Additional categories can represent other genuine parts of the business, but they are not a place to list every service, product or keyword.
Google says the categories selected affect local ranking, which makes category choice important - but accuracy still comes first.
Source checked during drafting: https://support.google.com/business/answer/7249669
Why categories matter
Google uses categories to help understand the type of business represented by a Business Profile.
Its current guidance says categories help connect businesses with customers searching for products or services and explicitly states that selected categories affect local ranking.
GOOGLE CONFIRMS
Categories affect local ranking according to current Google Business Profile category documentation.
That does not mean category selection is the whole Local SEO algorithm, more categories automatically means better ranking, categories should be used as keywords or a business should copy every competitor category.
For the complete ranking framework, see Local SEO Ranking Factors.
Primary category vs additional categories
Primary category
The primary category should best represent the business as a whole.
Google advises businesses to choose a specific category when an accurate specific option exists.
For example, Google's documentation recommends choosing a more precise category such as a nail salon rather than a broader salon category when that accurately describes the business.
Additional categories
Additional categories are optional. They can describe other genuine areas of the business.
Google's current documentation gives the example of a grocery shop whose primary category is Grocery Store and which can add Bakery and Deli where those are legitimate parts of the operation.
The key is that an additional category still describes a business type. It is not simply another service keyword.
Choose what the business IS, not what it HAS
Google's own wording is unusually useful here.
Its representation guidelines tell businesses to choose categories that complete the statement "This business IS a..." rather than "This business HAS a...".
Source checked during drafting: https://support.google.com/business/answer/3038177?hl=en
Consider a hotel with a swimming pool. The hotel does not become a "Swimming Pool" business merely because a pool is one of its amenities.
Likewise:
- A furniture assembly business that assembles desks does not necessarily become an "Office Furniture
Store".
- A plumber who installs radiators does not become a "Radiator Shop".
- A florist that offers delivery does not automatically become a generic "Delivery Service".
Classification should represent the underlying business.
Nail salon; grocery store; plumber.
Swimming pool; desk assembly; radiator installation; delivery option.
Specific is usually better - when it is accurate
Google currently says to select the most specific category available that describes the business.
It also says that if the precise category you want is not available, choose a more general category that accurately describes the business.
You cannot simply type a new custom category into existence.
Google's current help page states: You cannot create your own category.
There is a feedback process in some Google documentation for suggesting a category, but that is not the same as immediately creating and using a custom category.
Source checked during drafting: https://support.google.com/business/answer/3370250?hl=en
A practical category-selection process
Step 1: describe the business without SEO language
Write one sentence: "We are a ______." Do not begin with keyword-volume data. Begin with reality.
Step 2: list the major genuine parts of the business
If the company genuinely operates multiple types of business, record those separately. Do not list individual products yet.
Step 3: search Google's current category selector
Check which categories are actually available now. Category availability can change, so an article or screenshot from two years ago is not enough.
Step 4: choose the strongest accurate primary category
Ask: If a customer saw only this category, would it accurately describe the core business? If yes, it is a candidate.
Step 5: investigate additional categories
Add only categories representing genuine additional business types. Avoid adding categories simply because they contain a valuable search phrase.
Step 6: research competitors cautiously
Competitor profiles can help reveal categories you may not have considered. But competitor research is an input, not proof.
A competitor may have chosen badly, use a category that does not apply to you, have an outdated setup or be breaching guidelines.
Step 7: review the resulting profile
Some categories unlock different profile features. Google currently notes category-specific functionality for businesses such as hotels, restaurants and health/beauty businesses.
Check whether your category change altered relevant options.
How many additional categories should you use?
There is no useful SEO rule saying: "Always use all of them."
Google's current Business Profile editing documentation allows up to nine additional categories, and its bulk-profile documentation says the same.
Sources checked during drafting: https://support.google.com/business/answer/3039617?hl=en and https://support.google.com/business/answer/3370250?hl=en
That is a technical maximum. It is not a target.
Google's broader guidelines tell businesses to choose the fewest number of categories needed to describe the core business.
For one business, the correct answer might be one primary category and no additional categories. For another, several additional categories may be genuinely justified.
Categories and services are different
A category classifies the business. A service describes something the business provides.
Suppose a business is genuinely a plumber. "Plumber" may be its category. Individual activities such as tap replacement, leak repair, radiator installation and toilet repair are services.
Trying to represent every service as another business category leads to inaccurate profiles.
Category changes can trigger reverification
Google currently warns that adding or editing categories may result in a request to verify the business again.
That does not mean businesses should never change an incorrect category. It means changes should be deliberate.
Avoid constantly switching the primary category every few days because a manual search result moved.
Common category mistakes
Choosing categories as keywords
A category should classify the business, not merely contain words you want to rank for.
Adding every possible additional category
Maximum capacity is not a recommendation.
Copying competitors without checking applicability
Competitor setups can be wrong.
Confusing services with categories
Use the appropriate service information instead.
Selecting categories for neighbouring businesses
Google explicitly tells businesses not to use categories belonging to a separate nearby or contained business.
Repeatedly changing categories without a reason
Changes can alter profile features and may trigger reverification. Document why a change is being made.
Real Project: the Flat Pack category problem
McKnight's Flat Pack Assembly is a useful example because the ideal plain-English description and Google's available category taxonomy do not necessarily match perfectly.
The business assembles flat pack furniture for customers.
The project record indicates that the most obvious desired label - a dedicated furniture-assembly service category - was not available in the Business Profile category selector when the profile was configured.
The closest appropriate available primary category used was: Handyman.
OUR OBSERVATION
This is not a statement that every furniture assembly business must use Handyman. It is also not evidence that Google's category list will remain unchanged.
Flat pack furniture assembly service
Handyman
Closest appropriate option available in the live selector
Recheck immediately before publication
The useful lesson is not "always use Handyman". It is: When Google's category system does not contain your ideal label, choose the closest genuinely accurate available category rather than inventing a category or selecting something misleading.
The rest of the Business Profile and website can then explain the services in much greater detail.
For the wider implementation, see Google Business Profile Optimisation and Google Business Profile for Service-Area Businesses.
The project itself is documented in the McKnight's Flat Pack Assembly case study.