Do you need a website if you have a Google Business Profile?

What your Google profile does well

• It puts you on Google Maps and in the local results, the box of nearby businesses Google shows above the ordinary search results.
• It collects your Google reviews, which are what people read before they call.
• It gives people a Call button, directions, your hours and a link to your website, right in the search results.
• It’s free.

Google says local results are “mainly based on relevance, distance, and popularity”: how well your profile matches the search, how far you are from the person searching, and how well known your business is. That last one, Google says, is “also based on info like how many websites link to your business and how many reviews you have.” So a complete profile and a steady stream of reviews do a lot of the work.

What a profile can’t do

• You don’t own it. Google decides what a profile can do. It shut down the free websites people made with their profiles in March 2024, switched off chat in July 2024, and in December 2025 started replacing the questions and answers on Maps with an AI answer button. Businesses that leaned on those had to start over.
• Other people can change it. Anyone can suggest an edit to your profile. Google asks you about some of them first, but if you don’t answer within 4 days it may publish the change anyway, and a few it applies without asking at all. Your website says exactly what you wrote.
• There’s not much room. The description stops at 750 characters, about one paragraph. That’s enough for who you are and where, not for helping someone choose you for a big job.
• It only lives on Google. A website is one address you can put on your truck, your cards, your Facebook page and your invoices, and it works wherever someone finds you.

Does a website help your Google profile?

Google doesn’t say a profile needs a website, and plenty of businesses show up on Maps without one. But two things on Google’s own help pages point the same way. Prominence is partly based on “how many websites link to your business,” and links need somewhere to point. And when someone suggests a change to your profile, Google may publish it automatically if it’s “supported by other publicly available information,” and it names your business website as an example. So your own site is part of how Google decides what’s true about you.

A good website also tells Google in detail what you do and where, and it’s where the Website button on your profile sends people.

It works the other way too. In BrightLocal’s 2026 survey of 1,002 US adults, 97% said they read reviews for local businesses, and after reading good reviews, 54% went on to check the business’s website. If there’s nothing there, or something out of date, that’s where you lose them. And looks count: in a 2002 Stanford study of how people judge websites, a site’s design was what people mentioned most (46.1% of their comments) when deciding whether to trust it.

When you can wait on a website

• You’ve just opened, cash is tight, and most of your work comes from people who already know you.
• Your customers only need your number and hours, and your profile covers that.
• You’re still working out exactly what you sell.

If that’s you, put your effort into the profile: pick the most accurate category, add the towns you serve, set your hours, add real photos of your work, and ask every happy customer for a review. Google gives you a link and a QR code to send them. If you work from home like I do, Google’s own advice is to remove your address and show only the area you serve.

When a website is worth paying for

• People compare you with other businesses before they call, which is common for bigger jobs.
• You answer the same questions on every call.
• You want to show your prices, your process or your past work.
• You want quote requests in writing, with the details, instead of missed calls.
• You’re starting to hand out cards or run ads, and you want them to send people somewhere that does the selling for you.

What I’d do in your shoes

1. Set up your Google profile now. It’s free, and the setup takes an afternoon, plus however long Google takes to verify you.
2. Ask for reviews from the start. Every happy customer, every time. Google doesn’t allow offering anything in return for a review, so just ask.
3. When you’re ready, start small. A single page that says who you are, what you do, where you work and how to reach you is enough for a lot of new businesses. Mine is $2,000, and a builder plan is cheaper if you’d rather do it yourself. The full breakdown is in what a small business website costs in Michigan.
4. Connect the two. Put your website on your profile, and your reviews and the same phone number on your website. Use the same name, number and hours everywhere, so customers never find two different answers.

Questions people ask

Can I use my Google profile as my website?

Not anymore. Google used to let businesses make a simple free website from their profile. It shut those down in March 2024, and the old addresses stopped working altogether after June 10, 2024. The Website link on your profile now points to a site of your own, or to nothing.

Is a Google Business Profile free?

Yes. In Google’s words: “Yes, creating a Business Profile and listing your business on Google is free.” Google Ads are a separate, optional cost.

Can I use my Facebook page instead of a website?

A Facebook page is worth having, but it has the same problem as the Google profile: Facebook decides what it shows and who sees it, and it’s built for posts, not for explaining your services and prices.

Do I need a website to get Google reviews?

No. Reviews live on your profile, and Google gives you a link and a QR code to send customers, with or without a website.

How much does a basic website cost?

A one-page site from me is $2,000, then $20 a month to host. Doing it yourself on a builder costs less in money and more in time. The whole picture, including what Michigan studios charge, is in what a small business website costs in Michigan.