Google Business Profile Attributes: The Small Checkboxes Most Businesses Skip

04 September 2026·3 min read

Quick answer: Attributes are the checkboxes buried in your Google Business Profile editor — wheelchair accessible, women-led, online appointments, and dozens more — that let your listing show up in filtered searches and can be a genuine tie-breaker once someone's comparing you to a competitor. Most businesses never open this section at all. ✅

Google Business Profile has a whole layer most businesses set once and never revisit: attributes. 💖 They don't get the attention that photos or reviews do, but they directly affect whether you even appear when someone filters a search by something specific — accessibility, ownership identity, service options — regardless of how good your listing otherwise is.

What most businesses get wrong

The most common mistake is simply never opening the attributes section — it's tucked away in the profile editor and easy to miss entirely. The second is setting it once, years ago, and never revisiting it as Google periodically adds new attribute categories that might now apply.

Where to find and set attributes:

Open your Google Business Profile and go to "Edit profile" or "Business information."
Find the "Attributes" section — it's separate from categories and services.
Work through every relevant category: accessibility, identity (women-led, veteran-led, LGBTQ+ friendly), service options (online appointments, onsite services, online care).
Only select attributes that are genuinely accurate — never claim one that doesn't apply.
Revisit this section every few months, since Google periodically adds new attribute options.

A booking-based business with a step-free entrance: Enabled the wheelchair accessible attribute, since a real portion of local searches filter specifically for this — a small change that opened them up to an entire segment of searchers they weren't previously visible to at all.

A woman-owned local service business: Enabled the "women-led" attribute, since some searchers actively filter for this when choosing between similar local options — a genuine point of difference that costs nothing to switch on.

A business offering both in-person and remote service: Enabled both "onsite services" and "online appointments" attributes, making sure they appear in searches filtered either way, rather than only one.

How to actually do this

Set a calendar reminder to review your attributes section every quarter, since Google adds new options periodically without much announcement. Go through every category methodically rather than skimming, since some genuinely useful attributes are easy to overlook. Only select what's accurately true — misrepresenting accessibility in particular is both a trust and a genuine access issue for the people relying on it.

💡 This is a five-minute task with a real, if quiet, payoff. Attributes won't transform your rankings overnight, but they can be the exact reason you show up in a filtered search a competitor doesn't.

Mistakes to avoid

Never opening the attributes section at all.
Claiming an attribute, particularly accessibility, that isn't accurately true.
Setting it once and never revisiting as new attribute options are added.
Assuming attributes affect ranking the same way reviews or categories do.

Frequently asked questions

Do attributes actually affect Google Maps ranking?

They're not a confirmed major ranking factor, but they do affect whether you appear at all in filtered searches — a real visibility gain that's separate from, but just as valuable as, ranking position.

How many attributes should we select?

Every one that's genuinely and accurately true of your business — there's no downside to selecting more, as long as each one is accurate.

Can competitors see which attributes we've selected?

Yes, attributes are publicly visible on your listing, the same as your categories and services.

What if an attribute we want isn't available yet?

Google periodically rolls out new attribute categories over time — there's no way to request one directly, but it's worth checking back every few months as your business and the available options both evolve.