Google Maps Now Puts a Message Button Next to Call
If you've set up chat on your Google Business Profile, customers can now reach you from one of the most visible spots on your Google Maps listing: a Message button right next to Call.
What changed
Google announced the change in its monthly Small Business Bulletin, posted on November 5 in the Google Business Profile Community by Lisa Landsman (Search Engine Journal describes her as Google's Head of Industry Engagement & SMB Success). In her words:
"We've expanded the feature so customers on both Android and iOS can now find a prominent Message button right next to "Call" on your Google Maps listing. Previously, finding chat on Maps required scrolling deep down into your profile."
According to the bulletin, the button now shows up in three places: on your profile, in the expanded header, and in the bottom action bar. Google says tapping it routes customers "straight to where you already handle business; including WhatsApp and SMS/Text." In practice, that's the chat channel you've set up on your profile.
Google pitches this as a way to catch leads you'd otherwise miss, for example when you're with a client or out on a job and can't pick up the phone.
The catch: a top button that nobody answers
As we read the bulletin and Google's help page, the button doesn't give you a new inbox. It sends chats to whatever phone number or WhatsApp link is in your profile's Chat setting. If that's an old phone, a line no one checks, or a WhatsApp account nobody watches, you now have an unanswered contact option sitting at the very top of your listing.
A few details from Google's chat help page are worth knowing:
- Chat is only for claimed and verified profiles.
- It's "currently available for select regions," so you may not see the option at all. Google doesn't list which regions.
- You can pick WhatsApp or text message. If you add both, customers only see the text message option.
What to do
- Check your Chat setting. In your Business Profile, go to Edit profile, then Contact, and look at the Chat field. Make sure the WhatsApp link or phone number is current.
- Pick one channel on purpose. If you'd rather get WhatsApp messages, remove the text number, since text always wins when both are set.
- Decide who answers, and how fast. Treat messages like missed calls. Google doesn't set a reply time; our suggestion is to answer the same day.
- Look at your listing like a customer. Open Google Maps on your phone, find your business, and tap Message to see where it goes.
- Watch your chat numbers. Google's help page points to chat metrics in your Business Profile performance report, so you can see whether the new placement brings in more conversations.
Why it matters for your Maps visibility
Google keeps adding ways for customers to contact you without leaving Maps. Being easy to reach doesn't help much if you don't show up in the map pack to begin with. If you'd like to see where your business ranks in your area and what's holding it back, run a free check at localocare.com/check.
Sources: Google Small Business Bulletin, Google Business Profile Community, November 5, 2026, Search Engine Roundtable, Search Engine Journal, Google Business Profile Help: Chat with customers.