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How do I find the Google Business Profile ID for a location?

By Sergey Sulimko, Founder7 min read

Open the location's Business Profile, select More, choose Business Profile settings, open Advanced settings, and copy Business Profile ID. Google documents that value as the unique identifier for the listing. The API reference separately documents Location.name in the locations/{locationId} format, but neither cited source says whether the two values match or differ.12 If a workflow asks for both, record the exact value from each workflow and compare them on your own account instead of inferring a general rule. Keep storeCode, placeId, and mapsUri labelled as their own fields.

Which identifier does the next workflow need?

Use the exact field name the next person or system asks for. Google Help defines the Business Profile ID as the listing identifier, while the API documentation defines account and location resource names and the Maps documentation defines a place ID for Maps linking.1324 The cited sources do not state that the Business Profile ID and API location value are the same or different. Record each value with its source and label rather than inferring a relationship.

If the next workflow asks for Record this value What the cited Google docs establish
Google support's listing identifier Business Profile ID, copied from Advanced settings Google Help defines it as the unique identifier for the listing. It does not describe its relationship to the API location value.1
API account The exact account resource name, such as accounts/{account_id} A location resource name3
Current v1 API location The exact name returned by the API, such as locations/{locationId} The API reference defines this as the location resource name. It does not say whether it matches the Business Profile ID.2
API version that documents a full location path The exact endpoint-specific name, such as accounts/{accountId}/locations/{locationId} A v1 value that belongs to a different endpoint family5
Your own location record storeCode, when one is assigned Google documents storeCode as an optional external identifier used to organize locations within an account.12
Maps identity or link placeId and mapsUri, when returned An API account or location resource name46

The cited pages do not state that these fields match or differ. Preserve the complete returned value, including its prefix, and label the API family or endpoint that produced it.

How do I find the Business Profile ID for Google support?

  1. Open the location's Business Profile.
  2. Select More, then Business Profile settings.
  3. Open Advanced settings.
  4. Copy the value next to Business Profile ID without changing it.

Google describes the Business Profile ID as the unique identifier for the listing on Google. Google also says that you can share it with support through phone, chat, email, or other support channels.1 Send this value when support asks for the listing's Business Profile ID. If you also need the API location value, retrieve it through the API workflow and compare the exact values on your own account. Do not treat one account-specific comparison as a general rule.

How do I find the account and location values for an API request?

Use the Business Information API when the next step needs an API resource. Google represents location data in the accounts.locations collection, which supports retrieving one location, listing locations for an account, filtering results, and sorting by business name or store code.7 Before using the API, register the application and obtain OAuth 2.0 credentials.7

For a location list, use the account as the request parent and preserve the location name returned by the API:

  1. Identify the API account resource name in the accounts/{account_id} format.3
  2. Call accounts.locations.list with that account as the parent, for example accounts/{accountId}.
  3. Supply the required readMask and the business.manage OAuth scope.8
  4. Use the API's documented filters or ordering to narrow or organize returned rows, including by business name or storeCode when needed, then save the exact location resource name.7
  5. In the current v1 Location resource, keep that name in the locations/{locationId} format. Record only the locationId segment when a downstream request explicitly asks for it.2

The account type changes what the list can return. A PERSONAL account returns only locations directly owned by that account. Other account types return locations accessible through the account, directly or indirectly.8 If the expected location is missing, check that the request uses the account that owns or manages it and that the access scope is correct before treating the location as unavailable.

Why might an API location name have a different format?

Google's v4 accounts.locations resource documents a full name in the accounts/{accountId}/locations/{locationId} format, while the current v1 Location resource documents locations/{locationId}.25 These are endpoint-specific representations. Do not add or remove the account prefix just to make one value look like the other. For the API location identifier itself, see the Google Business Profile Location ID vs Place ID explanation.

How should I keep storeCode, placeId, and the Maps URL?

Keep business-system and Maps values as separate fields in the handoff. Google defines storeCode as an optional external identifier that is unique within an account and associates a location with the operator's own records.2 It is useful for matching a returned API row to your internal location record, but it is not the API location name.

The current accounts.locations resource can return an output-only placeId when the location appears on Google Maps and an output-only mapsUri link.6 Google Maps documentation describes a place ID as a textual identifier for a place. When a Maps Search URL includes both a text query and query_place_id, Google uses the text query only if it cannot find the place ID, and says the place ID is the best guarantee for linking to the intended establishment.4

Use these values for the Maps side of the handoff. Do not send a placeId or Maps URL when the support or API workflow specifically asks for a Business Profile ID or API location resource name.

What should I put in the support or API handoff?

Record the exact values together with enough context for another operator to identify the location without guessing. The checklist below is a practical handoff record assembled from Google's field definitions. It is not a Google-provided form.

Handoff field What to record Why it matters
business_profile_id The exact value from Advanced settings This is the listing identifier Google says can be shared with support.1
api_account_name The exact account resource name, such as accounts/{account_id} The account resource's immutable name uses this format.3
api_location_name The exact Location.name returned by the endpoint Current v1 uses locations/{locationId}; v4 documents a full account/location name.25
api_location_id Only the locationId segment when the downstream workflow explicitly requests it The segment comes from the API location resource name. Retain the full name too.2
store_code The exact store code, if one is assigned It is an external identifier unique within the account and used to associate the location with your own records.2
place_id The returned Maps place ID, if present It identifies the place for Maps and Places use, not the API account or location resource.46
maps_uri The returned Maps link, if present It gives the operator a direct Maps link for the location.6
lookup_context Business name, address, and any store code used to disambiguate The API documentation describes filtering and sorting by business name or store code.7
checked_on The date the values were checked It tells the next operator when to recheck a value that may have changed.

Link the handoff to the Google Business Profile guide for multi-location businesses when several locations share access rules. If the next task is a performance export, continue with the Google Business Profile Performance API export workflow, which uses the API location resource. For reporting across locations, see how to compare Google Business Profile performance by location.

Sources

  1. Google Business Profile Help, “Manage advanced profile settings”: Google Help (read 2026-10-22)

  2. Google Business Profile APIs, “REST Resource: locations”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-22)

  3. Google Business Profile APIs, “REST Resource: accounts”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

  4. Google Maps Platform, “Get Started”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

  5. Google Business Profile APIs, “REST Resource: accounts.locations”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

  6. Google Business Profile APIs, “REST Resource: accounts.locations”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

  7. Google Business Profile APIs, “Work with location data”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

  8. Google Business Profile APIs, “Method: accounts.locations.list”: Google for Developers (read 2026-10-19)

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Common questions

Is the Business Profile ID the same as the API locationId?
Google does not say. Business Profile Help defines Business Profile ID as the unique identifier for a listing. The Business Information API defines Location.name in the locations/{locationId} format. Neither cited page states whether those values match or differ. If you have access to both, copy the Business Profile ID from Advanced settings and retrieve the API location name for the same location. Compare the exact values on your own account, then send the field the receiving workflow explicitly requests. Do not generalize one account's result to every location.
Is a placeId the same as a Business Profile ID?
Google Maps documentation defines a place ID as a textual identifier for a place and describes its use in Maps linking and Places APIs. The cited documentation does not state that a place ID is the same as a Business Profile ID. Use the value the receiving workflow requests.
What if I only have a Maps URL?
Use the Maps URL to confirm which place the handoff concerns, then obtain the requested Business Profile or API value through the relevant workflow. A Maps link is a linking aid, not a substitute for either identifier.