How do I move a local business website without losing Google Maps rankings?

Which website migration path should I use?

Choose the procedure from whether an existing page URL changes. Google treats a domain, protocol, or path change as a URL-changing site move. A hosting change with the same URLs follows a separate hosting procedure.¹²

What should I prepare before the move?

Build the migration record before launching the new site. The record gives you something specific to test when the website and the Business Profile change at different speeds.

1. Create a complete URL inventory. Start with the sitemaps, server logs or analytics, links reported in Search Console, and the content-management system. Include embedded image, video, JavaScript, and CSS URLs, not only the pages in the visible navigation.¹
2. Map each old URL to its new destination. Use the corresponding new page where one exists. Record the final URL, not only the next hop in a redirect chain.¹
3. Prepare the new site's crawl controls. Set up its robots.txt and preserve the blocks you intend to keep. Remove development-only robots.txt, noindex, or HTTP-header blocks when the new site is ready to launch.¹
4. Verify Search Console before launch. Verify both old and new sites, including the relevant www and non-www properties and the HTTP and HTTPS variants you use.¹
5. Capture the current local-business facts. Save the Business Profile website URL, the page it opens, the location or service page's phone and hours, and the profile's address or service area. Record the exact query, searcher context, date, and result you will use for the after-move comparison.

Google says that publicly available information, including crawled content from an official website, can contribute to Business Profile information. Google also lets a business share its website from the profile. Use the profile and the relevant location or service page as one consistency check, not as a claim that Google applies a particular website-to-profile formula.³⁴

What should I do when the page URLs change?

Use the URL-changing procedure for a domain, protocol, hostname, or path change. Complete the URL map and the new-site checks before switching the public site.

1. Update the new URL signals. Give each new URL a self-referencing rel="canonical", update internal links, and update rel-alternate-hreflang annotations when the site uses them. Save a sitemap containing the new URLs.¹
2. Add direct server-side redirects. Prefer HTTP 301 or 308 redirects from each old URL to its relevant final destination. Use client-side redirects only when a server-side setup is not possible. Avoid chains, and do not send unrelated old pages to the new homepage.¹
3. Choose the launch shape. Google recommends moving all URLs at once for small or medium-sized sites. A large site can move one section at a time when that makes monitoring and problem-fixing easier.¹
4. Use the right Search Console action. Submit a Change of Address for a move between domains or subdomains. Do not use it for HTTP-to-HTTPS, www and non-www changes on the same domain, or path changes within the same domain.¹
5. Test and submit. Test individual redirects with URL Inspection or test larger sets with scripts. Submit the new sitemap after the move starts. Google says the old sitemap can be removed when Google uses the new one.¹
6. Keep the redirects. Keep them as long as possible, generally at least one year, while updating the important links you control to the new URLs.¹

For example, if old.example.com/locations/austin becomes new.example.com/austin, map the old location page directly to the new location page, update internal and canonical links, verify both properties,¹ and then change the profile's website URL to the live Austin page. Do not send the old location page to the new homepage merely because the domain changed.

What should I do when only the hosting changes?

Use the hosting-only procedure when every public URL stays the same. The work centers on access, DNS, and server monitoring rather than a URL map.

1. Upload a copy of the site to the new host and test it thoroughly.²
2. Confirm that Googlebot can access the new host and remove temporary crawl blocks.²
3. Review the Search Console verification setup on the new infrastructure.²
4. Update the DNS records to point to the new host.²
5. Watch the server logs on both the old and new hosts during the change.²
6. Shut down the old hosting infrastructure only when you are confident that all users, including Googlebot, receive content correctly from the new infrastructure and no one is using the old infrastructure. Use zero traffic in the old-host logs as a check.²

Keep the profile website URL unchanged when the URL itself did not change. Still open the profile link after the DNS change and confirm that the destination serves the correct business page.

How do I update the Business Profile after the website goes live?

Update the Business Profile only after the new destination is live and accessible. On Google Search, go to your Business Profile → Edit profile → Save. In the Google Maps app, open Maps → Business → Edit profile → Save. Google says it reviews changes before updating them live, and the available features can differ between Search, Maps, and your device's operating system.⁴

Check these fields in the edit flow:

• Website: Enter the full URL with its protocol, not a bare domain. Make sure Googlebot is not blocked on the destination. If the business has separate locations, open the link and confirm it reaches the individual location page rather than a different branch or a generic redirect.⁴
• Address or service area: If customers visit the business, confirm the full, accurate address. If customers do not meet the business at its address, choose whether to hide the address; if it is hidden, verify that the service area lists the cities, ZIP codes, or other places actually served. Google says service areas should be specific and accurate.⁴
• Phone: Check the primary number and any additional numbers against the location page. Google allows a primary number and up to two additional mobile or landline numbers, but not fax numbers.⁴
• Hours: Compare the profile's main hours with the website. Keep special hours for holidays or temporary periods and use more hours for different services or features; neither belongs in the main-hours field.⁴

The Google Business Profile guide explains the profile's fields and ownership context. This page's migration check is narrower: it asks whether the new website and the public profile still describe the same real business.

What should I verify before, during, and after the move?

Use this log to keep website migration checks separate from profile review and from a later visibility observation.

Google's URL-migration guidance names sitemap indexing, crawl errors, search impressions and clicks on new URLs, server logs, HTTP errors, and user traffic as monitoring signals. For a local business, add the profile-to-website checks to the same log so a broken destination is not mistaken for a Maps change.¹³⁴

Can my Maps visibility change temporarily after a website move?

Yes. Google says a significant website change can cause temporary ranking fluctuation while Google recrawls and reindexes the site. Medium-sized sites can take a few weeks or more to start showing the new URLs, and larger sites can take longer.¹

Treat that period as observation time. Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance, and popularity, and that complete and accurate business information is more likely to appear in local results. Compare the same query and searcher context before and after the migration, and record what the profile and website displayed. A single search cannot show that one website change caused a position change. For the broader local-search context, see ranking higher with local SEO.⁵

What if the website domain changes but the business details do not?

Use the URL-changing site procedure and change only the Business Profile website URL. Keep the address or service-area setting, phone, and hours unchanged when the real-world facts did not change. Recheck every field after the edit so the profile still opens the new location or service page.