How to Report Fake Business Listings on Google Maps
You search for your own trade in your own town and see it: "Best 24/7 Emergency Plumber Downtown" with a pin on a quiet residential street, a phone number that goes to a call center, and twenty five-star reviews posted in the same week. You've never heard of them. Customers who would have called you are calling them.
Fake and spammy listings are one of the most frustrating parts of Google Maps for honest local businesses, and Google knows it. In April 2026, reporting on 2025, Google said it removed over 13 million fake Business Profiles and blocked 79 million inaccurate or unverified edits during that year (Google, "New ways we're protecting businesses on Maps"). In the same post, Google said its community suggested 80 million updates to business hours, contact information and more in 2025.
Google also gives anyone a way to report a listing, and that's where you come in. This guide walks through what counts as a fake or rule-breaking listing, which of Google's reporting routes to use for each problem, and how to make a report that a reviewer can actually act on.
First, what counts as "fake"?
Not every annoying competitor is breaking the rules. Google removes listings that violate its guidelines for representing your business on Google, not listings that are simply ranking above you. It's worth knowing the rules so you report the right thing.
Here are the most common problems, all taken straight from those guidelines:
- No real location. A Business Profile must be for an actual, real-world location. Google says a virtual office (a rented mailing address the business doesn't operate from) isn't eligible, P.O. boxes at remote locations aren't acceptable, and a co-working desk only counts if it has clear signage, receives customers and is staffed during business hours.
- Keyword-stuffed names. The name must match the business's real-world name as used on its storefront, website and stationery. Google explicitly bans marketing taglines, service or product information, location information, phone numbers and opening hours in the name. Google warns that unnecessary information in the name could get a profile suspended. "Smith Plumbing" is fine; "Smith Plumbing – Emergency Drain Cleaning Downtown 24/7" isn't.
- Duplicate profiles. Google says there should be only one profile per business and you shouldn't create more than one page for each location, in one account or several.
- Phone numbers and websites that don't belong to the business. Numbers and URLs mustn't redirect people to a different business or landing page, and the phone number must be under the business's direct control. This is the classic lead-generation trick: one call center running dozens of "local" listings.
- Service-area cheats. A business that serves customers at their location without a storefront gets one service-area profile, not a separate profile for every nearby town.
If a listing breaks one of these, it's reportable. If it just has more reviews than you, it isn't, and reporting it won't help.
Route 1: "Suggest an edit" for listings that shouldn't exist
For a place that is fake, closed, or clearly misleading, Google's own instructions (Report a business on Google Maps) are:
- Open Google Maps.
- Search for the business or select it on the map.
- Select Suggest an edit, then Place is closed or not here.
- Select Offensive, harmful, or misleading and submit.
Google's removal request page lists "Doesn't exist here" as another option in the same menu. Use that one when you've checked the address and there's simply no business there. You need to be signed in to your Google Account to request a removal. Google says you might get a status email with follow-up questions, and if the request is approved the business is removed from Search and Maps.
This route is quick, but Google's steps include no place to explain the problem or add evidence. In our experience it suits obvious cases best.
Route 2: suggest a correction to a stuffed name or wrong details
Sometimes the business is real but its listing is dressed up. The most common example is a real company that has added keywords to its name. For that, use Suggest an edit and change the details to what's actually true, such as the name on the real sign. Google's help page separates this from conduct reports: for incorrect information that isn't about policy violations, you suggest an edit to the business info.
Our tip: be accurate rather than punishing. Suggest the name exactly as it appears on the storefront or the company's own website, since that is the name Google's guidelines ask for. A neutral, checkable correction is easier for Google to accept than an edit that reads like it comes from a rival.
Route 3: the Business Redressal Complaint form for fraud
When a listing's name, phone number or website looks like it's being used to mislead customers, Google points you to the Business Redressal Complaint form. In the words of its Maps help page: "If you find misleading business names, phone numbers, or business URLs on Maps that raise suspicion of fraudulent activity, fill out the Business Redressal Complaint form."
This is the route to use for:
- Networks of near-identical listings run by one lead-generation operation.
- A listing impersonating your business, for example using your name with someone else's phone number.
- Fake locations that "Suggest an edit" hasn't removed. The form's list of problem types includes "Address" and "This business doesn't exist".
The form itself sets limits. It says complaints that aren't about fraudulent activity on a business's name, phone number or URL can't be reviewed, and that you shouldn't use it to simply correct a wrong name, number or URL (use Suggest an edit for that).
Google's help page also says you can report multiple businesses at once by uploading 10 or more profiles or a spreadsheet with all URLs, and the form recommends submitting 10 to 100 URLs at a time. If you've found a cluster of fake locksmiths or fake garage-door companies in your area, put them all in one spreadsheet rather than filing twenty separate reports.
How to build a report that gets read
The form asks you to "explain in detail" why the content is malicious and to "quote the exact content" from the listing. It also says incomplete complaints won't be processed. Make your explanation easy to check:
- Copy the exact Google Maps URL of each listing. The form only accepts URLs that start with https://www.google.com/maps.
- Quote the exact content you're reporting, such as the name or phone number as it appears on the listing.
- Say which rule it breaks in plain language: "This address is a private house with no business signage," or "The phone number on all six listings rings the same call center."
- Describe your evidence. The form's only file upload is for the list of URLs, so put the facts in your explanation: what you saw at the address, what the company's real signage or website says, and what happened when you called the number (what name the person answered with, and whether the same person answers for several "different" businesses). Keep your photos and screenshots in case Google follows up.
- Stick to facts. Leave out guesses about motives and complaints about your own lost business. A reviewer needs to verify the violation quickly.
Route 4: report a business that buys or pressures reviews
Fake listings often come with fake reviews. Google says reviews posted in exchange for payment, a deal, or a discount are prohibited. If a business offers incentives or pressures people to leave reviews, you can report the business's conduct:
- Open the Google Maps app and search for the business.
- On the business's listing, tap Suggest an edit.
- At the bottom of the "Suggest an edit" page, tap Report business conduct.
To report one individual review rather than the business's behavior, flag that review directly. We cover that in detail in How to Report Fake Google Reviews.
What happens after you report
Be prepared for silence. Google doesn't publish a review timeline. The redressal form says plainly that Google can't guarantee any action and that "you will not be updated on its status." A removal request through Suggest an edit might bring a status email, but not always. A few practical habits help:
- Keep a simple log. Note the date, the listing URL, which route you used and what evidence you sent. If the listing is still there a few weeks later, you have everything ready to escalate through the redressal form.
- Don't keep resubmitting the same quick report. If a "Suggest an edit" report didn't work and the problem is a fraudulent name, phone number or website, switch to the redressal form, where you can explain.
- Check whether the listing really changed. Sometimes Google fixes the name or removes the phone number instead of removing the whole profile. That still counts as a win.
Google is also adding its own protections. In April 2026, Google said that when it sees a sudden spike in spam reviews it will remove the fake content, pause new reviews on the profile, alert the owner, and show a banner explaining why contributions are paused. It is also rolling out email alerts so verified owners can review important edits to their profiles before they go live (Google). A year earlier, Google said that in 2024 it removed over 10,000 listings run by a group impersonating real locksmiths, and filed a lawsuit against them (Google, April 2025).
Protect your own listing while you're at it
The flip side of reporting others is making sure your own profile can't be mistaken for spam, or taken over:
- Claim and verify your profile. Unclaimed profiles are what impersonators look for. In the locksmith case, Google said the scammers took over unclaimed Business Profiles.
- Use your real-world name, with no keywords, even if competitors get away with them for a while. A stuffed name is a suspension risk for you too.
- Keep one profile per location, and remove duplicates you may have created years ago.
- Use a phone number and website you control, and the right categories for what your business is.
- Watch for unexpected edits. If your hours, phone number or category change without you doing it, fix it immediately.
Does reporting fake listings actually help you rank?
Indirectly, yes. Every fake listing removed from your area is one less result competing with you for the same searches and calls. But reporting is only half the job. Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity (the same page calls the last factor prominence and links it to reviews and links from other websites), so the businesses that win long term are the ones with complete, accurate profiles and a steady flow of genuine reviews. Our guide to getting more Google reviews within the rules is a good next step.
If you want to see who is actually outranking you, run a free Google Maps ranking check. It searches from 25 points around your business and shows where you appear, the top 3 places Google shows instead (with their rating and review count) and your top 3 fixes. If one of those top 3 looks fake, you'll know which listing to look at first, and if not, the problem is somewhere else.
Frequently asked questions
How do I report a fake business on Google Maps?
Open the listing in Google Maps, select Suggest an edit, then Place is closed or not here, and choose the option that fits, such as Doesn't exist here or Offensive, harmful, or misleading. For fake names, phone numbers or websites that look fraudulent, use Google's Business Redressal Complaint form instead.
What is the Business Redressal Complaint form?
It's Google's form for reporting misleading business names, phone numbers or website URLs on Maps that suggest fraud. Google's help page says you can report several businesses at once by uploading 10 or more profiles or a spreadsheet of URLs, and the form recommends 10 to 100 URLs at a time. It isn't for simple corrections.
Can I report a competitor that stuffs keywords into its business name?
Yes. Google's guidelines say a business name must match its real-world name and must not include marketing taglines, service information or location information. You can suggest an edit to the name. If the name looks designed to mislead customers rather than just being wrong, use the redressal form and describe your evidence, such as the name on the real signage.
How long does Google take to remove a fake listing?
Google doesn't publish a timeline. After a removal request through Suggest an edit you might receive a status email with follow-up questions, and if the request is approved the listing is removed from Search and Maps. The Business Redressal Complaint form says you won't be updated on the status of your complaint.
Will reporting fake listings improve my ranking?
It can help indirectly. A fake listing that disappears no longer competes with you in the local results, but Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity (its help page calls the last one prominence), so reporting is no substitute for a complete, accurate profile of your own.