What is a Google Business Profile location ID, and how is it different from a Google Maps Place ID?

What does a Google Business Profile location ID look like?

A Business Profile location ID is the identifier segment inside a Location.name value such as locations/123456789. Google documents that resource name as the API identifier for the location.

Google’s Business Profile APIs manage business location information through separate API endpoints. The Location.name field in the Business Information API uses the form locations/{locationId}. The location ID is therefore the part after locations/, while the full resource name is the value an API client carries when it addresses the location.

This is a Business Profile API identifier. It is not the Place ID used by Maps and Places requests, and it is not the optional Business Profile store code used in an account’s records.

How do I get a Google Business Profile location ID?

An authorized client gets a location ID by listing locations under a Business Profile account and reading the name field of the returned Location resource. The list method requires the business.manage OAuth scope, an account resource as parent, and a readMask.

The documented retrieval path is:

1. Create a Google Cloud project, request access to the Business Profile APIs, and enable the APIs after Google approves the request. Google’s API prerequisites say applicants must manage a verified, active Business Profile for 60+ days, have a website representing that business on the profile, and apply with an email listed as an owner or manager.
2. Authorize the application with the business.manage OAuth scope.
3. Call the Business Information API’s locations list method under the account that should supply the locations:

   GET mybusinessbusinessinformation.googleapis.com/v1/{parent=accounts/*}/locations

The request body is empty. Pass the required readMask as a query parameter, such as readMask=name,title.
4. Read each returned locations[].name. A value such as locations/123456789 contains the location ID after the slash.

Google’s accounts.locations.list documentation says a PERSONAL account returns locations directly owned by that account. Other account types return locations accessible directly or indirectly from the account. The response can include a nextPageToken; the default page size is 10 and the maximum is 100, so a multi-location account may require more than one request.

How is a Place ID different from a Business Profile location ID?

A Business Profile location ID identifies a location resource in the Business Profile API, while a Place ID identifies a place in Google’s Places database and on Google Maps. They belong to different Google services and are retrieved through different workflows.

Google’s Place ID documentation says a Place ID is a textual identifier accepted by Maps Platform APIs. In the current Text Search example, the response returns it in id; the legacy Place Search example uses place_id. That retrieval path does not return the Business Profile API locations/{locationId} resource.

Can I use a Place ID to manage my Business Profile?

No. A Place ID can identify a place for Maps and Places operations, but it does not identify the authorized Business Profile API resource or grant owner or manager access.

This boundary follows from Google’s separate definitions and workflows. The Business Profile API lists locations under an authorized account, while Google’s owner and manager guidance describes ownership and management as user roles. A profile can have multiple owners but only one primary owner, and managers have a different set of permissions. A Place ID is not a replacement for either the API location resource or a user’s access role.

If an application needs to update Business Profile information, it must work from the account-scoped location resource and the required authorization. If it only needs place details, it can use the Place ID workflow without treating that value as a management credential.

What is a store code compared with a location ID?

A store code is an optional external label chosen for the account owner’s records. A location ID is Google’s API resource identifier. A store code may be a place name or random number, while the location ID comes from the Location.name resource.

Google’s store-code guidance says each location in a spreadsheet import needs a unique store code, and the code should stay stable when it refers to that location. Changing an existing location’s store code through a bulk spreadsheet can create a duplicate location. The Business Profile store code answer covers those spreadsheet rules. Neither a store code nor a Place ID should be substituted for the API resource name when an authorized client needs to address a Business Profile location.

Can a Google Maps Place ID change?

Yes. Google says Place IDs may change when the Google Maps database is updated, and recommends refreshing stored Place IDs that are more than 12 months old.

Google’s Place ID documentation describes a refresh method that asks only for the place ID field in a Place Details request. The recommendation applies to stored Place IDs, not to the 60+ day Business Profile age requirement for API access and not to the lifetime of a Business Profile location resource. Keep the two kinds of identifier separate in stored records, and refresh older Place IDs when a Maps workflow depends on them.

Which identifier should I use in my workflow?

Use the identifier that matches the system you are addressing: the Business Profile location ID for authorized profile API work, the Place ID for Maps or Places requests, the store code for your own spreadsheet records, and owner or manager roles for access control.

The practical choice is:

• Use locations/{locationId} when an authorized Business Profile API request must address a profile location.
• Use a Place ID when a Maps Platform request needs to identify a place.
• Use a store code when an account’s spreadsheet or offline record needs its own stable label.
• Use Business Profile owner or manager access when the question is who can manage the profile.

The identifiers can describe the same real-world business, but they do not carry the same permissions, namespace, or lifecycle. Keeping them in separate fields prevents a Maps lookup value from being mistaken for a Business Profile management ID.