The Google Business Profile checklist: every field, set up right and kept up to date

Before you start: eligibility and access

A profile built on the wrong foundations can be suspended later, so check these first.

• You are eligible. Google requires that a business "make in-person contact with customers during its stated hours", either at your premises or at the customer's. Online-only businesses, lead generation companies, rental properties and virtual offices are not eligible.
• There is only one profile per location. Search your name and town on Google Maps before creating anything. If a listing already exists (perhaps created by Google or a previous owner), claim it rather than starting a new one.
• The owner account belongs to the business. Use a Google account the business controls, not a former employee's personal Gmail or a web designer's account. Google says only owners or authorised representatives may manage a profile, and that nobody should claim one without the owner's consent.
• There is a second owner or manager. Add a trusted person so you are not locked out if one account has a problem.
• It is verified. Photos and many features only appear on verified profiles. If verification is stuck, see our guide to missing listings.

Core information: get these exactly right

These fields decide whether Google trusts your profile and which searches it can appear for. They are also where most suspensions start.

Law firms, clinics and accountancy practices: individual practitioners (a doctor, a dentist, an attorney or solicitor, a financial adviser) can have their own profile if they deal with the public directly. Support staff cannot. Google's guidelines set out how to name practitioner profiles at a shared location.

Your name, address and phone number should match your website's contact page and footer exactly, down to "Unit 4" versus "Suite 4". Then check the same details on your trade body listing and main directories.

If you have more than one location

• Each staffed location that customers can visit gets its own profile, with its own phone number and a website page for that branch.
• Locations in the same country should use the same name, and locations offering the same service should share the same primary category.
• Don't combine two brands in one profile. If two brands operate independently from one address, each needs its own profile.
• If you rebrand, a small name change can be made on the existing profile. A complete change of name and business type means closing the old profile and creating a new one.
• Businesses with 10 or more locations can upload photos in bulk, and Google offers bulk verification for chains.

Details: services, description and attributes

• Description (up to 750 characters). Say what you do, for whom, and where, in plain words. No links, prices or promotions: Google's rules ban them in this field.
• Services. List each service customers search for, using their words. Add a short description where the form allows it.
• Products (retailers in the US, Canada, the UK and Ireland only). Add your main product lines with photos. Regulated products such as alcohol and tobacco are not allowed.
• Attributes. Tick the ones that apply: wheelchair access, online appointments, languages spoken, women-owned or veteran-owned where offered. Attributes vary by category and country.
• Booking and other links. Some categories can add appointment, booking or ordering links. Point them at your own booking page where possible.
• Social links. One link per platform.
• Chat. In some regions you can connect WhatsApp or text messaging. Only switch it on if someone will answer.
• Opening date. Add the month and year you opened. A future date can be set up to a year ahead and shows on Google 90 days before.

Photos and videos

Google's photo requirements: JPG or PNG, between 10 KB and 5 MB, at least 250 by 250 pixels, with 720 by 720 recommended. Photos should be in focus, well lit and show reality, without heavy filters or editing.

Google suggests these minimums:

Also add a clear logo and a cover photo. A tradesperson can show the van, finished jobs and tools. A clinic should never show a patient without written consent, and a law firm should keep client documents out of shot.

Reviews: a routine, not a campaign

• Get your review link or QR code from your profile and add it to invoices, follow-up emails and a counter card.
• Ask every customer once the job is done. Google's policies forbid asking only happy customers or discouraging negative reviews.
• Offer nothing in exchange. Discounts, gifts or prize draws for reviews are banned. Profiles caught with fake engagement can have reviews removed, new reviews blocked for a period and a warning shown to the public.
• Reply to every review within a few days. Short, personal and polite. For complaints, acknowledge, explain what you can do and take details offline. Professional firms and clinics must never confirm someone is a client or patient in a reply.
• Flag reviews that break Google's policies (spam, off-topic rants, conflicts of interest) rather than arguing in public. A review you simply dislike is not a policy breach.

Posts, offers and customer questions

Posts (also called updates) let you share news, offers and events on your profile. Google's current content policy (reported as tightened in October 2026) says offers and promotional updates remain allowed in posts, but posts must not include phone numbers, email addresses, social links or links unrelated to your business. In the listing itself (name, description and other fields), time-limited promotions, prices and direct calls to action are not allowed.

• Post when you have something real to say: a new service, seasonal hours, an event, a project you finished.
• Once or twice a month is plenty for most small businesses. Posts help people who already see you; Google doesn't list them as a ranking factor.

Questions and answers. Google has been replacing the public Q&A section in Maps with an "Ask" feature that answers customers from your profile details and reviews. Google said in December 2025 that answers already published can still inform those answers. The practical lesson: put the facts customers ask about (parking, prices from, languages, payment methods, accessibility, how long a first appointment lasts) into your description, services, attributes and website FAQ, where they can be found.

The upkeep routine

Google says edits usually take up to 10 minutes to review but sometimes up to 30 days. Don't resubmit the same change while it is pending.

Watch for updates from Google. Anyone can suggest an edit to your listing, and Google can apply changes when it receives reports that your information is wrong. You get a notification and an alert in the Edit profile section. This is how businesses end up marked "Permanently closed" or with the wrong hours, so the weekly check matters more than it seems.

Mistakes that get profiles suspended

Each of these breaks a Google guideline or is a known suspension trigger, and each is avoidable:

1. Keywords or a town added to the business name.
2. A virtual office or coworking desk without signage and staff.
3. A service-area business displaying a home address.
4. Two profiles for the same location, or a second profile created after a suspension.
5. A phone number or website that redirects to a different business or a lead generation site.
6. "Open 24 hours" without anyone answering.
7. Reviews bought, swapped or rewarded.
8. Many large edits in a short time (name, address and category all at once).

If it has already happened, our guide to reinstating a suspended Google Business Profile walks through the appeal. And once the profile is right, the next step is ranking: see how to rank higher on Google Maps.

Our free visibility check runs your profile against this checklist and compares it with your top local competitors. Ask for one if you'd like the gaps listed for you.

Questions