Once you remove your business from Google, you can no longer see the business directly on Google Maps or through Google search. But, it will stay in Google’s database and may show up in their index.
You can remove your business from your Google Business Profile but cannot delete the listing permanently. If your business is closed permanently, you can mark it as permanently closed from your account. If you are no longer the owner of this business, you can also transfer the ownership instead of deleting it.
How to Remove a Business From Google?
Through Google Maps, anyone can remove a business from Google. You do not need to be the owner of the business to remove it. You can follow these steps to do so.
- Go to Google Maps.
- Search for the business you want to delete.
- From the left panel, click on Suggest an edit.
- Click on Close or remove.
- Choose a reason for editing from the list of options and click on Submit.
- Google will delete the business after a review. Please note that you might get a follow-up email.
You can remove multiple businesses from your Google Business Profile at once. You can follow these steps to do so.
- Sign in to your account on Google Business Profile.
- Select all the profiles that you want to remove.
- Click on Actions on the right side.
- Go to Remove businesses > Remove.
Other Alternatives
If deleting your listing is not the right choice for you, there are several other things you can do instead. These include transferring ownership and marking it as permanently closed.
Transfer Ownership
To transfer ownership, the new owner has to have managed the business profile as the Owner for 7 days first. Only the primary owner can transfer ownership. Then, you can follow these steps.
- Sign in to your Google Business Profile.
- Click on the three vertical dots and go to Business Profile settings.
- Click on Managers and choose the new owner.
- Click on the pencil icon beside Access.
- Select Primary owner.
- Click Save.
If the new owner is not already in your profile, you can add them first by following these steps.
- Sign in to your Google Business Profile.
- Go to the three vertical dots and click on Business Profile settings.
- Go to Managers and click on Add users on the top right.
- Type in their Email address and under Access and select Owner.
- Press Invite.
Mark Business as Closed
You can also mark your business as temporarily or permanently closed. Please note that this will not remove your listing and people will still be able to see it on Google Maps. It will also show up in Google Search.
Follow these steps to mark your business as permanently or temporarily closed.
- Sign in to your account on Google Business Profile.
- Click on Edit Profile to open the Business information dialogue box.
- Click on Hours.
- Click on the pencil icon and select Temporarily closed or Permanently closed.
- Press Save.