Google Business Profile Posts: 5 Smart, Practical Types Worth Publishing
By Istiak Ahmed Soikot, Founder and CEO, Rank OG. Istiak helps local businesses get found on Google Search and Maps.
Last reviewed: November 10, 2026.
Google Business Profile posts are short updates on your listing in Search and Maps. The five types worth publishing are timely updates, offers, events, proof posts, and seasonal tips. Pick the type that fits the job, lead with the point, and add one clear button.
This guide is for local business owners and marketing leads who manage their own listing and want a simple posting routine. If you run a shop, clinic, restaurant, or service business, the five types below give you a full month of Google Business Profile posts without guessing.
What are Google Business Profile posts?
Google Business Profile posts are short updates published directly on your business listing, where they show in Search and Maps. Each post can carry text, a photo or a short video, plus one action button.
On a phone, posts sit in the Updates or Overview tab of your listing. On a computer, they appear in the From the owner section.
The reader is not a subscriber browsing a feed. They are comparing nearby businesses and deciding who to call, so every post should answer one question: why this business, right now. Posting works best when the rest of the listing is solid, so treat it as one part of a wider local SEO services plan.
How many types of Google Business Profile posts are there?
Google lists three official post types: Update, Offer, and Event. Products used to be a fourth type, but Google moved them into a separate Edit products section. The five types in this guide come from those three: the three official types, plus two proven uses of the Update type.
Each official type asks for different fields. An Offer needs a title and dates, an Event needs a title and dates, and an Update needs only a description, which is why most businesses use it most often.
| Type worth publishing | Built on | Best for | How long it stays up | Button |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timely update | Update | News, hours, a new service | Archived after 6 months | Learn more, Book, Call now |
| Offer post | Offer | Discount, free consultation, package deal | Until the end date you set | View Offer |
| Event post | Event | Open day, webinar, intake window | Until the event ends | Sign up, Learn more |
| Proof post | Update | Finished job, real photos, team at work | Archived after 6 months | Learn more, Call now |
| Seasonal tip post | Update | Timely advice tied to the season | Archived after 6 months | Learn more, Book |
The table below compares the five kinds of Google Business Profile posts side by side. Use it as a picker, not a checklist: one strong post of the right type beats three posts of the wrong one.
1. The timely update
The timely update is the workhorse. Use it for news, a new service, changed hours, or a holiday schedule. It needs only a description, a photo if you have one, and a button. Lead with the news itself, not with a greeting: now booking spring AC tune-ups earns the tap, while a long intro about your company does not.
2. The offer post
The offer post is the one built to sell. Use it for a discount, a free first consultation, or a package deal with a clear end date. Google requires a title, dates, and a time, and the post carries a View Offer button automatically. You can add a coupon code, a redemption link, and terms. Keep the value specific: a named price or percent beats a vague great deal.
3. The event post
The event post is for anything with a date. Use it for an open day, a workshop, a webinar, or a limited intake window. Add a title, start and end dates, and times. Skip the times and Google shows the event as lasting 24 hours on the dates you set. A free consultation day or a community sponsorship fits it well.
4. The proof post
The proof post shows finished work instead of describing it. Use it for a completed job, a before and after photo set, or a clip of your team at work. It runs as an Update, so it needs only a description and a photo. Real photos beat stock here: an imperfect photo of your own work builds more trust than a polished image anyone could have bought. Ask for the review first, then post the photo, and our guide to how to ask for reviews and respond to them covers the ask.
5. The seasonal tip post
The seasonal tip post answers a question your customers ask every year at the same time. Use it for winter prep, holiday hours, or a tax season checklist, depending on your trade. It works because it is useful even to someone who never clicks. Keep it to one tip and one button, tied to a service you actually sell.
How long do Google Business Profile posts stay visible?
Google’s own help page gives one clear rule: Google Business Profile posts older than 6 months are archived unless a date range is set. Offers and events run on the dates you set instead.
Many guides add a second claim: that an update loses its prominent spot after about a week. Google has never published that number, so treat it as a reported pattern rather than a rule. Either way, the habit is sound: your newest post shows first, so post weekly.
What are the size and text limits for Google Business Profile posts?
Google Business Profile posts cap text at 1,500 characters in the editor, counting spaces, punctuation, line breaks, and emoji. Only the first 100 to 150 characters show before a reader taps for more, so the first line should carry the point.
- Image: 720 by 720 pixels, JPG or PNG, 10 KB to 5 MB, minimum 250 by 250 pixels. Keep the subject near the center, since Google crops it differently on each surface.
- Video: up to 30 seconds, up to 75 MB, at 720p or higher. Trim longer clips first, since a 60 second clip will not fit.
- Button: one action button per post: Book for appointments, Call now for urgent work, Learn more for detail pages, Sign up for events.
- Links: the button is the only clickable link. Send it to the page that continues the post, not your homepage by default.
Hashtags add nothing on Google: they show as plain text, link nowhere, and eat into the 1,500 characters.
What gets a Google Business Profile post rejected?
Every post goes through a review before it appears, and Google shows one of three statuses: Live, Pending, or Not approved. A post marked Not approved does not show on Search or Maps, and the question mark beside it points to the policy it broke.
The most common tripwire is contact details typed into the post text. Google says it may remove posts with unverified contact information, so leave phone numbers, email addresses, and social handles out of the text and use the Call button instead. Hotels cannot use posts to promote deals at all, and posts about regulated products such as alcohol, tobacco, or gambling are also off limits.
If a post is rejected, edit and resubmit it. A clean rewrite usually clears it. Rejections are also a good prompt to check the basics: keep the name, address, and phone details on your profile matching everywhere they appear online.
How often should you publish Google Business Profile posts?
Once a week is a solid baseline: one Update each week, plus an Offer or an Event whenever something real is running. Google’s post editor now includes a Schedule this post option and a Repeats menu for weekly, monthly, or custom schedules, so you can queue a month of updates at once.
Do not repeat the same post on a fixed schedule without changing it. Regular visitors notice, and stale copy defeats the point of showing that the business is active. A simple monthly plan for Google Business Profile posts works: week one, a timely update; week two, a proof post; week three, a seasonal tip; week four, an offer or an event if you have one.
Do Google Business Profile posts help local rankings?
Google has never stated that publishing a post moves a listing up in the Map Pack, so posts are not a confirmed direct ranking factor. What they do feed is the set of signals around the listing: relevance, freshness, and engagement. Post copy that names your services and area helps Google understand the business, and a clear button that earns clicks or calls gives Google engagement data it can use.
Posts are the visible half of listing care. Consistent local citations and links earned from local sources prove the business is real and established, while posts show it is active right now. Google Business Profile posts alone will not carry a weak listing, but a dormant listing hands an edge to every competitor who kept posting.
What to do next
- Open your profile and check your latest post. If it is older than a month, your listing already looks quiet.
- Pick one type from the table and write the post in under 1,500 characters, with the point in the first line.
- Add one real photo, 720 by 720 pixels, subject near the center.
- Choose one button, send it to the page that continues the post, and check the status the next day.
- Set a weekly repeat in Google’s scheduler so the next post is already queued.
Frequently asked questions about Google Business Profile posts
How many types of Google Business Profile posts are there?
Google lists three official types: Update, Offer, and Event. Products used to be a fourth type, but they now live in a separate Edit products section. This guide covers five kinds worth publishing: the three official types plus the proof post and the seasonal tip post, both published as Updates.
How long do Google Business Profile posts stay visible?
Posts older than 6 months are archived unless a date range is set. Offers stay up until the end date you set, and events stay up until the event ends. Updates carry no date range, so the six-month archive applies to them. Post weekly to stay current.
What size image should I use for a Google Business Profile post?
Use a 720 by 720 pixel JPG or PNG image, between 10 KB and 5 MB. Google accepts images as small as 250 by 250 pixels, but those look soft on modern phones. Real photos of your own work beat stock images, and baked-in text often gets cropped.
Can I schedule Google Business Profile posts?
Yes. Google’s post editor includes a Schedule this post option, plus a Repeats menu for weekly, monthly, or custom schedules. You can also publish one post across several profiles at once if you manage more than one location. Scheduling covers Google only, so other platforms need separate scheduling.
Do Google Business Profile posts help my business rank higher?
Google has never stated that posts raise a listing in the Map Pack, so treat them as a conversion tool, not a ranking lever. Posts that name your services and area help Google understand the business, while clicks show it is active. Pair posting with citations and reviews.
Sources
- Create and manage posts on your Business Profile (Google Business Profile Help)
- Google Business Profile Post Size: Image, Text and Video Limits (Fuxux)
- Google Business Profile Posts: Do They Help Rankings? (SearchScope)
Sources checked November 2026.
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