If you run your business from home, the Google Business Profile setup asks a question that stops a lot of people: what's your business address? Nobody wants their house pinned on a map with "Plumber" written next to it. You don't have to show it. Google has a setting for this, called a service-area business, and it's how most tradies, cleaners, mobile groomers and home-based businesses appear on Google Maps.
This guide covers setting it up properly, verifying it, and the handful of mistakes that get home-based profiles suspended.
What a service-area business is
Google splits local businesses into two groups. Storefront businesses have an address customers visit, like a café or a dental clinic. Service-area businesses go to their customers, or work with them remotely, and don't serve anyone at their own address.
Google's guidance is direct about it: if you don't serve customers at your business address, remove the address from your profile. You show a service area instead, made up of the suburbs, cities or regions you cover. Your profile can still appear in the map results for searches in those areas.
Some businesses are both, and Google calls them hybrids. A dog groomer with a salon who also does mobile visits can show the salon address and a service area. The catch for home-based businesses: if clients come to your house for appointments, your home is the business location, and Google's rules expect it to be staffed and open to customers during your listed hours. A home salon or studio in that position has to decide whether showing the address is worth it.
Before you start
Have these ready:
- Your business name, exactly as it's registered. Google wants the name you use in the real world, with nothing added. "Smith Plumbing" is fine. "Smith Plumbing Brisbane Hot Water 24/7" breaks the rules and is a common reason profiles get suspended.
- A way for customers to reach you. Google asks for a phone number or a website. A phone number isn't strictly required, though most trades will want one on there.
- Your website address, if you have a site.
- The areas you actually work in. Write the list down before you start, because you can only add 20.
Setting it up, step by step
- Sign in at business.google.com with the Google account you'll manage the business from. Use one you'll keep for the business, not a staff member's account or one you might close.
- Enter your business name and primary category. Pick the most specific category for your main service, such as "Electrician" rather than "Contractor". You can add secondary categories later.
- Say no to a location customers can visit. Google asks whether you want to add a location like a store or office. Choosing no is the step that keeps your address off the map.
- Add your service areas. You can add up to 20 suburbs, cities or regions. Google says the whole area shouldn't stretch more than about two hours' drive from where you're based, and you can't set it as a radius around your address.
- Add your contact details and website, then finish the setup.
Verifying your profile
A new profile isn't public until it's verified, and Google decides how you'll do it. Depending on your business and region, you'll get one or more of these: a phone call or text, an email, a live video call, a postcard with a code, or a recorded video. You can't change which options Google offers.
Google may still need your real address during setup or verification, for example to post a code. Giving it doesn't make it public. Once you've said customers don't visit, it stays off your profile.
The recorded video is the method many home-based businesses get, and it's where most people trip up. The recording has to be one continuous take of at least 30 seconds, filmed live from your phone through the Business Profile app or website. For a service-area business, Google wants to see three things:
- Where you operate. Street signs or landmarks near your base. If you work from home, filming signs and landmarks in your immediate neighbourhood is fine.
- That the business exists. The tools, equipment or products you use, your workspace, business cards or branded clothing.
- That you run it. You doing the work or opening something only the business has access to, like unlocking your work van. A permit, invoice or utility bill that matches your business name also works.
Don't film bank details, tax file numbers, ID documents or other people's faces. Plan the route before you hit record, because stopping and starting means doing it again.
What gets home-based profiles suspended
Most suspensions come down to one of these:
- A PO box or virtual office as your address. Google says PO boxes and remote mailboxes aren't acceptable. A rented mailing address you don't work from isn't eligible either, and a service-area business can only list a virtual office if it's staffed during business hours.
- A co-working desk. It only counts if you have clear signage there, receive customers there and staff it during business hours. A hot desk you use twice a week doesn't qualify.
- Extra profiles to cover more areas. Google allows one profile per business. Making a second one for the Gold Coast won't help you rank there, and it puts both at risk.
- Keywords in the business name. Suburbs, services and taglines don't belong in the name field. They belong in your services, description and website.
Once you're verified
The profile is live, but it's mostly empty. Fill in the rest:
- Services, each with a short plain-English description.
- Hours, including public holidays.
- A description that says what you do and where, written the way you'd explain it to a customer.
- Photos of real work, your van, your tools, before-and-after shots. Add a few more every month.
- Reviews. Ask every happy customer, and reply to every review, good or bad.
Then make your website match. Use the same business name and contact details, list the same service areas in plain sentences, and leave the street address off the site too. Mention your suburb or city instead, and have your web designer add business markup that describes the areas you serve. When your profile and your site say the same thing, Google has an easier time trusting both.
Our local SEO checklist covers what to do next, from reviews to directory listings.
Want it done for you?
Google Business Profile setup is included in our Business and Growth AI website plans. We set your categories, services and service areas, link the profile to your new site, and keep your home address private. It's the setup most tradies, cleaners, mobile beauticians and personal trainers need.
Common questions
Will I rank lower without a visible address?
No. Hiding your address is what Google asks service-area businesses to do, so it isn't a penalty. Google still knows roughly where you're based, and like any local business you'll usually show up most easily close to home. Reviews, a complete profile and a clear website help you reach further.
Can I cover more than 20 suburbs?
Not as separate entries. If you work across a wide area, use larger areas, such as a city or region, plus a few key suburbs. Your website can describe the full area in more detail.
I already have a profile that shows my home address. Can I hide it?
Yes. Edit your business location, clear the address, and add your service areas instead. If customers don't visit you, this brings your profile in line with Google's rules as well as protecting your privacy.
What if I move house?
Update the address in your profile. It stays hidden, but Google may ask you to verify the business again.