The rules every profile follows.
Claiming is free
There is no charge to claim, verify or manage a business profile.
Organic rankings can't be bought
Claiming a profile or paying for ads never changes organic rankings. Rankings come from public signals like ratings, review volume, recency, completeness and proximity.
Sponsored is always labeled
Paid placements are clearly marked “Sponsored” and are kept separate from organic results.
Owners respond, they don't remove
Owners can reply publicly to reviews and report reviews that break policy. Owners cannot delete or hide reviews.
No incentivized or fake reviews
Owners must not offer discounts, gifts, payment or anything else in exchange for reviews, and must not post or buy fake reviews. Violations can lead to a revoked claim.
Verified owners only
Edits go live only after ownership is verified through the listing's phone number, an email at the business's own website domain, or a document reviewed by our team. Changing the phone number or website requires verifying again.
Competing claims are reviewed by a person
If a business is already managed, a new claim goes to manual review and the current owner is notified.