Get your Google Business Profile verified

The short answer

Google Business Profile verification proves to Google that you run the business at the address or service area on your profile. As of 2026, Google chooses the verification methods available to you based on your business type, public information, region and business hours; you can’t pick freely. The options include a code by phone, text or email, a live video call with Google support, a mailed postcard and a recorded video. Google says verification reviews take up to 5 business days, and recommends video verification when you are eligible.

Most failures come from a video that doesn’t show enough, a name or address that doesn’t match what Google can see, or an ineligible location such as a virtual office. Below is how each method works, how to record a video that passes, and what to do when verification fails.

The verification methods

• Video recording. You record a short, continuous video on your phone through your Business Profile, showing your location, your business and proof that you manage it. Google reviews it, usually within 5 business days.
• Live video call. A Google support representative guides you through a call where you show the location and that you manage the business. Only available during your business hours.
• Phone or text. Google sends a code to the business phone number. Automated phone systems can’t receive the call, so make sure a person or a mobile can answer.
• Email. Google sends steps to the email address shown on the verification screen, so make sure you can use it.
• Postcard. A code mailed to your business address. Google says most codes arrive within 14 days and codes expire after 30 days.

Some profiles verify instantly, for example when you have already verified the business website in Google Search Console, or when you use bulk verification for many locations.

Before you start: make the profile verification-ready

Google compares what you submit with what it can see on Maps and elsewhere. Line everything up first:

1. Name exactly as on your signage and registration, with no added keywords or locations.
2. Address as it appears on your lease or utility bill, suite number on line 2. If customers don’t visit, hide the address and set a service area instead.
3. Map pin on the right building.
4. Phone number that rings at the business.
5. Website showing the same name, address and phone.
6. Category that describes what the business is.

Check eligibility too. Google’s guidelines say a virtual office, a rented mailbox or a remote P.O. box isn’t eligible, and a co-working desk qualifies only with permanent signage and staff there during business hours.

How to record a verification video that passes

Google’s video verification requirements, as of 2026:

• At least 30 seconds, one continuous take, with no edits or breaks.
• Recorded live and uploaded from a mobile device through your Business Profile. Pre-recorded videos aren’t accepted.
• Show the location: street signs, building numbers or nearby businesses that match Google Maps.
• Show the business exists: for storefronts, permanent signage with the business name matching the profile. For service-area businesses, tools, equipment, products, business cards or branded apparel.
• Show you manage it: areas only staff can reach, such as a register, stock room or point-of-sale system; for service-area businesses, opening a branded vehicle, using business equipment or showing a permit, invoice or utility bill in the business name.
• Leave out bank, tax or ID numbers, private information and other people’s faces.

A simple route that works for many storefronts: start at the street sign, pan to the building number, walk to the entrance showing the sign, unlock the door, and finish at the register or back office. Plan it before you press record, because stopping means starting over.

Verification keeps failing?

Book a free 30-minute call. We look at your profile and what Google can see about your business with you, and tell you what we would correct before you try again. No obligation. Pick a time that works for you.

Common reasons verification fails

• The video didn’t show enough. No street context, no permanent signage, or nothing that proves you control the premises. A temporary banner or a printed sign taped to a window often isn’t enough.
• Name or address mismatch. The name on the sign, profile and documents differ, or the suite number is wrong.
• The location isn’t eligible, such as a virtual office or mailbox.
• The video broke the rules: edited, cut together, uploaded rather than recorded live, or showing faces.
• A duplicate profile exists for the same business.
• Recent edits. Changing the name, address or category can trigger verification again.

What to do when it fails

Google’s help page describes three situations:

• “Review issues” after a video: the video wasn’t accepted. Open Review issues and follow the steps shown, then record again, fixing what was missing.
• Google asks for more information: usually because you changed business details. Click Get verified and try again with the extra details.
• The Get verified button reappears: Google couldn’t complete verification. Retry, or use a different method if one is offered.

If you keep failing, stop and fix the underlying mismatch rather than recording the same video again. Then try once more, carefully. Repeated failed attempts with the same problem rarely change the outcome.

Moves, new locations and agencies

• Moving? Update the address when you have actually moved, signage is up and the old location is closed. Expect Google to ask you to verify the new address.
• Opening a second location? Create a separate profile for it once it is staffed and signed, and verify it on its own. Businesses with many locations can apply for bulk verification.
• Using an agency? The business owner should own the profile, with the agency added as a manager. If you are recording a video, the person on site usually has to do it, so plan who will be there.

Status and what verification unlocks

Once verified, you can edit your profile, reply to reviews, post updates and see performance data, and Google says verification makes you more likely to appear in results. Pending verification shows in your profile manager. If you move, change your name or change the address, expect to verify again, so plan changes rather than making them on a whim.

With verification done, the next job is a complete, accurate profile. Our guide to setting up a Google Business Profile covers the basics, and how to get more Google reviews covers the next step.

Help from JLB USA

JLB USA has done web design and marketing for growing businesses for more than 15 years, with 500+ clients. Our SEO services are billed month to month, and you can cancel after any month.

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