How to Close or Remove a Google Business Profile

If you want to remove your Google Business Profile (GBP) so it is no longer visible in Search and Map results, you have a few options. For seasonal or temporary closures, you can mark your profile temporarily closed, letting customers know you’ll be back at a future date. For permanent closures, you can mark the profile permanently closed or request to have it permanently removed from Maps so it is no longer visible.

Reasons to Remove a Google Business Profile

There are several reasons why people are looking to remove their business listings. Depending on which scenario, you fall into, you should make sure to follow the correct instructions below. 

1. Your business is permanently closing. This is the most common 
2. A business profile was created for a business that doesn’t exist or is not eligible for a listing, the profiles can also be completely removed.
3. Your business is seasonal or temporarily closed.  There is an option to mark a business profile temporarily closed. This allows the profile to remain active on search and maps and receive new reviews but shows customers that the business is not currently open to customers.

How to Mark a listing as Permanently Closed

Note: If you mark a business as permanently closed, your Business Profile may still appear on Search and Maps for users who search for it. It clearly shows that your business is closed.

Permanently Closed listings are difficult for users to find. Google purposely hides them since they aren’t overly valuable to users. Often the only way to trigger them on Google search is to type in the name exactly or a combination of the name + the address if it’s for an old location.

To mark a listing as permanently closed:

1. Go to your Business Profile
2. Select “Edit Profile”
3. Near the top, select the “Hours” tab
4. Next to “Hours,” click edit, then choose “permanently closed”
5. Save

How to Completely Delete a Google Listing

Disclaimer – THIS PROCESS IS PERMANENT. DO NOT REMOVE A GOOGLE LISTING UNLESS YOU’RE SURE YOU WANT YOUR ENTIRE LISTING REMOVED FROM GOOGLE.

If you are looking to actually delete a GBP listing, you can do this via the Google business profile dashboard. There are a few things to keep in mind:

• Any posts, photos, or videos added by profile owners or managers will be permanently removed.
• If your website was created with Google Business Profile, it will be permanently
  removed.
• Removed profile content can’t be recovered or managed.
• Only owners and primary owners can remove a Google Business Profile

To remove your listing, go to your profile, and click on the three dots in the upper right corner, and click on Business Profile Settings. Select Remove Business Profile, and click on Remove Profile Content and            Managers.

Select Continue, and Remove, then click Done.

After removing your profile content and managers, you must unselect “mark your business as permanently closed”

 

Marking a Google Business Profile Temporarily Closed

Temporarily closing a listing is a fairly simple process. In the Google Business Profile dashboard, click on the “Edit Profile” icon:

Then, click the edit button beside the hours section and you should see an option to mark the listing as temporarily closed:

  Pro Tip:

Do not use the opening date feature if your business is temporarily closed. If you set the opening date to a date in the future, it will cause your listing and reviews to become invisible on Google Search and Google Maps.

Determining Which Type of GBP Closure is Best For Your Business

Closing a Google Business listing can be a strategic decision for various reasons, including rebranding, relocating, or discontinuing operations. Ultimately, the decision to remove a Google Business profile depends on individual circumstances and the specific goals and needs of the business in question. 

Not sure what to do? We can help! Visit localsearchforum.com and share with the community or go to the Google Business Profile Help Community to speak with a Google Business Profile Product Expert to determine the best course of action.