A nonprofit can create its Google Business Profile without paying anything, starting from business.google.com/add, as long as it has a place the public can visit, or travels to the people it serves. The process takes four steps: add the organization, fill in its details, pick a verification method, then share access with a second person in charge. The point that needs the most care is not technical: it is the address.
Official Google Business Profile Help pages checked on 28 October 2026, cited below. Google changes its interface and guidelines over time: reread each page before you start.
What the profile does, and what it costs
The Business Profile is the panel that appears in Google Search and on Google Maps when someone looks for your organization or for organizations like yours. Google states that there is nothing to pay to create a profile and appear on Google, and that the profile can be managed at no cost from Search or Maps (Business Profile overview, Google).
It lets you show up to date opening hours and contact details, post news and events, and reply to reviews. For a nonprofit, it is often the first thing a volunteer, a member or a partner sees, before they even open your website.
Before you start: does your nonprofit qualify?
Google's guidelines have no rule specific to nonprofits: the general rules apply. They provide for a profile when an organization has a physical location the public can visit, or travels to people where they are (guidelines for representing your business on Google). There are three cases.
| Your situation | What Google's guidelines say |
|---|---|
| Premises open to the public (drop-in hours, charity shop, activity room) | Profile with a visible address. Google expects fixed, permanent signage with the organization's name at that address |
| Work done at people's homes or in the field, with no premises open to visitors | Hidden address, with a service area instead |
| Neither visitors nor travel to the people you serve | The profile is not designed for this case: a website and a social media page fit better |
A few more points from the same guidelines that matter for a nonprofit:
- A registered office alone is not enough. A rented mailing address where the organization does not actually operate is not eligible. Neither is a P.O. box.
- An office in a shared or coworking space can only be listed if it has clear signage and receives visitors, with your own staff present during the stated hours.
- The profile name is the organization's real name, as it appears on its premises, website and documents. No tagline, hours, phone number, web address or location details added to the name: Google may suspend a profile for this.
- One profile per organization location.
A nonprofit registered at its chair's home or at a community centre, without receiving anyone there, therefore falls into the second or third case, depending on whether it goes out to meet people.
Creating the profile, step by step
1. Gather what you need
Before you open the page, have ready:
- a Google Account, which Google requires for verification (verify your business on Google), ideally tied to an email address owned by the organization rather than a volunteer's personal inbox;
- the organization's exact name;
- the address of the premises open to the public, or the list of towns where you work;
- a phone number that can receive a call or a text, and your website address if you have one.
2. Add the organization
Google describes the process in four steps (add or claim your Business Profile):
- go to business.google.com/add;
- click the button to add your business to Google;
- enter the requested details, following the on-screen instructions;
- choose a verification option and follow the steps shown.
The same page asks you to make sure the address you enter is accurate and follows the guidelines. If a profile already exists for your nonprofit, do not create a second one. If it is unverified, you can claim it from Google Maps: search for the organization, choose the option to claim this business, then verify. If someone else (a former volunteer, for example) has already verified it, you need to ask the current owner to transfer ownership to you (same page).
3. Hide the address and set a service area, if you do not receive visitors
If you do not receive anyone at premises, Google asks you to remove the address from the profile. You then set a service area from the profile, by selecting Edit profile, then Location, then Edit next to Service area. You can enter up to 20 areas (cities, postal codes or other areas), and Google recommends staying within about two hours of driving time. Once approved, changes can take up to 48 hours to appear (manage your service areas, Google).
4. Verify the profile
Until it is verified, the profile is not really in your hands. Google itself decides which methods to offer, among them (verify your business on Google):
- phone or text: a code is sent to the organization's number (an automated phone menu cannot receive it);
- email: instructions are sent to the address shown on the verification screen;
- live video call, during business hours: you need to be on site and show that you manage the place;
- video recording, which Google recommends when it is offered;
- postcard: a five digit code arrives by post, usually within 14 days, and expires after 30 days.
With the postcard, do not change the name, address or category while you wait, and do not request a new code: the code you receive would be cancelled. Google also notes that reviewing a verification can take up to five business days, sometimes longer.
5. Share access before you need to
This is the step nonprofits forget most often, and the one that keeps you from losing the profile when a volunteer leaves. A profile can have several owners and managers, but only one primary owner. An owner can add or remove users and delete the profile; a manager can do almost everything except manage users and delete the profile. You add someone from the profile settings, under People and access, using their email address; each user needs their own Google Account (manage owners and managers, Google).
In practice: give a second owner role to a board member. To step down as primary owner, you first have to transfer that role to someone else, so it helps if that person is already on the profile.
Keeping the profile alive
A profile created and then forgotten ends up showing wrong hours or an old phone number. A few habits are enough:
- update the hours as soon as they change, holidays and one-off drop-in sessions included;
- post events (open general meeting, open day, collection drive) as updates;
- reply to reviews, negative ones included, as Google recommends (tips to get more reviews, Google);
- check the profile now and then: Google gathers information from various sources, including user reports, and may change a profile based on them (understand Google updates to your Business Profile).
The profile does not replace a website: it gives the essentials at a glance (where, when, how to reach you) and points to your website for the rest. The two work together.