Google Business Profile suspended? What to do first

By Daniel Debattista · Updated 6 November 2026

Your listing has dropped off Google Maps and the calls have slowed. The urge is to hit "appeal" right away or start a fresh listing. Don't do either yet. Google lets you submit each appeal only once, so the first one should go in after you know what went wrong and have fixed it.

1. Work out which kind of suspension it is

There are two different problems, and they're fixed in a different order.

• Your whole Google account is restricted. Google restricts an account when it decides the account broke its policies. Every profile it owns is suspended and you can't create or claim others. This gets appealed first, from the "My accounts" page. You can't appeal the profile until the account is cleared.
• Just one profile is suspended. This one goes through the Business Profile appeals tool.

2. Check your profile against Google's rules

Most suspensions trace back to something in the profile that doesn't match Google's guidelines. The common ones:

• Business name. It should match your real sign, website and paperwork. Google doesn't allow added taglines, phone numbers, website addresses, or service and location details. "Joe's Plumbing" is fine. "Joe's Plumbing Best Emergency Plumber Milton" is not.
• Address. P.O. boxes and mailbox stores aren't accepted. Virtual offices aren't eligible. A co-working space only works if it has your signage, your own staff there during business hours, and customers coming in.
• Service-area businesses. If you travel to customers and don't serve them at your address, Google says to hide the address and set a service area instead.
• Phone and website. The phone number should be under your direct control, ideally a local number. Don't use numbers or links that redirect somewhere else.
• Duplicates. Google allows one profile per business location. An old listing from a previous address, or one someone else made for you, can cause trouble.

3. Look at what changed recently

A suspension often follows an edit. Think back over the last couple of months: did you change your name, address, phone, website or categories? Make several big edits at once? Switch between showing an address and a service area? Add a new manager or marketing company? If so, that's the first place to look.

4. Fix the problem before you appeal

Make the changes on your profile and your website so they match each other and match Google's rules. An appeal that says "we've fixed it" carries a lot more weight when it's true before Google looks.

5. Gather your evidence

Google's appeals page lists the kinds of documents it accepts:

• Official business registration
• A business licence
• Tax certificates
• Utility bills (electricity, phone, water or internet)

The business name and address on each one should match your profile exactly. Photos of your permanent signage, or your branded vehicle if you travel to customers, help too.

6. Appeal once, properly

Sign in to the Google account that owns the profile, open the appeals tool, pick the decision, attach your evidence and explain briefly what you fixed. Make sure nobody else, like a former marketing company, has already appealed on your behalf. Google emails you the decision. It doesn't publish a set timeframe for appeal reviews.

7. If the appeal is denied

Google says that only if your request is denied, it may be able to do an additional review, where you can send evidence that wasn't in the first appeal. Treat it as your last real chance and don't send it until you have something new to show.

Related guides

• Should I make a new profile after a suspension?
  Short answer: no. Here's why.
• Video verification failed?
  What Google wants to see, and why videos get rejected.