Blue Tick on Google Business Profile: What “Google Verified” Really Means

Plenty of business owners search for how to get the blue tick on Google, usually after spotting a check mark next to another business or on their own profile. The short answer: a standard Business Profile doesn't come with a public badge, even after you verify it. Several different things get called “Google verified”, and they're easy to mix up. Here's what each one is and which ones you can actually get.

Four things people mean by “Google verified”

Does a verified Google Business Profile get a blue tick?

No. Once your profile is verified, customers see a normal listing. There's no public badge that separates verified businesses from unverified ones. What changes is behind the scenes: your profile can appear on Search and Maps, and you can edit it, reply to reviews, add photos and see how customers find you.

When you're signed in and search for your own business, Google shows your profile with management options and a note that you manage it, often next to a check mark. That view is only for owners and managers. Customers don't see it.

The one public clue works the other way round. Unclaimed listings show a link such as “Own this business?” or “Claim this business”. If your listing doesn't show one, it has been claimed, hopefully by you.

How to check if your Google Business Profile is verified

• Sign in with the Google account you manage the business from and search your business name on Google. If you see your profile's management options and no prompt to verify, you're verified.
• Open Business Profile Manager. Each business shows its status there: verified, waiting for review, or needing verification.
• A “Get verified” or “Verify now” button means verification isn't finished.
• If the business is on Google Maps but you can't see it in your account, someone else may have claimed it. You can request access from the listing itself.

According to Google's verification help page, its review can take up to five business days after you submit your code, video or other proof.

How to get your business verified on Google

Verification is free. The methods Google offers depend on your business type, location and history:

• Video: record your location, your equipment or stock, and proof that you manage the business, or do a live video call with Google.
• Phone or text: Google sends a code to your business number, usually within minutes.
• Email: a code sent to your business email, where it's offered.
• Postcard: a five-digit code by post. Most arrive within 14 days, and codes expire after 30 days.
• Instant verification: available to some businesses that have already verified their website in Google Search Console.

Google will never ask you for your verification code, and it doesn't charge for verification. If someone calls offering to verify your Google listing for a fee, it isn't Google. For the full walkthrough, including what to film for video verification and how to fix a failed attempt, read how to verify your Google Business Profile.

Do you need to verify your business with Google?

If you want customers to see accurate information, yes. Verification is what lets you manage the listing. A new profile generally won't go live until it's verified, and Google's own tips for improving local ranking put verifying your business first.

Listings that Google creates from public information can show up without an owner, but you can't control them. Anyone can suggest changes, including wrong hours or an old phone number, and you can't reply to reviews.

The Google Verified badge, which replaced Google Guaranteed

The badge customers do see belongs to Local Services Ads: the pay-per-lead ads shown at the top of searches for services like plumbing, cleaning and legal help, in countries where the program runs.

In October 2025, Google replaced its older Local Services badges (Google Guaranteed, Google Screened and License Verified by Google) with a single Google Verified badge, as it had announced in August 2025. The Money Back Guarantee that came with Google Guaranteed was discontinued.

To earn it, a business has to pass Local Services screening, which varies by category and country and can include business registration, license and insurance checks, background checks and minimum review requirements. Google shows the badge on your Local Services Ads profile and says it may also appear on other surfaces where it helps customers.

So if you want a Google badge customers can see, Local Services Ads is the route. Keep in mind that it's advertising, you pay per lead, and it isn't available for every type of business or every location.

What about the blue tick in Gmail?

Gmail shows a blue check mark next to some senders. That's a separate system called BIMI. It needs strict email authentication (SPF, DKIM and a DMARC policy set to quarantine or reject) plus a Verified Mark Certificate, which requires a registered trademark. It has nothing to do with your Business Profile, and verifying one doesn't give you the other.

What about check marks in Google Search results?

In October 2024, Google tested blue check marks next to some well-known businesses in search results, with a note that Google's signals suggested the business was what it said it was. Google called it a small experiment, and there's no way to apply for it.

What actually earns customers' trust

Badges help, but customers mostly judge you on what's already on your profile:

• Recent reviews, each with a reply from you. See AI review replies.
• Real photos of your premises, team and work.
• Accurate hours, including holidays.
• A complete list of services and a description written for customers.
• Regular updates through Business Profile Posts.

The same things help you rank. Once you're verified, work through our 12-point optimization checklist, then see how visible you are across your area with a geo-grid scan.