Google Business Profile for Multiple Locations: Add, Verify and Manage (2026)

A second branch, a practice with a satellite office, a trades business with three sites or a chain with twenty stores: as soon as a business serves customers in several places, its Google Business Profile becomes an admin task. Improvising quickly leads to duplicate listings, inconsistent names and reviews that land at the wrong location. Based on Google's current help pages, this guide shows which rules apply to multiple locations, how to add locations one by one or import them by spreadsheet, when bulk verification applies and how several people can manage many profiles without losing track of the reviews.

Quick answer: how to set up multiple locations on Google

A Google Business Profile always belongs to exactly one location. Multiple locations therefore mean multiple profiles that you manage together. Which route fits depends on the number of locations and your situation:

The button labels come from Google's English help pages as of October 2026. Google renames menu items from time to time. The process usually stays the same.

The rules: what Google requires for multiple locations

Google's guidelines for representing your business contain specific rules for businesses with multiple locations. They are not suggestions: if a profile violates the guidelines, Google can restrict it. Five points matter most:

• One profile per location. Google requires no more than one profile for each location of your business, no matter how many accounts you manage it from. Departments and individual practitioners such as doctors or lawyers are exceptions.
• One name for all locations. Within a country, all locations must use the same name. Sub-brands or distinct business formats may carry their own name, but must use it consistently everywhere. The neighborhood or street therefore doesn't belong in the name; it goes in the address.
• Staff during opening hours. A location where customers are served must be staffed during its stated business hours. For coworking spaces, Google additionally requires clear signage and your own staff on site.
• No mailbox addresses. PO boxes and mailboxes at locations that aren't yours are not allowed. A virtual office without a real, staffed location doesn't qualify for a profile.
• Separate profiles for departments. Departments of companies, hospitals, universities or public bodies may have their own profiles if their name and category differ from the main business.

Service-area businesses without a storefront follow their own rule: if each location has its own service area and its own staff, each location may have its own profile. As a guideline, Google says the service area shouldn't extend more than about two hours' driving time from the location.

Adding another location individually

With only a few locations, adding them one by one is the simplest route. Here is how:

1. Open Business Profile Manager. Sign in at business.google.com with the account you use to manage your existing profiles.
2. Create the new profile. Use "Add business" to create a profile for the new location.
3. Enter the details. Use the same name as at your other locations and enter the address, category, phone number and opening hours of the new location.
4. Verify. Every new location has to be verified by Google before you can fully manage it. Only business owners or authorized representatives may verify a business.

Check beforehand whether the location already has a listing, for example because a customer suggested it on Google Maps. In that case, claim that listing instead of creating a second one. How to request access to a profile that someone else manages is explained in the article on transferring a Google Business Profile.

Importing many locations by spreadsheet

With many locations, the spreadsheet import saves a lot of typing. It lets you create or update several locations at once:

1. Get the template. For your first import, select "Download the template" on the "Import locations from a file" screen. For later changes, download your current location data first.
2. Fill in the spreadsheet. Each row is one location, and each location needs a unique store code. Resolve duplicate or missing store codes before uploading.
3. Upload. In Business Profile Manager, click "Add business" in the upper right, choose "Import businesses" and then "Select file". Google accepts .xls, .xlsx, .ods and .csv files.
4. Check the preview. The preview shows possible issues and the number of affected locations. The downloadable details list the errors for each location.
5. Apply. Apply the changes, or cancel, correct the file and upload it again.

Google flags duplicate or unrecognized column headers as a warning and ignores those columns when uploading. And one important point: uploading a spreadsheet doesn't send a verification request. You request verification separately.

Store codes: the permanent ID of each branch

The store code matches each row of the spreadsheet to the right location. Google sets four rules for it:

• Unique: Every location has its own code.
• Permanent: A location's code always stays the same.
• With your brand name: Google advises including your brand name in the store code, following the pattern "GOOG1", "GOOG2" and so on.
• Edited in the dashboard: You change existing codes in the profile via "More", "Business Profile settings", "Advanced settings" and the pencil icon next to "Store code". If you add or change the store code of an existing location by spreadsheet, you create a duplicate location instead.

A practical tip: Google warns that incorrect codes, for example without leading zeros, can create new listings by accident. Spreadsheet programs like to strip leading zeros. So format the store code column as text before you enter codes such as "0042".

Bulk verification: from ten locations

Verifying locations one by one takes a lot of time for a chain. For larger businesses, Google therefore offers bulk verification. The requirements according to Google's help page:

• At least ten profiles from the same business. Duplicate, suspended or disabled profiles don't count.
• Complete: The spreadsheet covers all profiles you manage.
• Matching your size: The number of profiles must reflect the actual size of the business. If they don't match, Google may ask for proof.
• No agency with several clients: Agencies with more than one business in one account can't bulk verify.
• No pure service area: Service-area businesses without a fixed location are excluded.
• Authorized: Only business owners or authorized representatives may verify. Google may require a video verification, for which an authorized person has to be on site.

You submit the request on a computer in Business Profile Manager: on the left, choose "Verifications", then "Chain" and "Start", fill in the form and choose "Submit". After a successful review, you receive a confirmation by email. If the "Verifications" tab is missing, your profiles probably don't meet the requirements. In that case, each location has to be verified individually.

Verification doesn't last forever without any effort on your part. Google points out that profiles can lose their status if they are no longer maintained. So check your account for errors regularly and keep the information up to date.

Business groups: many profiles, several managers

A business group bundles profiles so that several people can manage them together without sharing passwords. Business groups were previously known as business accounts. They come with their own roles:

A business group can have several owners, but only one primary owner. The primary owner can only leave the group after handing over primary ownership to another owner or manager. Google Groups can't be added as owners or managers. You change roles in Business Profile Manager: select the group in the upper left, then "Group settings" and "Manage users".

Separately from the group, the roles on each individual profile still exist. This lets you add someone as manager of a single location without giving them access to the others. The result is an access model that suits most multi-location businesses:

Keep in mind: group managers may not only edit profiles but also delete them. Give this role only to service providers you entrust with all locations, and add others as managers of individual profiles. Also plan for at least two owners from within your own business. According to Google, anyone who is alone in a group must first add another owner or manager before handing over primary ownership. How roles on an individual profile work, and why new people have to wait seven days, is covered in the article on transferring a Google Business Profile.

Reviews across multiple locations

Each location collects its own reviews in its own profile. For customers, that's exactly right: whoever reviews the downtown branch means that branch. For the business, it means that every branch has its own rating, its own visibility and its own unanswered reviews. Four points make the difference:

• The right review link for each location. Every profile has its own review link and QR code. A single QR code for all branches sends every review to the same profile, and the other locations get nothing. How to create the link and code is shown in the article on the Google review link.
• Replies on site, rules from the center. The branch knows the cases; head office sets the tone of voice, reply times and escalation rules. What this routine looks like is described in the guide to managing online reviews.
• Compare metrics per location. Average rating, reply rate and the number of new reviews show which branch needs support. A location with a clearly lower reply rate usually doesn't need better wording, but time or a stand-in.
• No duplicate profiles. If a location has two listings, its reviews are split between them, and customers find one or the other. Clean up duplicates before you ask customers for reviews.

How reviews feed into local visibility is explained in the local SEO guide: according to Google, the number and rating of reviews count toward a business's prominence and therefore its local ranking, and they do so for each location separately.

When a location closes or pauses

The end of a location is part of managing it too. Google distinguishes two cases:

• Temporarily closed: for closures of more than seven days, an off-season break or a closure without a fixed end. For closures of seven days or less, use special hours instead.
• Permanently closed: for locations that won't reopen. The profile can still appear in search, but it is clearly marked as closed.

For a single location, choose "Edit profile" in the profile, then "Hours", click "Edit" in the hours section, select "Temporarily closed" or "Permanently closed" and save. For several locations, select the profiles in Business Profile Manager, open "Actions" at the top and choose "Mark as temporarily closed" or "Mark as permanently closed". Temporarily closed profiles may appear behind open businesses in general searches. So mark a reopening in good time.

Checklist for businesses with multiple locations

1. Take stock. Look up every location on Google Maps and note which profile belongs to whom and where duplicates exist.
2. Settle on one name. All locations in a country carry the same name; differences go in the address.
3. Assign store codes. One unique, permanent code per location, with your brand name and formatted as text.
4. Set up a business group. With at least two owners from within your own business.
5. Bring the branches in. Branch managers as managers of their own profile, service providers as managers of the group or of individual profiles.
6. Verify. For ten or more locations of the same business, request bulk verification; otherwise verify each location individually.
7. Hand out review links. Every branch gets its own link and QR code.
8. Compare monthly. Analyze metrics per location and give targeted support to branches with unanswered reviews.

Managing multiple locations with RateGate

Many locations mean many reviews in many places. RateGate brings them together:

• Import locations from Google: Connect a Google account that manages your profiles as owner or manager, select the account and import the associated locations. You can also create locations manually. Each location carries the review links of its platforms.
• One inbox for all branches: Reviews from Google, Trusted Shops and ProvenExpert in one place, filtered by location, star rating and status. From the Silver plan, you reply to them directly from RateGate, automatically according to your rules if you wish. ProvenExpert reviews are answered in the ProvenExpert portal itself.
• Analytics per location: Average rating, reply rate, star distribution and history, for all locations or each one individually.

The Gold plan is designed for multiple locations and many reviews. How many locations each plan includes and what it costs is on the page for businesses. What else RateGate offers as review management for businesses is shown on the home page.

Frequently asked questions

Can one Google Business Profile have multiple locations?

No. A profile always belongs to exactly one location, and Google allows only one profile per location. You manage multiple locations as multiple profiles together, in Business Profile Manager or in a business group.

How do I add another location?

In Business Profile Manager via "Add business". Google then has to verify the new location. To add many locations at once, import them by spreadsheet via "Add business" and "Import businesses".

How many locations do I need for bulk verification?

Ten or more profiles from the same business. Agencies with more than one business in one account and service-area businesses without a fixed location can't use bulk verification.

Do all branches need the same name on Google?

Yes. Within a country, Google requires the same name for all locations. Sub-brands or distinct business formats may carry their own name if they use it consistently everywhere.

What is a store code?

A unique identifier you assign to each location. It always stays the same for that location, should include your brand name and matches each row of a spreadsheet import to the right location.

What is a business group?

A set of profiles that several people manage together. Group owners can manage users and delete the group; group managers can edit all profiles in the group but can't add users.

Do branches share their reviews?

No. Each location collects its own reviews in its own profile and has its own review link. So always ask customers with the link of the location they visited.

What do I do when a location closes?

Mark it as temporarily or permanently closed. For one location, this works via the hours in the profile; for several locations, via "Actions" in Business Profile Manager. For closures of seven days or less, special hours are enough.

Conclusion

On Google, multiple locations mean multiple profiles: one per location, all with the same name, each with its own store code and its own reviews. Up to nine locations, you add and verify each one individually; from ten locations of the same business, spreadsheet import and bulk verification help. A business group with two owners from within your own business, branch managers as managers of their location and a separate review link for each branch make sure the admin side grows with the business.

RateGate imports your locations from your Google profile, brings the reviews of all branches together in one inbox and analyzes them for all locations or each one individually.