Google Business Profile management costs

Key takeaways

Google Business Profile management cost is indicatively £150–£500 a month for a UK business with one location, based on 2 to 5 hours of posts, photos, review replies and upkeep. It is usually sold as an add-on to social media management, and for local firms it is among the best-value items in a plan.

• £150–£500 a month is the indicative fee for managing one profile.
• That covers 2 to 5 hours of posts, photos and review replies.
• The profile itself is free; you pay only for upkeep.
• A small business can run it in-house in about 30 minutes a week.

What is Google Business Profile management?

Google Business Profile management is the regular upkeep of a business's free listing on Google Search and Maps: accurate hours and services, new photos, posts and offers, answers to questions and replies to reviews. It affects how you appear when local customers search.

• Social media agency pricing in the UK
• Using Google Business Profile posts alongside social media

How much does profile management cost?

Upkeep takes about 2 to 5 hours a month for one location. At the £75–£100 an hour implied by typical UK retainers, that is about £150–£500. Posts can reuse social content, so the cost is lower when it is added to an existing plan. These are indicative figures, not a GBL price list.

• One location, weekly post and review replies: indicative £150–£300.
• Busy profile with many reviews and questions: indicative £300–£500.
• Extra locations: priced per location.
• One-off clean-up and verification help: a small project.

Why are reviews the most valuable part?

Reviews influence both ranking and choice. Google says review count and score are among the factors in local ranking, and buyers read replies as well as reviews. Reviews must be genuine. Fake reviews, and incentivised reviews that hide the incentive, are banned under UK consumer law.

• How to respond to negative comments and reviews

Should the profile come before social media?

For most local businesses, yes. People searching for a service near them are ready to buy, while people scrolling a feed are not. Get the profile accurate and active first, then add social channels to stay in mind between purchases.

• Google Business Profile vs social media: what comes first?

What should a quote state?

A quote should state posts per month, how photos are supplied, review reply times, who answers customer questions and how many locations are covered. Check that your business remains the primary owner of the profile and the agency is added as a manager.

• Posts and photo updates per month.
• Review replies and response time.
• Questions and messages handled.
• Locations covered.
• Ownership: you as primary owner.

When should you manage it yourself?

Manage it yourself when you have one location and 30 minutes a week. Add a photo, post an update and answer new reviews. Pay for management when you have several locations, a high volume of reviews, or a history of the profile being neglected.

• Multi-location social media management costs

What does a one-off profile clean-up include?

If the profile has been neglected, a one-off clean-up comes before monthly upkeep. It takes two to four hours and brings the listing up to date: correct categories, services, hours and service areas, fresh photos, answered questions and replies to old reviews. After that, upkeep is light.

• Categories, services and service areas corrected.
• Opening hours and contact details checked.
• Ten or more current photos added.
• Outstanding reviews and questions answered.

What does this look like in practice?

A pattern we see with UK trades and clinics: the profile has the wrong hours, three old photos and unanswered reviews. Correcting details, adding real job photos monthly and replying to every review is low-cost work that local buyers notice straight away.

• See client work
• Social Media Marketing for UK businesses

Profile management checklist

Run through these each month.

• Check hours, services and contact details.
• Add new photos of real work.
• Publish at least one update.
• Reply to every new review.
• Answer open customer questions.

Next step

Send us a link to your Google listing. We will tell you what needs fixing and whether it is worth paying for upkeep.