How to Put Your Restaurant on Google Maps, Step by Step

To put your restaurant on Google Maps, you create or claim a free Google Business Profile at business.google.com/add, then verify that you run the place. Before you create anything, search for your restaurant on Maps. Many restaurants are already listed, because Google or a customer added them. If yours is one of them, you claim the existing listing and don't make a new one.

Google says plainly that "you can add or claim your business at no charge" (Google Business Profile Help). You need no card, no ads and no agency. The steps below go in the order that avoids the usual problems. Once you're verified, use our Google Business Profile checklist to fill in the rest of the profile properly.

Step 1: Check if your restaurant is already on Google Maps

This step takes two minutes, and most guides skip it. If you skip it too, you can end up with two listings for one restaurant. Google's guidelines say not to create more than one profile per location (Google Business Profile guidelines).

Open Google Maps on a computer.
Search for your restaurant name and your town. Then search your street address on its own.
If you renamed the place, also try the old name. Try the name of the previous restaurant at your address too.

What you find decides your next step:

What you see	What it means	What to do
No listing at all	Nobody has added you	Create a profile (Step 2)
A listing with "Claim this business"	It exists but nobody manages it	Claim it (Step 3)
A listing with no claim link	Someone already verified it	Request ownership (Step 3)
The old restaurant at your address	The previous tenant's listing	On that listing, select "Suggest an edit", then "Place closed or not here", then "Permanently closed" (Google Maps Help). Then create your own

Step 2: Create your restaurant's profile

If nothing came up, this is how to put your restaurant on Google Maps from scratch. Google's official steps are short. Go to business.google.com/add, click "Add your business to Google", enter your details, then choose a way to verify (Google). Sign in with a Google account that belongs to the business, not one that belongs to a staff member who might leave.

Get these details right the first time:

Name. Use the real name on your sign and menu, and nothing more. Google's rule is that the name should match the one "used consistently on your storefront, website, stationery". "Rosa's Trattoria" is fine. "Rosa's Trattoria Best Pizza Downtown" breaks the rules and can get the profile suspended.
Category. Pick the most precise one that fits. If Google offers "Thai restaurant", it describes you better than plain "Restaurant". You can add more categories later, like a bar or a takeaway service, but only if you really are one.
Address. Use your real street address, the one where diners walk in. Google doesn't accept P.O. boxes or remote mailboxes (guidelines).
Service area. Leave this off if diners come to you. It's meant for businesses that travel to customers. A restaurant that also delivers can still show its address.
Phone and website. Use a number that someone actually answers during service. If you don't have a website yet, you can still create the profile.

Eligibility matters. Google says only businesses that qualify for a Business Profile can add a location, and your address must follow its guidelines. If you run a delivery-only kitchen, or a food truck with no fixed spot, read the guidelines before you start.

Step 3: How can I put my restaurant on Google Maps if it's already there?

If the listing already exists, claim it. Don't create a new one. Google gives these steps (Google):

On a computer: open Google Maps and search your restaurant name and city. Select "Claim this business", then "Manage now", and pick a verification option.
In the Maps app: search your restaurant, tap "About", then "Claim this business" and "Manage now".

If there's no claim link, someone already verified the listing. That might be a former manager, the previous owner or a marketing company you once hired. If you're allowed to manage the business, Google lets you request ownership from the current owner. Ask your own team first. Often the "stranger" turns out to be a former employee's Gmail account.

Step 4: Get verified, and what to do when it fails

Verification is where most owners get stuck. Google picks the methods you're offered, so you can't choose freely. The options Google lists are phone or text, email, a live video call, a recorded video and a postcard (Google verification help).

A few things to know, all from that same help page:

Postcard: Google says most codes arrive within 14 days, and codes expire after 30 days. You type the 5-digit code into your profile.
While you wait: don't edit your business name, address or category. Google says that if you do, the code it sent you won't work.
Video: be ready to show your current location, business assets like branded equipment or marketing materials, and areas only you can reach, such as the cash register, kitchen or storage room.
Review time: Google says verification reviews take up to 5 business days, and on rare occasions longer.

A practical tip, not a Google rule: start filming outside, with your sign and street in the shot, then walk inside in one go. This makes it easy to see that the dining room behind the sign is yours.

When something goes wrong, check this table:

Problem	Do this
The postcard hasn't come	Check that the address is complete (unit number, suite). Give it the 14 days Google mentions. Google says a new code request cancels the one already in the mail. Don't create a second profile
The code doesn't work	Make sure you're on the right profile and that the code is under 30 days old. Check that you haven't changed the name, address or category since it was sent
The "Get verified" button came back	Start verification again from your profile (Google)
Your video shows "Review issues"	Select it, follow the on-screen steps, then film again with clearer proof
No method works for you	Contact Google Business Profile support from the help page
Your profile was suspended	Check the name, address and duplicates against the guidelines before you appeal

If your profile is verified but you still can't find it on Maps, that's a different problem with its own causes. Our guide on why a Google Business Profile isn't showing up walks through them.

Verified but not sure what to fix next? The SEO Brief sends one free email the day a new guide comes out, on what to fix next, without jargon. Get it free.

How long does it take for a restaurant to show up on Google Maps?

You wait three times, one after the other:

Setup: if your details are ready, you can usually do it in one sitting. Bowwe, a website builder, puts it at about 15 minutes with an existing Google account and about 35 minutes without one (Bowwe). That's their estimate, not Google's.
Verification: this can be instant. A review takes up to 5 business days, and most postcards arrive within 14 days (Google).
Appearing on the map: Bowwe says a listing usually shows up a few days after verification. Google publishes no fixed delay.

Showing up is not the same as ranking. Your restaurant can be on the map and still sit below ten other places when someone searches "tacos near me". The next section covers what helps there.

What diners check first: set these up in week one

People looking at a restaurant on Maps want answers to a few quick questions. Is it open? What's on the menu? What does it look like? Can I book? Fill these in before anything else:

Hours, including holidays. Enter your regular hours, then add special hours for public holidays and closures. Wrong hours mean a diner turns up to a locked door and leaves a one-star review.
Menu. Add a link to your menu, or enter the dishes straight into the profile. Use a web page rather than a PDF, which is hard to read on a phone. Update it when prices change.
Photos. Upload real photos of the front of the building (so people can find the door), the dining room and your top dishes. Skip stock photos.
Booking and ordering links. If you have them, add your reservation link and your online ordering link. If a third-party platform takes your orders, make sure the link goes to your own restaurant page.
Attributes. Tick only the ones that are true, like outdoor seating, wheelchair access or vegetarian options. They show on your profile, so wrong ones lead to disappointed guests.

Reviews: ask for them, and reply to all of them

Reviews are the part you can work on every week. Ask happy guests in person, or put a QR code on the bill that opens your review link. Reply to every review, good and bad, briefly and in your own voice. If a review is bad, say sorry for the specific problem and offer a way to sort it out offline.

Know where the line is. Google's Maps user contributed content policy bans reviews "paid for, directly or in kind". It also says businesses can't offer "payment, discounts, free goods and/or services" in exchange for a review. So a free dessert for a five-star review is out. The same policy bans reviews written from a conflict of interest, and it lists current or former employment as one, so your staff shouldn't review you either. Google says fake engagement "will be removed".

Your first 30 days

When	Task
Day 1	Search Maps, claim or create the profile, and start verifying
After verification	Add hours, holiday hours, menu, booking and ordering links
Week 1	Add 10 or more real photos: front, inside, dishes
Week 2	Start asking guests for reviews. Reply to every one
Week 4	Check that the name, address, phone and hours match your website and delivery apps
Every month	Update the menu, seasonal hours and photos

An accurate profile also helps beyond Google. AI assistants pull business facts from public sources, so the same habits help with getting your business cited by AI search.

FAQ

Does it cost anything to put my restaurant on Google Maps? No. Google says you can add or claim your business at no charge. You don't need a card or any ads.

Can I put my restaurant on Google Maps without a website? Yes. The website field is optional. Add your menu and hours straight into the profile, since diners can't look for them anywhere else.

What if someone else manages my restaurant's listing? If you're allowed to manage the business, request ownership through Google. Check with former staff, the previous owner or an old agency first. One of them often still has access.

Can I verify by phone instead of postcard? Sometimes. Google decides which options each business gets: phone or text, email, video or postcard. If phone is on your list, take it.

Can I give guests a discount for leaving a review? No. Google's Maps content policy bans offering payment, discounts or free goods in exchange for a review. You can ask every guest for an honest review, with nothing in return.

What to do today

Search Google Maps for your restaurant name, then for your street address.
Claim the existing listing or create one at business.google.com/add. Use your exact name and the most precise category.
Start verification and note the date. Don't edit your name, address or category while you wait.
Write down your regular hours, holiday hours, menu link and booking link, so they're ready once you're verified.
Once you're verified, work through the Google Business Profile checklist, and get the free newsletter for the next fix.