# What is a service area business?

A service area business visits or delivers to customers at their location and does not serve customers at its own address, so its Google Business Profile shows a service area instead of a street address.

- Canonical URL: https://movermarketing.ai/learn/google-business-profile/what-is-a-service-area-business
- Topic: [Google Business Profile](https://movermarketing.ai/learn/google-business-profile)
- Format: Explainer
- Publisher: Mover Marketing AI, reviewed by Nicholas DiMoro

## Learning objectives

After reading this article you will be able to:

- Tell a service area business apart from a storefront or hybrid business
- Decide whether a moving company profile should show its address
- Set up a service area inside Google's limits

## What is a service area business?

Google sorts every Business Profile into one of three types, based on where customers are served:

| Type | Serves customers at its address | Travels or delivers to customers | Shows address on profile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Storefront | Yes | No | Yes |
| Service area business | No | Yes | No |
| Hybrid | Yes | Yes | Yes, plus a service area |

A service area business (SAB) goes to the customer. Google's examples are cleaning services and plumbers. Most moving companies fit the same pattern: the crew goes to the customer's home or office, and customers don't come to the company's address.

## Should a moving company hide its address?

Google's rule is simple. If you don't serve customers at your business address, remove the address from your profile and list a service area instead.

A moving company can qualify as a hybrid business when customers are served at the address, for example an office or storage facility that customers visit during staffed hours. Google adds one condition: a location without permanent on-site signage isn't eligible as a storefront and should be listed as a service area business.

Pick the type that matches how customers actually deal with you, not the one that looks best on a map.

## How do service areas work?

- You can add up to 20 service areas.
- Each one is a city, postal code, or other named area. You can't draw a radius around your business, and older radius settings can't be edited.
- The whole area should stay within about two hours of driving time from where the business is based.
- A service area business can have only one profile for the whole area it serves.
- Approved changes can take up to 48 hours to appear.

## How do I set a service area?

1. Open your Business Profile and select **Edit profile**, then **Location**.
2. Next to "Service area," select **Edit**.
3. Choose suggested areas or type the cities and postal codes you serve.
4. Select **Save**.

Start with the places you actually take jobs from. Because of the two-hour guideline, a long-distance mover lists the local areas around its base, and describes its interstate routes on its website instead.

## Does the service area decide where I rank?

No. The service area tells customers where you work. It doesn't make a profile rank in every city on the list. Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance, and popularity.

## FAQs

### Do service area businesses show up on Google Maps?

Yes. A service area business can appear in Google Maps and the map pack. Google shows the service area instead of a street address.

### How many service areas can a Google Business Profile have?

Up to 20, set by city, postal code, or another named area. Google no longer accepts a radius around the business.

### How far can a service area reach?

Google says the overall area should not extend more than about two hours of driving time from where the business is based.

## Related articles

- [How Google Business Profile verification works](https://movermarketing.ai/learn/google-business-profile/verification)
- [Service area pages vs. doorway pages](https://movermarketing.ai/learn/local-search/service-area-pages-vs-doorway-pages)

## Our take

- [GBP Optimization for Moving Companies: Map Pack Playbook](https://movermarketing.ai/blog/google-business-profile-optimization-for-movers)

## Sources

- [Google Business Profile Help: Manage your service areas for service-area & hybrid businesses](https://support.google.com/business/answer/9157481)
- [Google Business Profile Help: Manage your business address](https://support.google.com/business/answer/2853879)
- [Google Business Profile Help: Tips to improve your local ranking on Google](https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091)