Should You Put Your Home Address on Google Maps? A UK Sole Trader Guide
If you work from home or go to the customer — a mobile dog groomer in Leeds, a plumber covering Bristol postcodes, or another home-based sole trader — you may not want your home address on Google Maps. You do not have to publish it. You can still have a Google Business Profile, hide the address, and list the service area you actually cover. Once that is set up safely, use the free Google Maps guide for the 30-day plan.
Can you show up on Google Maps if you work from home?
Yes. If you travel to the customer and do not serve people at your house, Google treats you as a service-area business. Google’s help pages currently say you can choose not to show your address, and list your service area instead.
Customers then see the area you cover, not your street and house number. Google’s service-business overview currently says that once the profile is completed and verified, people can still find you on Search and Maps when they look for your type of business. You still enter a real address for Google; you simply turn off the setting that shows it to customers.
When to hide your address, and when you must show it
Hide your address when you go to the customer and nobody visits you to buy or book. Google’s guidelines currently use a plumber who runs the business from a residential address as the example, and say the address should be cleared from the public profile.
Show your address when customers come to you. Google’s guidelines currently say businesses that show an address should have permanent, fixed signage of the business name there.
If you do both — customers visit you and you also travel to them — Google calls this a hybrid business. You can show the address and add a service area if the location is staffed, can receive customers during your listed hours, and has permanent signage. Without that signage, Google currently says you should list as a service-area business instead.
Do not use a PO box, a remote mailbox, or a virtual office you do not actually work from. Google’s guidelines currently say those are not acceptable. A co-working desk is only allowed if it has clear signage, receives customers, and is staffed by your own staff during opening hours.
How to set your service area (towns and postcodes you actually cover)
The service area is the honest list of places you will go. Google’s help pages currently say you can set up to 20 service areas, based on the cities, postcodes or other areas you serve. You cannot set it as a radius around your base any more; Google currently says you must use named towns, postcodes or areas.
Be specific. A plumber who covers central and south Bristol might list the postcodes they actually take, such as BS1 to BS5 — not the whole of the South West. Google currently says the overall area should not be more than about two hours’ driving time from where the business is based, and that approved edits may take up to 48 hours to show.
Google also currently says a service-area business should have only one profile for the whole area it serves, not a separate listing for each town.
According to Google’s current help, add the area under Edit profile, then Location, then Edit next to “Service area”. To hide the address, in the same Location section select Edit next to “Business location”, turn off “Show business address to customers”, and save. If you forget to add a service area, Google currently says a local area is chosen for you, so add your real area yourself.
How to verify the listing without putting your house on the map
Hiding the address hides it from customers. Google still needs a real-world address to verify that the business exists.
Google currently says the method is chosen automatically and cannot be changed by you. Options can include video, a postcard, phone or text, email, or a live video call, depending on your business type, public information, region or opening hours.
If video verification is offered, Google currently recommends it. For a service-area business, Google’s video help currently asks for one unedited recording of at least 30 seconds, filmed live on a phone through the Business Profile. Show neighbourhood landmarks, your tools or workspace, and proof you manage the business, such as a branded van or a matching invoice. Do not film bank, tax or ID numbers, or other people’s faces. Google currently says you can delete the video at any time, and that reviews take up to five working days.
If Google offers a postcard, it is sent to the address you entered, which customers still will not see if you have hidden it. Google currently says most codes arrive within 14 days and expire after 30 days, and that changing the name, address or category while you wait can invalidate the code.
You do not need a shop front to verify. You do need to follow the method Google actually offers, and to use a real address, not a PO box or unused virtual office.
Use ChatGPT to write the description, services and first posts
Once the address and service area are right, finish the words on the profile. ChatGPT can draft a plain description, a services list and a few short posts. Check every line against what you actually do, and against Google’s rules — for example, the description should not include links or sales offers.
For a fuller walkthrough of profile copy, use How to Write Your Google Business Profile Using ChatGPT.
You are helping a UK sole trader write Google Business Profile content that is accurate and easy to read.
My business: [what you do, in plain words]
Where I am based: [town or area — do not invent a shop if I work from home]
I do / do not serve customers at my address: [yes/no]
Service area I actually cover: [towns and postcodes I will travel to]
Services I actually offer: [list only real services]
Typical hours, including bank holidays if relevant: [hours]
What customers usually ask: [2–4 real questions]
What I want people to do: [call, WhatsApp, visit the website]
Write, in UK English:
1. A business description under 750 characters. Mention what I do and the area I cover. No links, no prices, no exaggerated claims, no keywords stuffed in.
2. A simple list of services, named the way customers search for them.
3. Four short Google posts (one a week) I could publish from my phone, each with a photo idea I can take myself.
Use only the facts I gave you. If something is missing, ask me rather than inventing it.
Paste the result into the profile yourself, and change any sentence that is not true.
What to do next so you actually get found
Next, work through the free Google Maps guide, a 30-day plan for finishing the profile. For ranking steps after that, see How to Rank in Google Maps 3-Pack Using AI. For reviews, use How to Get More Google Reviews.
If you are a sole trader doing the admin yourself, AI for Sole Traders UK covers other time-saving uses of AI. For a wider guide to briefing AI, the ebook AI Frustrated to Fluent is £19.97: buy it here.
Frequently asked questions
Should a UK sole trader put their home address on Google Maps?
Only if customers actually visit you there. If you go to them, do not put your home address on the public Google Maps listing. Hide it, list your real service area, and enter the real address for Google with “Show business address to customers” turned off.
Can I be on Google Maps if I work from home?
Yes. After the profile is completed and verified, a home-based service business can appear in local Search and Maps results. Customers see your service area rather than your street address if you have hidden it. Hiding the address does not, by itself, prevent the listing from showing.
How do I hide my address on a Google Business Profile?
Open the Business Profile, select Edit profile, then Location, then Edit next to “Business location”. Turn off “Show business address to customers”, save, and add your service area in the same section. Only do this if you do not serve customers at that address.
What is a service-area business, and how many areas can I list?
It is a business that visits or delivers to customers and does not serve them at its own address. Google’s help pages currently say you can list up to 20 service areas, as cities, postcodes or other areas, and that you should have one profile for the whole area.
Will hiding my address stop me appearing in the local results?
Not by itself. Google currently says the profile then shows your service area, and that customers can still find a completed, verified service-area profile on Search and Maps. It does not guarantee a particular position. Ranking still depends on relevance, distance and reviews.
Can I use a PO box or a virtual office as my Google address?
No. Google’s guidelines currently say PO boxes, remote mailboxes, and a virtual office you rent but do not operate from are not eligible. Use your real address and hide it from customers if they do not visit, rather than substituting a mailbox or unused office.
How does Google verify a business that has no shop front?
Google currently chooses the method and you cannot pick a different one. Service-area businesses are often offered video verification; a postcard, phone, text, email or live video call may also be offered. You do not need a shop front, but you must use a real address and follow the method Google actually offers.
