How to Keep Your Reviews and Google Profile When You Move to a New Address

Short answer: edit the address on your existing Google Business Profile and never create a new one. Reviews belong to the profile, not to the address, and Google's own help says that if you move and keep the same business name, your reviews are transferred automatically. Expect to verify the business again at the new address, and give your position on the map a few weeks to settle.

The most common mistake is the opposite: setting up a fresh profile for the new premises. The new profile starts with zero reviews, the old one keeps them all, and you end up with a duplicate that confuses both Google and your customers. Below you'll find the right order of steps, what Google asks for at re-verification, the special cases, and what to update outside Google.

The golden rule: edit the profile, don't create a new one

Your reviews, star rating, photos and the age of the profile are tied to the profile itself. Change only its address and all of that stays where it is. Google says it plainly in its help page on moving reviews between profiles: do not create a new Business Profile because of a change in physical location.

• Edit the address = you keep reviews, rating, photos and history.
• Create a new profile = you start from zero and create a duplicate.

The only real exception is opening an additional location while keeping the first one. Each physical place where you serve customers then gets its own profile. But if you close the old premises and move, you stay on the same profile.

Which situation are you in?

Two of these rows come straight from Google's rules: reviews move automatically when you keep the same business name, and for some categories (hotels, golf courses, scenic attractions) they might not be moved automatically. Google also says that a name change beyond a minor tweak can make the business count as a new one.

Before the move: get these ready

• Timing. Change the address once you actually receive customers at the new place, not weeks before. The profile should show where people can find you today.
• Access. Make sure you're an owner or manager of the profile. If a former agency or an ex-employee controls it, sort out access first, or you won't be able to edit the address.
• Permanent signage at the new place. Re-verification may be done by video, which Google recommends when it's offered. For a storefront, Google wants to see the business name on a permanent fixture (a sign, wall or window), street signs or building numbers that place you on the map, and something only staff can access, like a cash register or a storage room. More on this in our guide to what to film for video verification.
• Proof of address. Keep the lease, a utility bill or your registration documents for the new address handy, in case support asks for them.
• A clean spot on the map. Search the new address in Google Maps. If a business that has left is still listed there, report it with Suggest an edit → Place closed or not here, and pick the option that's actually true (permanently closed, or moved to a new location).
• A "before" snapshot. Save your profile link and note your current review count and rating, so you can confirm afterwards that nothing went missing.
• One change at a time. Don't plan a new name, a new category or a new phone number for the same week.

Step by step: change the address in your profile

These are the steps from Google's current help page on managing your business address:

• Sign in with the Google account that owns or manages the profile, then open your Business Profile (search your business name on Google, or open it from Google Maps).
• Select Edit profile, then Location.
• Next to "Business location", select Edit.
• Enter the full address exactly as it appears officially: street and number, building, floor or suite where they apply, then city and postal code. Leave out directions such as "across from the station".
• Check the pin. If it's off, select Adjust, move the map until the pin points to your business location, then select Done.
• Select Save.

According to Google, changes usually take about 10 minutes to show up, and in some cases up to 30 days. Edits are reviewed before they go live, so for a while the profile can still show the old details. Your reviews stay on the profile the whole time; don't delete anything and don't create another profile while you wait. There's nothing to change separately in Google Maps: it's the same profile, shown on both Search and Maps.

Re-verification: what Google will ask for

Google's help is explicit: if you move your business to a new address after it's verified, you must verify it again. The options you're offered depend on your business type, region and other factors, and can include phone or text, email, a video recording, a live video call or a postcard. When video is available, Google recommends using it.

• Video recording: one live, unedited clip with no breaks, at least 30 seconds long, recorded and uploaded from your phone through the profile.
• Postcard: most codes arrive within 14 days and expire after 30 days. While you wait, don't edit the name, address or category, and don't request a new code, or the one already in the mail stops working.
• After you submit: Google says verification reviews take up to 5 business days, and occasionally longer.

Between the old and the new location

• If you're closed for a few days during the move, set special hours or mark the business as temporarily closed instead of showing hours you won't keep. Google keeps the reviews on the profile when a business closes for a while.
• Once you're open at the new place, upload fresh photos of the entrance, the storefront and the inside, so people recognize it when they arrive. Remove your own photos of the old premises if they would send people looking for the wrong door.
• Publish an update on the profile announcing the move and the new address.
• Check your hours and phone number, then ask someone to get directions to you in Google Maps and confirm they end up at the right entrance.

What happens to your ranking after moving

Google says its local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and how well known a business is, which it calls prominence (how local ranking works). Distance is how far your business is from the person searching. Reviews feed into prominence, and Google notes that more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking.

So after a move, your reviews and history come with you, but the distance part starts over. You'll show up more for searches near the new address and less for searches near the old one. Positions can move around for a few weeks while things settle. A complete profile, consistent details across the web and fresh reviews from customers at the new location all help.

An honest warning: if someone promises you'll stay "guaranteed number one" after moving, don't believe them. Google itself says there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking.

Update the address everywhere, not just on Google

Google also looks at what the rest of the web says about you, and so do your customers. If the old address is still on your website or in directories, people turn up at the wrong place, and the mixed signals don't help your profile.

Update it everywhere, written the same way each time:

• your website: contact page, footer, embedded map, any location pages, and the address in your LocalBusiness structured data
• Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and any other social profiles
• other maps, such as Apple Maps and Bing Places
• directories, review sites and industry listings where you appear
• invoices, email signature, booking tools, delivery platforms and printed materials

Keeping your name, address and phone (NAP) identical everywhere makes it easy for Google and for customers to trust that your details are current. It's worth an hour of cleanup.

Special cases

• Service-area business (no storefront): your address is hidden from customers, but if one is stored in the profile, update it too. When a service-area business verifies by video, Google asks you to film street signs or landmarks at your business address. Then review your service areas so they match where you work from now.
• You already created a second profile: Google says that if you unintentionally created and verified a new profile because of a change in location, you can contact support to transfer the reviews from the old profile. You can also request a merge by reporting the duplicate on Google Maps (Suggest an edit → Place closed or not here → Duplicate of another place). Merge requests are reviewed; the reviews are combined, but your replies to them may be lost.
• Don't just delete a profile: when you remove a profile from your account, all its content and linked managers go with it. Know exactly which one holds the reviews before you touch anything.
• The old listing still shows at the old address: in Google Maps, use Suggest an edit → Place closed or not here → Moved to a new location, and point to the new spot on the map.
• Hotels, golf courses and tourist attractions: reviews might not be moved automatically. Check your review count after the move and contact support if they didn't come across.
• The address edit is rejected or stuck: check the status of the edit in your profile, make sure the address is complete and matches your documents, and don't keep resubmitting the same change. If it stays blocked, contact Google Business Profile support.

After the move: a quick check

• Search your business name on Google: new address, correct pin, same review count and rating as before.
• Search Google Maps around both the old and the new address for a duplicate of your business.
• A few weeks later, check your profile's performance report to see how searches, calls and direction requests develop after the move.

If you'd rather not handle all this yourself, it's the kind of job we do at MPO Web Studio, a small web studio in Cluj-Napoca. We work remotely, update your website and its structured data so they match your profile, and can build you a free demo of a new site before you pay anything. If you're moving and don't want to lose a thing, message us on WhatsApp and we'll sort it out step by step.