Feature guide4 min read

How to verify your business on Google

Until your Google Business Profile is verified, it doesn't appear in Maps or local search. Here's exactly how to verify, including the newer video-call method that's replacing postcards.

Quick answer

Verification happens when you create or claim a Google Business Profile. Depending on your business type, Google offers postcard (5–14 days), phone call (instant), email (instant), or video verification (a recorded video call showing your premises). Pick the fastest method available to you. Service-area businesses and home-based businesses are increasingly being asked for video verification in 2026 — be prepared.

Step-by-step

Create or claim your profile

Go to google.com/business and sign in with a Google account that you'll keep — ideally one in the business owner's name. Search for your business; if it already exists (someone may have auto-listed it), click 'Claim this business'. If not, click 'Add your business' and fill in the basics: name, category, location or service area, contact details. At the end, Google asks how you want to verify.

Pick the verification method available to you

Google decides which methods are offered based on your business type, age, and location. The options are: 1) Postcard — a card mailed to your business address with a 5-digit code, usually arrives in 5–14 days; 2) Phone — Google calls or texts your verified business number with a code, usually instant; 3) Email — Google sends a code to a verified business email (rare, mostly for verified domain owners); 4) Video — you record a short video showing your premises, signage, business documents; 5) Live video call — a Google support agent does a video call with you to verify. If multiple methods are available, choose the fastest (phone or email if offered; otherwise video).

Postcard verification (5–14 days)

Google mails a postcard with a 5-digit verification code to your business address. Once it arrives, log into your profile and enter the code. Important: do not edit your address while waiting for the postcard — this resets the process and you'll need to request a new one. If 21 days pass with no postcard, you can request a re-send. Postcard verification is being slowly phased out in favour of video for many business categories.

Video verification (recorded)

Increasingly common in 2026, especially for service-area businesses, home-based businesses, and competitive verticals (plumbers, locksmiths, lawyers). Google asks you to record a short video showing: your physical location with clear signage; equipment or stock relevant to your business; documents proving you're authorised to manage it (business licence, utility bill). The video must be filmed in one take, no edits. Review times vary from a few hours to a week. Filming tips: bright daylight, hold the phone steadily, narrate what you're showing as you go.

Live video call verification

Sometimes Google requires a live video call with a support agent rather than a recorded video. You'll receive a link to schedule a call — typically within a few days. On the call, the agent asks you to show the same things (premises, signage, documents) in real time. Calls take 10–20 minutes. Be ready, dress professionally, and have your documents on hand before the call starts.

After verification

Verified profiles appear in Maps and local search within hours to a few days. Don't make major changes to sensitive fields (name, address, primary category) for at least 30 days after verification — heavy editing triggers re-verification and sometimes temporary suspension. Use the first month to complete the profile: photos, services, hours, secondary categories, posts.

Tips & best practices

▸If you have a choice between phone and postcard, always pick phone — it's instant and there's nothing to physically wait for.
▸If you have a virtual office or use a mailbox address, Google has been cracking down hard on these. Use only an address you genuinely operate from, or set up as a service-area business with no public address.
▸Keep a copy of your business registration documents and a recent utility bill ready before you start — these come up in both video methods and for any post-verification disputes.

Common questions

How long does Google Business Profile verification take?

Phone or email verification is instant. Postcard verification takes 5–14 days. Recorded video verification typically takes hours to a few days. Live video call verification depends on scheduling and is usually completed within a week of booking.

Why was I asked to do video verification instead of postcard?

Google has been moving competitive and fraud-prone categories (locksmiths, plumbers, lawyers, home-based businesses) onto video verification as the default. It's a reliability-and-trust signal — businesses that pass video verification are demonstrably real.

What if I don't have a physical premises for a video?

For service-area businesses, Google generally accepts video showing your branded equipment, vehicles, uniforms, signage at a home base, and your business documents. The point is to prove the business is real and you're authorised — not specifically to have a shopfront.

Can I run my Google Business Profile without verifying?

No. Until verified, your profile is invisible to the public. You can prepare and fill it in, but it won't appear on Maps or in local search until verification is complete.