Quick answer: For a dental practice, the Google Business Profile settings that matter most are the primary category, the services list, accurate hours and phone number, an appointment link, real photos of the office and team, and steady replies to reviews. Get the practice name and address exactly right first, because everything else builds on them.

This guide walks through each setting in the order I check them on a dental practice's profile, with what Google's own help pages say about it. It's written for practice owners and office managers who look after the profile themselves, and it's the same profile check I start with in dental SEO work.

How does Google decide which dentists to show?

Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity (Google Business Profile Help). Relevance is how well a profile matches the search. Distance is how far the practice is from the person searching. The third factor, popularity (which Google's help page also calls prominence), is how well known the practice is, and Google points to things like links from other websites and reviews.

You can't move your office, so the work goes into the other two: complete, accurate details for relevance, and reviews, photos and a website that other local sites link to for popularity. Google also says there's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking.

What should a dental practice's business name look like?

Use the name patients see on your sign, website and letterhead. Google's guidelines for representing your business say your name should reflect your real-world business name, and that adding unnecessary information to it isn't permitted and could get the profile suspended.

So "[Practice name] Family Dentistry" is fine, but "[Practice name] Family Dentistry | Implants & Emergency Dentist [City]" isn't. Put treatments in your services list and your city in your address, where Google asks for them.

Which primary category should a dentist choose?

Google's guidelines ask you to use as few categories as possible, to pick ones that are as specific as possible but still represent your main business, and to choose categories that complete the sentence "This business IS a" rather than "this business HAS a." For a general practice, that's usually Dentist. If the practice only offers one specialty, that specialty is usually the better primary category, if Google lists it.

  • Add a secondary category only if it describes what the whole practice is, not a single treatment it offers.
  • Don't use categories as keywords. Google's guidelines say not to use them solely as keywords or to describe attributes.
  • Treatments such as implants, crowns or whitening belong in your services list, not your categories.

Do dental services in your Business Profile matter?

Google says that when local customers search for an offering you provide, that service may be highlighted on your profile. You can pick from suggested services or add custom ones, group them into categories and add descriptions (Manage your services on your Business Profile). Google rejects custom service names that include things like phone numbers or personal information.

For a dental practice, list each treatment you want new patients for as its own service and give it one or two plain sentences: what it is and who it's for. Use the same names as your website's treatment pages, so patients and Google see the same terms in both places.

Google's guidelines ask for your regular customer-facing hours and let you set special hours for holidays and other days. Add holiday closures before they happen, so patients don't call or drive over to a closed office.

For the phone number, Google asks for one that connects to your location, a local number rather than a central call center line where possible, and a number under the business's direct control. If you use a tracking number, make sure it rings straight through to the practice.

Under Booking, you can add up to 10 links that help people book an appointment and mark one as the preferred link (Manage your local business links). Point it at the booking page your front desk actually uses. Third-party booking links can also appear on your profile automatically, and the same Google page explains how to remove ones you don't want.

Should each dentist have their own profile?

Google's guidelines name dentists as individual practitioners. A practitioner can have their own Business Profile if they're in a public-facing role and can be contacted directly at the verified location during stated hours. Support staff shouldn't have profiles, and a dentist shouldn't have several profiles to cover different specialties.

  • Several dentists at one location: Google says the practice should have its own profile, separate from the practitioners', and each practitioner's profile should use only the dentist's name, not the practice name.
  • One dentist at a branded practice: Google recommends that the dentist share a single profile with the practice, named "[Practice brand]: [Dentist name]".

Before you create practitioner profiles, decide who will keep them up to date. Each one needs accurate hours and contact details, and a profile for a dentist who has left should be updated rather than left as is.

Which photos should a dental practice add?

Google says photos should be in focus and well lit, with no significant alterations or heavy filters, so they represent reality. It also says an exterior photo helps customers recognize your business when they visit (Manage your Business Profile photos & videos). For a dental practice, that means:

  • The building and the entrance, so a new patient finds the right door.
  • Reception and treatment rooms, in good light.
  • The dentists and team.
  • Your logo.

Use photos of your own office and team rather than stock images, and add new ones when something changes, such as a renovation or a new hire.

Attributes and your business description

Attributes are details such as accessibility features or payment options. Google says you can edit some directly, others may come from customers who visit, and adding certain attributes can help you show up in searches for places with those attributes (Manage your business attributes). Check the accessibility attributes in particular, because patients with mobility needs look for them.

For the description, say plainly what the practice is, who it serves and the main treatments, in the words your patients use. Google's guidelines say published content should highlight what makes your business unique, so describe your practice rather than dentistry in general. Google's help page on editing your profile also says not to include URLs or HTML code in the description, and to focus on details about your business instead of promotions, prices or sales.

How should a dental practice ask for and reply to reviews?

Google's tips to get more reviews are to remind customers to leave one through a Google link or QR code, reply to reviews, and value all reviews, since a mix of positive and negative feedback often feels more trustworthy. Google's Maps user-generated content policy prohibits offering incentives for reviews and selectively asking only happy customers for positive ones. The same policy says businesses shouldn't require or pressure customers to leave reviews while on the premises, shouldn't ask for specific content, and shouldn't ask staff to collect a certain number of reviews.

In practice, ask all patients the same way, for example with a card or QR code at the front desk, and keep replies short, polite and professional. My guide on how to get more Google reviews covers the routine step by step, including the extra rules for dental practices.

A monthly Business Profile check for dental practices

  • The name, address and phone number match your website exactly.
  • Hours are right, and special hours are set for upcoming holidays.
  • The services list matches your treatment pages.
  • The booking link opens the right page.
  • At least one new photo has been added this month.
  • New reviews have replies.
  • No one has changed details you didn't approve.

Google's own guidance for its AI features in Search also asks site owners to keep their Business Profile information up to date (AI features and your website), so the same check helps there too.

Want help with it?

You can do all of this yourself. If you'd rather have it done for you, my dental SEO work covers the Business Profile, treatment pages and the local signals behind Google Maps, and my local SEO services page explains the same work for other local businesses.

To see where you stand first, get a free AI Search + Google Ads Visibility Audit: how your practice shows up in Google Maps and AI answers, how complete your Business Profile is, and how well your website turns visits into calls. You'll get your audit within 3 business days.

Get a free audit · Book a 30-minute strategy call

FAQ

What category should a dental practice use on Google Business Profile?

Use the most specific category that describes the whole practice. For a general practice that's usually Dentist. Google asks you to use as few categories as possible and to choose ones that complete the sentence "This business IS a," so list treatments as services instead.

Should each dentist at a practice have a Google Business Profile?

Google allows a separate profile for each public-facing dentist who can be contacted at the verified location during stated hours. With several dentists at one location, the practice keeps its own profile too. A solo dentist at a branded practice should usually share one profile with the practice.

Can I add treatments like implants to my Business Profile?

Yes, as services. Google lets you pick suggested services or add custom ones with descriptions, and says a service may be highlighted on your profile when someone searches for it. Don't add treatments to your business name or use them as categories.

Can I put my city or treatments in my practice name on Google?

No. Google says your business name should reflect your real-world name, and adding unnecessary information to it isn't permitted and could get your profile suspended. Use the name on your sign and website.

How do patients book from a dental practice's Business Profile?

Add your online booking page under Booking in your Business Profile. Google lets you add up to 10 booking links and mark one as preferred. Check the link every month so it opens the page your front desk actually uses.

Can a dental practice offer something in return for a Google review?

No. Google prohibits offering incentives, such as free or discounted services, in exchange for reviews, and its policy also rules out selectively asking for positive reviews. Ask all patients the same way with a Google review link or QR code.

Khalid Hossen has worked in SEO and Google Ads for 14+ years, with 150+ dental & local service businesses served, and helped scale two dental practices to $5M. No long-term contracts. Get a free audit of how your practice shows up in Google, Google Maps and AI answers.