Duplicate Google Business Listings: How to Find and Fix Them

A duplicate Google Business Profile happens when more than one listing exists for the same business at the same location. Duplicates can split your reviews, show conflicting information, and make it harder for customers to trust what they see. They are fairly common and usually fixable.

How duplicates happen

• You created a new profile without realizing an old one existed
• A previous owner, employee, or agency set up a listing
• Google or a data source created a listing automatically
• You moved, renamed, or rebranded, and the old profile stayed
• Multiple practitioners or departments each created their own profile in the same building
• Someone else suggested a new place that Google accepted

How to find them

1. Search for your business name, address, and phone number on Google and Maps, in various forms, including old names and old addresses.
2. Search your phone number alone.
3. Check Google Business Profile accounts you or colleagues use, in case several exist.
4. Look at Maps near your location for similar entries.

Not everything that looks like a duplicate is one. Separate businesses in the same building, or distinct practitioners with their own profiles, can be legitimate, depending on the rules for your category.

Fixing duplicates you control

If you manage both profiles:

• Decide which profile has the best history, reviews, and information. Usually, that is the one you keep.
• Follow Google's current process for merging or removing duplicates in your Business Profile Manager, if available for your situation.
• Otherwise, mark the extra profile as closed or request removal as a duplicate.

Check Google's help pages for the current steps, because options change.

Fixing duplicates you do not control

If you cannot access the other listing, you can usually suggest an edit on that listing, marking it as a duplicate or closed, or report the problem through Google's support channels. Provide clear evidence such as your business registration or the details that show it is the same business. Be patient, as changes can take days or longer.

Do not do this

• Do not create a new profile to get around a problem with an old one
• Do not create fake or extra listings to occupy more space in results. This violates Google's guidelines and can lead to suspension
• Do not use virtual offices or shared addresses to claim locations you do not occupy

Prevent duplicates

1. Keep one master record of your business details and who has access
2. Search before creating a new listing
3. Update, don't recreate, when you move or rebrand
4. Remove or update access when people leave
5. Keep details consistent everywhere. See NAP consistency
6. Check other platforms for duplicates too. See Apple Maps and Bing Places and which online directories matter

Why it matters

Duplicate listings can split your reviews and send customers to old addresses or phone numbers. Clean data helps customers and supports your local rankings. See the local SEO checklist and how to set up Google Business Profile.

The bottom line

Find duplicates, keep the strongest profile, and remove or merge the rest through Google's official routes. Avoid creating extra listings, and keep your details consistent.