Google Local Services Ads for contractors: requirements, costs and whether it's worth it

Google Local Services Ads (LSA) are the ads with a business name, star rating and phone button that show in Google Search and Google Maps when someone searches for a trade near them. You pay when a customer contacts you through the ad, not when they click. Everything below comes from Google's own help pages, checked on October 31, 2026. This program changed a lot in 2025 and 2026, so many guides you'll find online are out of date.

What Local Services Ads are today

According to Google's Local Services Ads overview, the ad shows your business name, a tracking phone number, your city, your star rating and number of reviews, your hours, the badge, photos and a short business bio. Customers can call, send a message or, in some cases, book. Google's help pages describe the ads as showing in Google Search, and its migration page says they show "exclusively on Google Search and Google Maps."

Three basics:

• Calls come through a Google forwarding number that you can't choose. In the US, Google records those calls (Manage leads and jobs).
• No keywords. You pick categories, job types and service areas. Google picks the searches.
• Billing runs through Google Ads. A Google Ads suspension also suspends your Local Services Ads (How leads work).

The badge: Google Verified, not Google Guaranteed

Google now has a single Google Verified badge for all Local Services advertisers. The old help pages for "Understand the Google Guarantee" and "About Google Screened" now redirect to Google's About Google Verified badge page. Here's what that page says:

• Google is "discontinuing" the money-back guarantee that came with the Google Guarantee badge. Customers can only ask for reimbursement for services booked through Local Services Ads before December 7, 2025, and must ask within 30 days of the service being completed.
• Advertisers already verified got the new badge automatically. New advertisers get it after passing screening and verification. Google says the change doesn't affect ranking.

What to do: if your website, truck wraps or sales script still say "Google Guaranteed" or promise a refund from Google, update them.

Pre-badge ads. Some businesses can get leads "after you've passed the preliminary checks," while finishing verification. Those listings show below badge holders, and they aren't offered for garage door services, locksmiths or health care (Getting started).

The big 2026 change: LSA is moving into Google Ads

Google is moving Local Services Ads into the main Google Ads platform, as "a specialized Performance Max campaign type optimized specifically for pay-per-lead goals" (Google Ads Help). The new campaigns are "built on the same models as Local Services Ads" (About pay-per-lead goals), and the pay-per-lead model and ad positions stay the same. What changes is where you manage everything.

What Google says changes once your account moves:

• Your account admin gets an email 14 days ahead. After the move, the old LSA dashboard is gone.
• LSA performance reports don't carry over. Download them, or take screenshots, first.
• Leads live under Goals > Conversions > Leads in Google Ads, with charged status and a lead feedback form.
• Your weekly budget is divided by 7 into a daily average. Monthly spend is capped at that daily average times 30.4.
• Manual bidding (a maximum cost per lead) ends.
• A completed verification and badge carry over. Google says "Insurance and license reverification are no longer required," though other business checks can still be requested.
• Name, address and hours are edited only in your Google Business Profile.

New advertisers can't create these campaigns in Google Ads yet, so they still sign up through Local Services Ads. Google's support line for migrating advertisers: +1-844-205-0011, Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 8 PM Eastern.

Is your trade a supported category?

Google publishes two lists: the categories on its screening and verification requirements page and the supported verticals for the new Google Ads campaigns. Here's how the trades line up, as of October 31, 2026:

Related categories include Carpenters, Countertop services, Fencing services, Foundations services, Siding services, Solar energy contractor and Water damage services. Being listed doesn't mean the program is open in your area. Google's Getting started page has an eligibility check for that.

Concrete contractors: there's no category for flatwork, driveways or decorative concrete. If you really do foundation repair, there's Foundations services. Only pick categories for work you do and are licensed for. Each industry you add sends you back to Business verification for its own requirements (Edit your industries).

What Google checks before your ads run

Google says requirements depend on "your business type and the state or province and country in which you operate." Its requirements page is organized by country and category, not by state. Your exact checklist, insurance amounts included, appears under Business verification in your account.

A verified Google Business Profile

"Local Services advertisers must have a public and verified Google Business profile." The person doing the checks must be an owner or manager of it. Creating and verifying a new profile can take up to 5 business days. If you already have one, don't make a duplicate. Ask LSA support to match it (About Google Business Affiliation).

Background checks

From Understand the screening and verification process:

• Who runs them: "Local background check partners," not named by Google. A company called Evident separately checks the business representative's identity with a government photo ID.
• Who gets checked: the business and its owners (identity and criminal history). In categories that require it, also "every employee, independent contractor, temporary worker, contingent worker, vendor, or other worker" who performs core services for customers. Office, clerical and customer support staff are exempt.
• No credit check, and "Businesses aren't charged for the background check."
• If disqualified, you wait 30 days to reapply, and 180 days after a second denial.

Business registration

For select verticals and users, Google uses your D-U-N-S number from Dun & Bradstreet, which "can take up to 30 days" to get. Alternatives: a registration with your Secretary of State, an EIN from the IRS, or a registration with your state Department of Revenue. Names must match exactly across documents.

Licenses

Google checks state-level business and owner licenses "where applicable by local law," against state databases "to the extent possible." You also need any county and city licenses, all your service pros must be licensed, and multi-location businesses need licenses for each location. Near a state line, you may not be authorized in both states (How providers qualify).

Before applying, look yourself up on your state licensing board's public lookup and check that the name, number and expiration date match. To upload: Business Verification > find the license > Add details > Business License dialog (Uploading license or insurance documents).

Insurance

Most home service categories list general liability insurance ("Select users only"). The minimum amount "will be displayed on the insurance upload screen." Your document must:

• be active for at least 14 days after you submit it
• show the same name you advertise under
• list a business address that covers the area you want to advertise in
• show a policy number

To upload, go to Business Verification, then Proof of Insurance, then Submit document.

Reviews

Google mentions "minimum review requirements" as part of screening but doesn't publish one number for everyone. Its performance page says: "Depending on your business type, your business may need 5 reviews to show," and "We recommend 5 or more reviews." Reviews are managed in Google Business Profile, not in your ads account. You'll find a review link to send customers under Business Verifications, on the Google Business Profile tab (Reviews and Ratings).

Three examples from Google's requirements page

1. Plumber, Electrician, HVAC: background checks (business, owner), registration checks (business, business representative), general liability insurance, and business and owner licenses at the state level. On top of that, as urgent categories, they get service professional background checks.
2. Painter, Roofing, General contractor: the same four groups of checks, each marked "Select users only." Google doesn't say which users that means, so check your dashboard.
3. State-limited categories: Drain expert and Home insulation are "currently available in California and Florida only."

Verification doesn't stop once you're approved. Google says advertisers "are regularly re-evaluated." If you don't complete a follow-up review, you can lose the badge, have your ads paused or have your account suspended.

How billing works

What you're charged for

Based on Google's How leads work:

"Business hours" are the hours in your Google Business Profile. If your ad schedule is different, unanswered calls are only charged when they fall inside both your ad schedule and your business hours. If the same customer contacts you again after 15 days with no contact in between, that counts as a new lead.

What a lead costs

Google publishes no lead prices. It says prices "may vary depending on your location, the job type, the type of lead, or your bidding mode." It also says "When similar local businesses bid on the same lead, those bids determine how much the lead is worth" (How bidding works). Message leads are "typically priced lower" than phone leads, but not always.

The only price figures you'll see are inside your own account: in Target CPL mode Google can suggest a target, and once leads come in, Reports shows "Total lead spend" and "Charged leads." Be wary of articles quoting a "typical" lead price for your trade.

Budget and bid settings

• Average weekly budget: this is your target spend. Some weeks you'll spend more, some less. The monthly max is "average weekly budget x 30.4 ÷ 7," and your ad stops for the rest of the month once you hit it (How to edit your budget).
• Where to change it: menu > Profile & budget > pencil icon on the Budget card > Save. You can change it as often as you like.
• Bid modes: Maximize leads (Google sets your bid), Target cost per lead (automated, with an optional target), and Max per lead (you set a cap). Google recommends budgeting for at least 10 leads a week, and says it takes about 2 weeks to see accurate results.
• After the move to Google Ads: Maximize Conversions is the default, manual bidding goes away, and Google advises setting a Target CPA only if you're "consistently receiving more than 15 leads per month" (Best practices).

Bad leads: automatic credits replace disputes

Older guides tell you to "dispute a lead within 30 days." Google's current help no longer describes a manual dispute: its old dispute link now points to About Automated Local Services Ads lead credits, which says:

• Leads are judged when the customer first makes contact, and the ones judged invalid or low quality aren't charged. Charged leads are reassessed later and "may be issued credits automatically if later determined to be low quality."
• "In most cases, credits will be applied to your account balance within 30 days." The original charge still shows on your invoice.
• Every lead shows one of four statuses: Not charged, Charged, In review or Credited.
• "Google no longer supports credits for 'job type not serviced' and 'geo not serviced' leads." Keeping your job types and service areas accurate is your job.
• To flag a lead, go to menu > Leads > Rate this lead > Open and fill in the survey. Google says it "may also occasionally credit leads you report as poor quality."

Setting it up, step by step

1. Get your Google Business Profile verified and make sure the name, address and categories are right. The name, address and location type carry over to your ads account and "can only be edited or updated on Google Business Profile" (Manage your business details).
2. Start the sign-up. From your profile, search "my business" on Google, select View profile, then the Advertise icon or the Next: Create your profile card. Or use Get Started on Google's Getting started page.
3. Pick your industry and job types. Only turn on work you want and can do. Google won't credit leads for job types you don't serve.
4. Set your service areas by city, county or ZIP code. If you only pick some ZIP codes in a city, the city stays in your area and your ads may still reach the other ZIP codes there (About reaching customers). Google's Google Ads guidance warns against areas more than two hours' drive from your location.
5. Set your business hours and ad schedule under Profile & budget (All day, Only during my business hours, or Custom hours). Outside your schedule, Google may show a free version of your listing (About ad scheduling).
6. Set your budget and bid mode, and set up billing in Google Ads.
7. Complete Business verification: background checks, registration, license, insurance and reviews, as described above.
8. Turn on message leads and pick email, SMS or both for notifications. SMS notifications are US only. Booking only works through Google's supported scheduling partners (About booking leads).
9. Add photos and your bio. Use real photos of your crew and work, and pick up to 6 bio highlights. To change the phone number your calls go to, you have to contact support (Edit your ad).

Handling leads fast

Google says it plainly: "It's highly recommended that you respond to leads as soon as they come in," and "Having a consistently fast response time could improve your ad's ranking." Its ranking page lists what matters:

• your bid
• how likely your ad is to produce a lead, based on your responsiveness, what the customer searched for, how relevant you are, and whether you accept messages or bookings
• profile quality: "Your rating, number of reviews, average response time, use of high-quality images"

Google also warns that "serious or repeatedly negative customer feedback may result in lower rankings (including not showing at all)."

A checklist for your office or crew:

• Have a real person answer during business hours. A missed call over 20 seconds is charged anyway.
• Return missed calls right away. Google treats the callback as an answered call and charges once.
• Set the ad schedule to hours someone actually picks up, and keep your Business Profile hours accurate.
• Turn on SMS alerts for message leads. With 2 or more message leads in 90 days, Google may show your typical reply time ("a few minutes" to "one day") on the ad.
• Remind whoever answers that calls are recorded.
• After a good job, send your review link.

Is it worth it? How to decide with your own numbers

There's no honest industry-wide answer, because lead prices depend on your market and your competitors' bids. Run it long enough to get past Google's 2-week learning period, then fill this in for a full month:

Then work out:

• Cost per lead = A ÷ B
• Booking rate = C ÷ B
• Cost per booked job = A ÷ C
• Profit after ads = (C × D) − A

If the cost per booked job is well below D, the ads are paying for themselves. If it isn't, look at why before you raise the budget:

• Wrong-fit leads (other trades, outside your area): fix your job types and service areas. Google won't credit these anymore.
• Spam, sales calls, job seekers: check the charge status. If they stay charged, flag them with Rate this lead.
• Missed calls: if a lot of your charged leads are missed calls, the fix is staffing or your schedule, not your bid.
• Long sales cycles: if your jobs often book weeks after the first call (common on big-ticket work), judge over a longer window than one month.
• Repeat customers: with direct business search turned on, your ad can show when people search your business name. Callers are asked if they're returning customers, and you're only charged for new ones. You can switch it off under Profile & budget > Settings (About direct business search).

How your Business Profile and website support the ads

• Google Business Profile: the foundation. The ads require a verified profile, your reviews come from it, your rating and review count affect ad ranking, and its hours decide when missed calls are charged. Your free map listing ranks on relevance, distance and prominence, and Google says "There's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google" (Tips to improve your local ranking). Paying for ads doesn't lift the free listing, so keep working on both.
• Website: not required. In the new Google Ads campaigns, if you add your website, Google scans it "for relevant service details" and turns on automated assets, including AI-generated callouts. You can opt out under "Asset optimization" (Best practices). Keep your services, service area and license number accurate on your site, since Google may pull from it.

When it's probably not a fit right now

• Your trade has no category, like concrete flatwork.
• You can't pass the license, insurance or background checks for your category yet.
• Nobody can answer the phone during the hours your ad runs.
• You're already booked out. You'll pay for leads you can't take.

Where to check for changes

This program changes often. Before you make a decision, recheck Google's About Google Verified badge, the migration timeline, How leads work and the requirements page. Your account's Business verification page is the final word on what Google needs from your business. Last checked: October 31, 2026.