everyone can verify exclusively by SMS or post.

The official Google guide to creating and claiming a Business Profile is the appropriate starting point. If your profile already exists but doesn't appear, don't automatically start again: use the separate visibility troubleshooting guide.

Who should own the Google Business Profile when an agency manages it?

Long-term access is particularly important to the business. Google Business Profile may have primary owner, other owner and manager roles. A contractor or marketing agency can help while the business retains primary control.

The safest approach is for a Google Account controlled by the business to hold primary ownership, while contractors receive the permissions needed for their tasks. This avoids reliance on insecure password sharing or lost access when changing providers. Follow Google's current rules for roles and handovers.

• Don't permanently give your personal Google password to an external provider.
• Check which account is primary owner and who the other managers are.
• Review access that is no longer necessary when an engagement ends.
• Keep control of genuine business details and verification documents.

What can Business Profile performance data show—and what can't it?

For verified eligible profiles, Google's performance data may show various views and interactions. For example, which actions followed certain searches and how many people clicked through to your website or tapped the call button. Availability can depend on the profile.

Remember that a click on the call button is not proof that a phone conversation happened, let alone that someone became a paying customer. Track where actual enquiries came from and whether they led to real work in your own records.

A profile alone guarantees neither rankings nor customers. To understand which factors you can reasonably improve, read what influences higher visibility on Google Maps.

Frequently asked questions about Google Business Profile

Sources and further reading

Related Knowledge Base guides