Why Isn't My Business Showing on Google Maps?

Step 1: Figure out which problem you have

Grab your phone and search your exact business name plus your town, like "[your business name] Seguin." Then search the way a customer would, like "electrician near me" or "roof repair New Braunfels." One of three things happens:

1. Nothing comes up for your name. Google isn't showing your profile at all. Work through Steps 2 to 6.
2. Your name search works, but you don't show for your trade. Your profile is live, but other businesses are being picked first. Jump to Step 7.
3. You used to show up and now you don't. Something changed. Check Step 3 (edits under review) and Step 4 (suspension) first.

Keep in mind that the results for a trade search depend on where the person searching is. Google lists distance, meaning how far the business is from the person searching, as one of the main factors (source). What you see in your driveway isn't what a customer across town sees.

Step 2: Is your profile claimed and verified?

This is the most common one. Google says that to show your business on Search, Maps and other Google services, you must add or claim your business and then verify your Business Profile (source). Verifying also tells Google you're allowed to represent the business, "so it's more likely to show up in search results" (source).

• Sign in to the Google account you used to set up the profile and search your business name. If you see a "Get verified" button, you're not done.
• Google picks the verification options you get, like phone, text, email, video or mail. For the live video call option, Google says to be ready to show your location, branded equipment or tools, and proof you manage the business (source). For a trade, think truck with your logo, your tools and your paperwork.
• After you finish, Google's review can take up to 5 business days (source).
• If you're waiting on a postcard code, don't edit your business name, address or category in the meantime. Google says that makes the code stop working (source).

Lost access to the account an old employee or a past marketing company used? Google has a process to request ownership of a profile (source).

Step 3: Did you just change something?

Google reviews changes before they go live. It says edits usually take about 10 minutes to show but can take up to 30 days (source). Some changes can also send you back through verification: changing your business name after it's verified, moving to a new address, or adding or editing a category (edit help, category help). If you vanished right after an edit, check your profile for a pending review or a request to verify again.

Step 4: Was the profile suspended?

Google says it "may suspend or disable Business Profiles that don't follow our guidelines" (source). Common ways trades get in trouble, all straight from Google's guidelines (source):

• Extra words in the business name. Service keywords, city names or phone numbers that aren't part of your real name aren't allowed and could get the profile suspended.
• The wrong kind of address. P.O. boxes and virtual offices aren't eligible.
• Showing a home address customers don't visit. Google says service-area businesses should hide their address.

If you're suspended, Google's advice is to fix whatever breaks the guidelines, then use the appeals tool. You can attach evidence like a business license, business registration, tax certificates or utility bills, and the name and address on them should match the profile. Google also says: "Do not create a new Business Profile for the same business," and an appeal can only be submitted once, so get your paperwork together first (source).

Step 5: Is there a duplicate?

Google allows one profile per business, and it says a profile it considers a duplicate "won't show on Google Search or Maps" (source). This happens a lot in the trades: the owner made one, an old office manager made another, and a third got created when somebody added the shop to Maps. Google's fixes (source):

• If you made the extra one yourself, you can remove it from your account. Be careful to remove the right one, because its content goes with it.
• If two listings for your business are on Maps, you can ask Google to merge them by suggesting an edit in Google Maps. Reviews get combined, but replies to reviews may be lost.
• If you moved, don't make a new profile. Update the address on the one you have.
• If you offer several services, don't make a profile for each one. List them as services on one profile.

Step 6: Is your address and service area set up right?

Most electricians, plumbers, HVAC techs and roofers go to the customer. Google calls that a service-area business. Its rules (service area help, address help):

• If you don't serve customers at your address, remove the address from the profile and list a service area instead.
• You can set up to 20 service areas by city, ZIP code or other area. You can't set it as a radius.
• Your overall area shouldn't be more than about 2 hours of driving from where you're based.
• If you hide your address and don't enter a service area, Google picks a local area for you.

If you do have a shop with signage where customers come in, like a diesel shop or a fab shop, you're a hybrid business. You can show the address and also list a service area, as long as the location is staffed during your listed hours (source).

Step 7: You show up for your name but not for your trade

Good news: your profile works. Now it's about who Google picks for a search like "AC repair." Google says local results come down mainly to relevance, distance and prominence, and "there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking" (source). Here's what you can work on:

• Category. Google says your categories affect your local ranking. Pick the most specific one for your main work (source).
• Complete info. Google says profiles with complete and accurate info are more likely to show up. Fill in hours, services and service area (source).
• Services. When people search for a service you list, Google says it "may be highlighted on your profile" (source).
• Reviews. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking (source). Here's how to ask for them without breaking Google's rules.
• Distance. You can't change it. A business based in Seguin shouldn't expect to come up for every search in north Austin, and listing Austin as a service area doesn't change where you're based.

For the full checklist, read how to get more calls from Google Maps.

A quick checklist

1. Search your exact business name and town. Do you show up?
2. Is the profile verified, with no pending edits?
3. Any suspension notice? Appeal once, with matching documents.
4. Any duplicate listings? Remove or merge them. Don't start over.
5. Home address hidden, real service areas listed?
6. Specific category, full services list, real hours?

Want to see how other trades handle it? Check our pages for electricians, plumbers, HVAC and roofers, or see what we do and how it works.