Business Phone Number on Google: Google Voice for Business, Free Options & Your Business Profile Number

Can you get a business phone number from Google? Yes, but "Google" means two different things here, and most confusion comes from mixing them up. Google Voice gives you an actual phone number: free for personal use in the US, and a paid add-on to Google Workspace for business. Google Business Profile does not give you a number at all. It shows the number you already have to people who find you on Google Search and Maps, and it is free. Most businesses end up using the second, and many use both.

What is a business phone number?

A business phone number is the phone number of a business: the one on your website, your invoices, your van and your Google listing, kept separate from anyone's personal phone. It can be a landline, a mobile line, or a virtual number that rings in an app.

What makes it a business number is not the technology but the role. It belongs to the business, stays with the job when staff change, and is the number customers use to reach you.

Getting a business number on your phone

You do not need a second handset. The common routes are a second line from your mobile carrier (through a second SIM or eSIM), a business phone app that gives you a virtual number, or Google Voice. Each puts the business number on the phone you already carry, with your personal number kept private.

Google Voice business phone number

How Google Voice for business works

Google Voice for Google Workspace is Google's business phone service. Each user gets a number that rings in the Voice app on their phone, in the browser and on supported desk phones, with voicemail transcribed to text and US texting built in. Because it lives inside Workspace, calls and voicemails sit alongside Gmail, Calendar and Meet.

Google sells it in tiers (Starter, Standard and Premier at the time of writing). The higher tiers add features teams need, such as ring groups that ring several people at once and auto attendants ("press 1 for sales"). Google's plans and prices change, so check the current Google Voice pricing page before you choose.

How to get a Google phone number for business

1. Have Google Workspace. Google Voice for business is an add-on to a Workspace subscription.
2. Add a Google Voice subscription in the Google Admin console. This is done by a Workspace administrator.
3. Assign Voice licenses to the people who will use it.
4. Give each person a number: pick a new one, or port an existing number in so customers keep calling the number they know.
5. Install the Voice app on phones and computers, and set up voicemail greetings and working hours.

What Google Voice is not built for

Google Voice is made for person-to-person calls and texts. It is not a tool for sending one promotion to hundreds of customers, and it is not where you register for US business texting under A2P 10DLC. It is also available only in certain countries, so check availability for your location.

Free Google business phone number: what is actually free

Google phone number for business free: the personal Google Voice

The personal version of Google Voice is free in the US. You sign in with a Google account, choose a number, and link it to an existing US mobile or landline number. It rings on your phone and computer, takes voicemail and sends texts.

For a sole trader just starting out, that can work as a stopgap. Know the limits before you print the number anywhere:

• It is meant for personal use. The business product is the Workspace version.
• It is tied to one person's Google account, so it does not suit a shared front desk.
• A free number can be reclaimed after a period of inactivity.
• It is US only, and it needs an existing US number to link.

Business phone number free: the other free routes

Looking for a business phone number free of charge beyond Google Voice, the honest options are few:

• Your existing mobile number. Free, but it makes your personal number public.
• Free second-number apps. Usually funded by ads or limited, and often not meant for business texting at volume.
• Free trials of business phone systems, which then charge per user.

What is genuinely free is the listing: Google Business Profile costs nothing, whichever number you put on it.

Your phone number on Google Business Profile

Listing your business with a phone number on Google

Your Business Profile is the panel that appears when someone searches your business name or finds you on Google Maps. The phone number on it becomes a Call button on phones, which makes it one of the most used ways customers reach a local business.

Good practice for the number you list:

• Use a local number that a person answers in working hours. A main line is better than one person's mobile.
• Use the same number on your website, social profiles and directories. Matching details help customers and help Google trust the listing.
• Add your hours, so people do not call when nobody is there.
• If you use a call-tracking or second number, keep the main number as the primary one; the profile also lets you add additional numbers.

How to change your business phone number on Google

How do I change my business phone number on Google? Edit it from your Business Profile, signed in with an account that manages the profile.

1. Sign in to the Google account that owns or manages the Business Profile.
2. Search your business name on Google, or open it in Google Maps. The profile's edit controls appear because you manage it.
3. Choose Edit profile, then the Contact section.
4. Change the phone number, or add an additional one.
5. Save. Some edits are reviewed before they appear, so the new number may take a while to show.

Then update the number everywhere else it appears, starting with your website. If customers still see an old number, look in your profile for edits Google suggests from other sources or from the public, and reject the wrong ones.

Google business verification phone number

Before your profile shows publicly, or after some edits, Google asks you to verify that you run the business. Methods include a phone call or text with a code, email, a video recording of your location and business, or a live video call. Google decides which methods are available for each business, so you may not be offered all of them.

If you are offered phone or text verification, the code goes to the number on the profile. Make sure it is a number someone can actually answer, or read a text on, when you start the verification.

How to find a business by phone number on Google

To find a business by phone number, type the full number into Google Search, ideally in quotes. Listings and pages that show that number appear in the results. It is also a quick way to check your own: search your number and see whether your profile comes up, whether an old listing still shows it, and whether another business is using it by mistake.

Google Business Profile support phone number: is there a 24/7 helpline?

People search for a Google My Business support phone number 24/7 all the time, so here is the straight answer: Google does not publish a public phone helpline for Business Profile that you can ring at any hour. Help comes through:

• the Business Profile Help Center, which covers most questions,
• the Google Business Profile Community forum, where product experts answer,
• a support request form in the Help Center, after which Google may reply by email, chat or a call back. What is offered varies by country and by issue.

Which Google option fits your business?

• On Google Workspace and need a calling number for a team: Google Voice for Workspace.
• Solo, just starting, mostly calls: personal Google Voice can tide you over, within its limits.
• You already have a number: you do not need Google for the number at all. List it on your Business Profile.
• You mainly text customers (reminders, confirmations, promotions): use a texting platform with A2P 10DLC registration, since Google Voice is not built for it.
• Lots of calls with menus, queues and extensions: a business VoIP phone system.

Where Linxi fits

Linxi gives you a texting number, not a phone line. You can search local numbers by area code (or by digits they start with, contain or end with), and Linxi files the A2P 10DLC registration so your texts deliver. A managed local number is $1.50 a month, the first is included on paid plans, and texts are billed at carrier cost. Replies, emails and Linxi Network messages from the same customer sit in one thread. The buy a number guide shows both ways to get one.

One honest note about Linxi today: it does not take or place calls yet. Keep your calling number as the primary phone on your Google Business Profile, because that is what the Call button dials, and use a Linxi number for texting customers who opted in.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use my personal Google Voice number for my business?

You can use it while you are starting out, but it is designed for personal use and tied to one person's Google account. If the business grows, or other people need to answer, move to Google Voice for Google Workspace or a business phone system. Check that you can port the number before customers get used to it.

Can I text customers from Google Voice for business?

Google Voice supports one-to-one texting in the US, which suits replying to a customer or confirming a time. It is not designed for sending the same message to a list, and bulk texting from a business number in the US needs A2P 10DLC registration through a messaging provider. For campaigns and reminders at scale, use a texting platform built for it.

Can I move my existing number to Google Voice?

Usually yes. Google Voice for Workspace lets administrators port existing numbers in, so customers keep calling the number they know, and personal Google Voice can also take a ported mobile number. Porting needs your current account details and can take several days, so do not cancel the old service until the move is complete.

Is Google Business Profile free?

Yes. Creating and managing a Business Profile on Google Search and Maps costs nothing. Google offers paid advertising separately, but the listing, the phone number on it, reviews and posts are free.

Do I have to put a phone number on my Google Business Profile?

It is optional, but strongly recommended for most businesses, because the Call button is one of the most common ways customers make contact from a phone. Without a number, people can still find your website or directions. If you work by appointment only, list a number that takes messages and set your hours clearly.

Why does Google show the wrong phone number for my business?

Google can pick up details from other sources, and the public can suggest edits. Sign in, open your profile, and check for suggested updates; reject wrong ones and correct the number in the Contact section. Make sure your website and directory listings show the same number, so the wrong one stops being picked up.

What is the difference between my Google account phone number and my Business Profile number?

The phone number on your Google account is private: Google uses it for sign-in codes and account recovery. The number on your Business Profile is public and shown to customers. They can be the same, but they do not have to be, and changing one does not change the other.

How long does it take for a new phone number to show on Google?

Simple edits often show quickly, but some are reviewed first and can take several days. If an edit seems stuck, check the profile for a pending or rejected status before editing again. Repeated edits can slow review down.

Does Google Voice work outside the US?

Personal Google Voice is a US service. Google Voice for Workspace is available in a number of other countries, with features and number availability that vary by country. Check Google's current list of supported countries before you plan around it.