- They are the same product: Google renamed Google My Business to Google Business Profile in late 2021.
- The core features did not change, only the name and where you manage the listing.
- You now manage your profile inside Google Search and Maps, not a separate dashboard or app.
- The standalone Google My Business app was retired in 2022, so there is nothing to download.
- Multi-location businesses keep a web dashboard, now called Business Profile Manager, for bulk edits.
What this guide covers
Google Business Profile and Google My Business are the same free tool under two names: Google rebranded Google My Business to Google Business Profile in late 2021. If you are searching for a difference between them, the honest answer is that there is no functional gap, only a name change and a shift in how you reach the controls. That matters because old tutorials, screenshots and help threads still say "Google My Business," which leaves owners hunting for a dashboard or an app that no longer exists. This guide clears up the timeline, shows exactly what changed for single-location owners versus multi-location managers, points you to where the settings live today, and explains why none of this touches your reviews or your local ranking.
Google Business Profile vs Google My Business: the short answer
Google My Business (GMB) was the original name; Google Business Profile (GBP) is the current one, adopted in November 2021. The tool still lets you manage how your business appears on Google Search and Maps: hours, photos, posts, messages and reviews. Nothing was removed in the switch, and there is no account to migrate.
Whatever the dashboard is called, the payoff of keeping it active is the same: more visibility and more customer trust, which reviews feed directly. Making that review flow easy is where a counter tool helps, and a set of NFC plates to collect reviews turns a satisfied customer into a posted review in one tap, before they leave and forget.
Why Google renamed My Business to Business Profile
Google rebranded the tool to keep things simple and to move management out of a separate app and into the places customers already search: Google Search and Google Maps. The product has carried several names over the years, and the 2021 change folded most day-to-day editing into the search results themselves.
For context, this is not the first rename. As Search Engine Land's Barry Schwartz has noted, the local listing tool ran under names like Google Places and Google+ Local before settling on Google My Business, and now Google Business Profile. The throughline is steady: the same listing, repeatedly repackaged to match how people actually look up businesses.
| Name | Period | What it was |
|---|---|---|
| Google Places, Google+ Local | Earlier era | Early local listing tools |
| Google My Business (GMB) | 2014 to 2021 | Unified dashboard plus a mobile app |
| Google Business Profile (GBP) | 2021 onward | Managed inside Search and Maps |
What the change means for you
The practical impact depends on how you manage your listing. A single-location owner gains a faster route, editing straight from Search or Maps. A multi-location manager keeps a web dashboard, now branded Business Profile Manager. Agencies and resellers see the least disruption, since bulk tools carried over.
Manage everything from Google Search or Maps. Search your business name while signed in, and edit hours, photos and replies in place. No app needed.
Keep using a web dashboard, now called Business Profile Manager, to handle bulk edits across many listings from one screen.
Workflows stay close to before. The management interface for multiple businesses persists under the new branding, with the same core controls.
Make the ask effortless with an NFC plate or card on your counter. Customers tap once to open your review page, with no app and no subscription to manage.
Browse the plates →
Where to manage your profile now
For a single business, the fastest path is to search your business name in Google, or "my business," while signed into the owner account. You can also edit from the Google Maps app. The old web address still works and redirects you, so saved bookmarks are not broken.
One thing to stop looking for: the standalone Google My Business app, which Google retired in 2022. There is no replacement app to install for a single location, since editing now happens inside Search and Maps. If you want to push the listing further once you are in, our step-by-step on how to add keywords to your profile covers the fields that influence what you rank for.
- Search your business name in Google while signed in to edit on the spot.
- Use the Google Maps app to update hours, photos and posts from your phone.
- For many locations, use Business Profile Manager for bulk changes.
- Search the app store for the old Google My Business app; it was retired.
- Assume a tutorial that says GMB is outdated; the steps usually still apply.
- Create a second listing because the name confused you, which risks duplicates.
Does the rename affect your local SEO or reviews
No. The name change had no effect on local rankings, reviews or how your listing performs. Google still ranks local results on the same factors, and your reviews, posts and accurate details still carry the same weight. The work that moves the needle is unchanged: keep the profile complete and active.
Google ranks local results on three core factors: relevance, distance and prominence, with prominence shaped in part by the number and quality of reviews a business receives.
Google Business Profile documentationEngagement through the profile still matters too. A CallRail study found a 61% increase in calls coming from the profile between January and July 2020, a reminder that the listing is a live channel, not a static directory entry. Two levers do most of the work for visibility: a fully filled-out profile, and a steady stream of fresh reviews. For the first, a practical set of tips to improve local visibility is a good checklist, and for a deeper pass, this guide on how to optimize your Business Profile for visibility goes further into the levers that matter.
GBP vs GMB: what to say now
Use "Google Business Profile" or "Business Profile" in current conversation, and treat "Google My Business" as the old name for the same thing. Both still appear across the web, so when a tool, agency or article references GMB, read it as GBP. The terminology lag is the main source of confusion, not any real product split.
For day-to-day work, none of this requires action from you. There is no setting to flip, no data to move, and no risk to your existing reviews. The only habit worth keeping is checking that the details customers rely on, hours, address, phone and photos, stay current wherever the listing is edited. Tools like Digifeel sit upstream of all of it, helping collect the reviews that feed the profile, but the profile itself stays free and lives inside Google.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to the questions people ask most about the GMB to GBP change.
Is Google My Business the same as Google Business Profile?
Yes. They are two names for the same free Google tool that manages your business listing on Search and Maps. Google renamed Google My Business to Google Business Profile in late 2021. The features, your data and your reviews all carried over unchanged, so there is no difference in what the tool does.
When did Google My Business become Google Business Profile?
Google announced the rename in November 2021, moving management of single-location listings into Google Search and Maps. The rollout continued into 2022, when the standalone Google My Business app was retired. The web interface for managing multiple locations was rebranded as Business Profile Manager around the same time.
Is the Google My Business app still available?
No. Google retired the standalone Google My Business app in 2022. For a single business, you now edit your listing directly inside Google Search or the Google Maps app, so there is no separate app to download. Multi-location businesses use the web-based Business Profile Manager instead.
Do I need to migrate from GMB to Google Business Profile?
No migration is needed. The change was a rename, not a new account, so your listing, reviews and settings moved over automatically. You do not need to recreate anything or transfer data. Just manage the profile where it now lives, in Search and Maps, and avoid creating a duplicate listing.
Where do I edit my Google Business Profile now?
Search your business name, or "my business," in Google while signed into the owner account, then edit in place. You can also manage it from the Google Maps app. The old business.google.com address still works and redirects you. For many locations, use Business Profile Manager for bulk edits.
The name on the dashboard changed, but the work did not: a complete, active profile with a steady flow of fresh reviews is still what wins local visibility. If you learned the tool as Google My Business, nothing about your listing broke in the switch, and there is no migration to run. The only real task is to keep managing it where customers now look, inside Search and Maps. So the better question is not what to call it, but how often you are actually updating it. When did you last refresh your hours, photos and posts?