Guide, updated November 2026
How to get your business on Google Maps
When someone searches “café near me” or “plumber Parramatta”, the businesses on the map usually get the calls. Getting on that map is free: you need a Google Business Profile. Here’s how to set one up, get it verified and make it work for you.
Set up your profile
- Search Google for your business name first. If a listing already exists, choose the option to claim it rather than making a new one.
- Go to business.google.com and sign in with the Google account you want to manage the business with.
- Enter your business name exactly as it appears on your shopfront and signage.
- Choose your main category. Pick the most specific one that fits, like “Hair salon” rather than “Beauty”.
- Add your address if customers visit you. If you travel to customers instead, add your service area and hide your address.
- Add your phone number and website.
Get verified
Google needs to check the business is real before your profile shows publicly. Depending on your business, it may ask you to record a short video of your premises, verify by phone, text or email, or wait for a postcard with a code. Follow the method Google offers you. It can take anywhere from minutes to a couple of weeks.
Fill in everything
Complete profiles tend to show up more and get more clicks. Once you’re verified, add:
- Your opening hours, plus special hours for public holidays.
- At least ten good photos: outside, inside, your team and your work.
- Your services or products, with prices where you can.
- A short description of what you do and who you do it for.
- Extra categories if you offer more than one kind of service.
Reviews: the biggest lever
Reviews affect both where you show up and whether people pick you. Ask happy customers straight after a good experience, and make it easy by sending your review link by text or email. Reply to every review, good and bad, politely. Future customers read your replies.
Don’t offer rewards for reviews or write fake ones. It breaks Google’s rules and can get reviews removed or your profile suspended.
Mistakes to avoid
- Adding keywords to your business name, like “Joe’s Plumbing Best Plumber Sydney”. It’s against Google’s guidelines and can get your profile suspended.
- Different phone numbers or addresses on your profile, website and social media. Keep them identical.
- Forgetting holiday hours. Nothing annoys customers more than a closed door the listing said would be open.
- Setting it up and never touching it again.
Connect it to your website
Your Google Business Profile and your website help each other. Link your website from your profile, and put the same name, address and phone number on both. Launch Corner sites include your business details in a format Google reads, and Members get a reminder in their dashboard if their profile isn’t linked yet.
Questions
Does it cost anything to be on Google Maps?
No. A Google Business Profile is free. Be wary of anyone charging you to “register” you on Google Maps.
I work from home. Do I have to show my address?
No. Service area businesses, like tradies and mobile groomers, can list the areas they serve and keep their address hidden.
How long until I show up?
Usually soon after you’re verified, though it can take a while to rank well in busy areas. Photos, reviews and a complete profile all help.