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Google Business Profile

How do I suggest a correction when a Google Maps business category is wrong?

Short answer

Google's Android phone and tablet help documents this public correction flow: sign in to Google Maps, find the public place, choose Suggest an edit, use the available option for the category or attribute you need to report, follow the onscreen instructions, and select Submit. If your interface offers a category correction, use the option it shows. Add a useful photo if it can help verify the suggestion, but treat the submission as feedback for Google's decision, not as an immediate or guaranteed category replacement.

By Sergey Sulimko, Founder · 8 Google help pages, read Oct 31, 2026

What should I check before suggesting a category correction?

Confirm that the profile is a real public place you do not own or manage, and that the proposed category is supported by facts about that place. Record the exact Maps URL, the category currently shown, the date you saw it, and the public facts behind the correction so you can identify the place and check the result later.

Use the guidance on choosing the right Google Business Profile categories to test whether the proposed label describes what the business is, rather than only one product, service, or amenity. A disagreement with a competitor's positioning is not, by itself, evidence that the public category is factually wrong.

How do I submit a category correction in Google Maps?

Google's Android phone and tablet help documents this place-edit flow: search for or select the place, choose Suggest an edit, choose the available attribute or correction, make the change, and select Submit.1

  1. Sign in to Google Maps.1
  2. Search for the place or select it on the map.1
  3. In the Android phone or tablet flow documented by Google, select Suggest an edit, then use the category or attribute option shown for the correction you need. Google says the feature is available only in certain countries or regions.1
  4. Follow the onscreen instructions. If the attribute is incorrect but you do not know the correct value, Google says to choose Don't know, but this is incorrect.1
  5. Select Submit.1
Google Maps Help, read Oct 31, 2026

What evidence should I attach to a Google Maps category suggestion?

Add a useful photo when it can help Google verify the suggestion, and keep your own record of why the displayed category is factually wrong. Google says contributor photos are publicly available under the contributor's name, so do not include confidential information.1

Keep a record of Why it helps
The exact Maps profile URL, the category currently shown, and the date observed Identifies the place and the version of the information you are correcting
The proposed category and the public facts supporting it Connects the suggestion to a factual mismatch
A relevant photo or public source, when one helps Gives Google additional context without treating any item as a required upload
The submission date and any status you can see later Lets you distinguish a submitted suggestion from a visible change

Google's public edit guidance supports adding a photo to help verify a suggestion. Use a photo when it helps, and keep any other supporting material in your own record.

Will Google change the category immediately after I submit?

No. A submitted suggestion is feedback that helps Google decide whether to change place information, and Google says changes may take time to appear. Submission is not acceptance.1

Google says an edit may be rejected when it is incorrectly associated with a place. Other sources can also overwrite an approved edit or appeal, so check the place on the map later instead of treating the submission itself as proof that the category changed.2

Which Google Maps route should I use for a different problem?

Use the route that matches the problem: owner editing for a profile you manage, removal for a nonexistent or ineligible place, and redressal for misleading or fraudulent identity information.

Your situation Use this route What the route is for
You own or manage the profile Edit profile → Business category → Edit Change a category on the Business Profile linked to your Google Account.7 Google says editing an existing category might require verification again.6
A real public place has a factually wrong category On Google's documented Android flow, Suggest an edit and the available category or attribute option1 Suggest a correction for Google to evaluate.
The business never existed or is not eligible to be on Google Suggest an edit → Place is closed or not here → the appropriate option Request removal, rather than disguising a removal request as a category correction.4
The issue is a misleading or fraudulent business name, phone number, or URL Business Redressal Complaint Form Report an identity or fraud problem through the route Google identifies for that kind of complaint.35

If you own or manage the profile, use the owner-edit workflow for your Google Business Profile, not the public correction path. If the category itself is unclear, the category-choice answer explains how Google distinguishes a business category from a product, service, or amenity.

Google Business Profile Help, read Oct 31, 2026

Will the business owner be notified about my suggestion?

Google may notify an owner about certain suggested edits to a Business Profile before they are published. If Google asks the owner to review one, the owner has 4 days to accept or reject it. This is not a promised response time for the person who submitted the suggestion.8

Common questions

Yes. Google's Android phone and tablet Maps flow lets a signed-in user suggest changes to public place information. Google directs owners and managers to the Business Profile editing flow instead.

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Sources

All read Oct 31, 2026

  1. 1
    Edit place information in Google Maps - Android phone & tabletGoogle Maps Help
  2. 2
    Maps user-generated content policyGoogle Maps
  3. 3
    Prohibited & restricted contentGoogle Maps
  4. 4
    Request removal of a Business Profile from Google Search & MapsGoogle Business Profile Help
  5. 5
    Business Redressal Complaint FormGoogle Business Profile Help
  6. 6
    Manage your business categoryGoogle Business Profile Help
  7. 7
    Edit your Business ProfileGoogle Business Profile Help
  8. 8
    Understand Google updates on your Business ProfileGoogle Business Profile Help
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