How to Set Up a Google Business Profile the Right Way

By the Expert Reputation team · Updated October 26, 2026

To set up a Google Business Profile, you either create a new profile or claim the one Google already has for your business, then verify it using whichever method Google offers you. Once verified, you control your name, address, phone, hours, categories, photos, services and posts, and you can manage how customers find you. Setup is free, and the most important rule is simple: describe your business exactly as it exists in the real world.

Is your business eligible?

Google's eligibility guidelines say that to qualify, "a business must make in-person contact with customers during its stated hours." That includes businesses with a storefront and businesses that travel to customers, like plumbers or mobile detailers.

Google lists examples of businesses that aren't eligible, including:

• Online-only businesses, brands and organizations
• Lead generation agents or companies
• Rental or for-sale properties, such as vacation homes or vacant apartments
• An ongoing class or meeting at a location you don't own or represent
• Businesses whose address is a P.O. box or a mailbox at a remote location

Google's guidelines also say a virtual office (a rented mailing address where you don't operate) isn't eligible.

Step 1: Create a new profile or claim an existing one

First, search Google Maps for your business name and city. Many businesses already have an unverified profile created from public data.

If no profile exists, Google's help center says to go to business.google.com/add, select Add your business to Google, follow the on-screen instructions, and then choose a verification option.

If an unverified profile exists, open it in Google Maps (on a computer or in the Maps app) and select Claim this business, then Manage now. Then choose a verification option.

If someone else already verified it, you can request ownership from the current owner. Google's duplicate-profile help page says the owner has 3 days to respond, and that if they don't, you may have the option to claim the profile, although "the option to claim a profile isn't always available."

Don't create a second profile to get around an ownership problem. Google says, "You can have only one Business Profile for each business." See duplicate listings.

Step 2: Verify your business

Google says it determines which verification methods you see, and you can't change them. The methods Google describes are:

What to show in a verification video

For a storefront, Google says your video must show your location (street signs, building numbers or nearby businesses), proof the business exists (your business name "clearly printed on a permanent fixture"), and proof of management, such as opening a cash register or using a point-of-sale system.

For a service-area business, Google says to show where you operate, the tools or equipment you use for work, and proof of management, such as unlocking a branded van or showing a business permit, invoice or utility bill that matches your profile name. Google says the video must not include sensitive information like bank account or ID numbers, private information, or other people's faces.

How long verification takes

Google says reviews take "up to 5 business days" after you complete verification, and "on rare occasions, reviews may take longer." While waiting for a postcard, Google says not to edit your business name, address or category and not to request a new code.

If your video isn't accepted, Google says you'll see Review issues on your profile, which explains what was missing so you can record a new video.

Step 3: Enter your business name correctly

Your name is where most guideline problems start. Google says your name should reflect "your business's real-world name, as used consistently on your storefront, website, stationery, and as known to customers."

Google's guidelines list what your name must not include:

Google warns that "including unnecessary information in your business name isn't permitted, and could result in the suspension of your Business Profile." For doctors, dentists and other practitioners, Google has separate naming rules. See practitioner listings.

Step 4: Choose your primary and additional categories

Google's category help page says, "The categories you select affect your local ranking on Google." Choose carefully:

• Primary category: the most specific category that describes your core business. Google's example: instead of "Salon," choose "Nail salon." You can't create your own category.
• Additional categories: Google's edit help page says you can add up to 9 more. Use them for real parts of your business, such as a grocery store that also has a bakery and deli, not for every service you offer.

Google's guidelines say to pick categories that complete the sentence "This business IS a," not "this business HAS a," and "do not use categories solely as keywords." Google also says that if you add or change a category, "you might be asked to verify your business again."

Step 5: Set your address or service area

Enter your precise street address. Google's guidelines say the suite or mailbox number goes on "Address Line 2."

If you don't serve customers at your address, Google says to hide it and set a service area instead. Google's guidelines say a service area "shouldn't extend farther than about 2 hours of driving time" from where you're based, though larger areas may be appropriate for some businesses. See service-area businesses.

Step 6: Add hours and special hours

• Regular hours: your customer-facing hours. Google's guidelines say businesses that operate only by appointment shouldn't list hours.
• Special hours: Google says to use these for holidays, special events, or closures of up to 6 days in a row. Google suggests confirming holiday hours even if they match your regular hours.
• More hours: for specific services with different times, like delivery or senior hours.
• Temporarily closed: Google says to use this if you're closed for 7 or more days in a row or for an unknown period.

Step 7: Fill in phone, website and attributes

Google's guidelines say your phone number "must be under the direct control of the business," and that you should use a local number instead of a central call center number whenever possible. Google's edit page says you can add up to 2 more phone numbers besides your primary number.

For your website, Google says to enter the full URL, including "https://".

Attributes describe features of your business, such as accessibility details, payment options, or identity attributes like veteran-owned or women-owned. Google says some attributes "may be populated based on inputs from customers," and that reviewing your edits "usually takes about 10 minutes, but sometimes it can take up to 30 days."

Step 8: Add photos and videos

Google says photos and videos show up only after you verify your profile. Its photo guidelines:

• JPG or PNG, between 10 KB and 5 MB
• Recommended resolution 720 px by 720 px; minimum 250 px by 250 px
• In focus, well lit, with no significant alterations or heavy filters
• Videos up to 30 seconds, up to 75 MB, 720p or higher

Add a logo, a cover photo and an exterior photo that helps customers recognize your building. Google says it can take up to 24 to 48 hours for photos and videos to appear.

Step 9: Add services or products

Service businesses in certain categories can list services. Google says you can choose suggested services or add custom ones, group them, and add descriptions and prices. Google warns that custom services that break policy "will be automatically rejected," and says to avoid prices or phone numbers in custom service names.

Step 10: Publish posts

Google says you can publish three types of posts: Updates, Offers and Events. Google notes that "posts older than 6 months are archived unless a date range is set," and that posts including a phone number "might get rejected" if Google can't verify the number belongs to the business. Businesses in regulated industries, including health and medical devices and pharmaceutical products, can post but shouldn't include content about those products.

Step 11: Add owners and managers

Google says each user should have their own Google Account so you don't need to share a password. Under your profile's business settings, Google's help center points you to People and access to invite users as an Owner or Manager.

• Owners have full control, including adding or removing users and deleting the profile. There can be several owners but only one primary owner.
• Managers have mostly the same access, but "can't add or remove users or remove the profile."

If an agency sets up your profile, Google's eligibility guidelines say authorized representatives should encourage the owner to own the profile and add the agency as a manager.

After setup: reviews and ongoing accuracy

Once you're verified, reviews become the most visible part of your profile. For how to ask for reviews within Google's rules, reply to them, and report ones that break policy, see our Google reviews guide.

Keep your profile accurate over time. Google says it may update your profile from other sources if they report your information is "incorrect or outdated." Matching information across the web helps. See NAP consistency, and if your profile is ever suspended, read Google Business Profile suspended.