How to add your business to Google Maps in Nigeria (2026)

First: is your business eligible?

Google only lists businesses that meet customers in person. That includes shops and offices customers visit, and service businesses that go to customers, such as caterers, cleaners and mobile mechanics. A business that only sells online, with no face to face contact, is not eligible, even if it is well known on Instagram or WhatsApp. See Google’s guidelines.

Step 1: Check if your business is already on Google

Search your business name and area on Google Maps. Customers sometimes add a business themselves. If you find it, use "Claim this business" instead of creating a new one, so you do not end up with two listings.

Step 2: Create your Business Profile

• Go to business.google.com and sign in with the Google account you want to manage the business from
• Type your business name. Use your real trading name, without extra keywords like "Best Salon Lagos"
• Pick the category that best describes what you do, for example "Hair salon" or "Dental clinic". You can add more later
• Choose whether customers visit you, you visit them, or both

Adding keywords to your name to rank higher breaks Google’s rules and can get the listing suspended. The category does that job instead.

Step 3: Add your address or service area

If customers come to you, enter your real address accurately in Google’s address fields and drag the pin to your exact entrance. Do not change the address to add a landmark. Put directions such as "opposite First Bank" in your description or photos instead.

If you deliver or visit customers, for example a cleaner, caterer or mobile mechanic, choose a service area instead and hide your address. List the areas you cover, such as Lekki, Ajah and Victoria Island.

Step 4: Verify your business (usually by video)

Google needs to confirm your business is real, and it decides which methods you are offered. Video verification is a common option: you record a short clip on your phone inside your Business Profile. It must be recorded live, in one continuous take, without editing. Plan it before you press record. See Google’s video verification guide.

• Show the outside of the business with the street, signboard or a nearby landmark in view
• Show the inside: your products, equipment or work area
• Show proof you manage it, such as unlocking the door, opening the till or using your equipment. Branded materials help, but a document alone does not prove the location
• Do not show sensitive details such as bank account numbers, ID numbers or tax numbers
• Use good light and steady hands

Review usually takes a few business days. If Google asks for another try, record again with clearer signage or proof. Service-area businesses can show their vehicle, tools and branded items instead of a shopfront.

Step 5: Fill in everything

• Opening hours, including Saturdays and public holidays
• Phone number and WhatsApp link (make a WhatsApp link free)
• Your website, if you have one
• Services or products, with short plain descriptions
• Real photos of the front, inside, products, team and your work. Google does not require a number, but a good set helps customers
• A short description of what you do and where, in plain words

How to show up higher on the map

Google says local ranking depends on relevance, distance and prominence, and that nobody can pay Google for a better local ranking. You cannot change distance, but you can improve the other two.

• Invite every genuine customer to leave an honest review, not only the happy ones. Never offer gifts or discounts for reviews. Reply to every review A free review QR code poster at your till makes it one scan.
• Keep your name, address and phone number accurate and consistent on your website, Instagram, WhatsApp and directories
• Keep the profile complete and active with fresh photos and updates. Posts are not a confirmed ranking factor, but they help customers
• Have a website page for each main service and area, linked from your profile
• Get listed on Nigerian directories that still work, such as BusinessList.ng, Finelib and Nigeria Galleria

Common problems and fixes

• Verification keeps failing: re-record with clearer signage, a wider shot of the street and proof that you run the business
• Listing suspended: remove keywords from the name, check the address, and appeal through the Business Profile help page
• Two listings for one business: report the duplicate from Google Maps and ask Google to merge or remove it
• Someone else controls your listing: use "Request access" on the profile, and Google will contact the current owner

When to get help

A Business Profile gets you on the map. Staying near the top takes steady work: reviews, photos, a fast website, and pages for the searches your customers use. That is what our SEO service does every month, alongside getting you named in ChatGPT and Gemini answers.