Google Guaranteed is gone, and Google replaced it with one Google Verified badge for Local Services Ads starting in October 2025. Electricians, HVAC shops, plumbers and roofers earn it by passing Google's license, insurance and background checks, using paperwork they can upload themselves. Watch Joshua Albanese walk an electrician through getting Google Verified in a short video before you pay anyone for the badge.
Is Google Guaranteed still a thing?
No. Google Guaranteed ended when Google moved every Local Services Ads badge into one Google Verified badge. Google's August 2025 announcement says Google Verified replaces Google Guaranteed, Google Screened, and the Money Back Guarantee. Treat any pitch that still sells the Google Guarantee as out of date.
Advertisers who had already passed verification got the new badge automatically, per Google's Google Verified help page. Google also says the change itself does not affect how Local Services Ads rank you.
An electrician reviewing a marketing company asked whether his spend "would be enough to generate leads". Another reviewer described his business as "a small, one-man electrical shop". Enough leads for the spend is the real test when word of mouth works but you want more consistent lead flow.
The Google Guaranteed to Google Verified timeline
Here are the dates Google gives, so you can check any pitch against them.
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August 20, 2025: Google announced one Google Verified badge to replace Google Guaranteed, Google Screened, License Verified by Google, and the Money Back Guarantee.
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October 2025: the start date Google gave for the single badge, shown with the checks each business passed.
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December 7, 2025: the last booking date for a money-back claim, filed within 30 days of the finished job.
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August 2026: Local Services Ads started moving into Google Ads, first for select US home services, including electrical, HVAC, plumbing and roofing.
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Late 2026: the move widens to service-area businesses without a storefront and accounts with custom bidding or booking setups.
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2027: accounts outside the US and the remaining categories move over.
The Google Verified badge vs a verified Business Profile
Google Verified badge
A Local Services Ads badge. It shows once your business passes Google's screening, such as license, insurance and background checks, and lists which checks you passed.
A verified Business Profile
Verifying your business on Google proves you own your listing so you can edit it. It is a separate step from the badge.
How the two connect
Google requires Local Services advertisers to have a public, verified Business Profile. The person doing the ad checks must be an owner or manager of that profile.
What the Google Verified screening checks for electricians, HVAC, plumbers and roofers
License and insurance
State business and owner licenses where local law requires them. A general liability certificate, valid at least 14 days after you submit, under the name you advertise.
Background checks
Google lists electrical, HVAC and plumbing as urgent categories, so owners and field workers can be checked. Roofing's entry does not carry that note.
Business and identity checks
A business registration check, often by D-U-N-S number, and an identity check where a representative submits an unexpired government photo ID.
Your own dashboard
Google marks most checks "select users only." Your Local Services dashboard shows which ones apply to your business and state.
How to get the Google Verified badge in Local Services Ads
- Match your paperwork. Put your license, insurance certificate and any DBA under the exact business name you'll sign up with. Renew anything close to expiring first.
- Check your D-U-N-S number. If Google asks for a business check, look it up with Dun & Bradstreet under your profile's name and address. New ones take up to 30 days.
- Confirm profile access. Make sure you are an owner or manager of your Business Profile before you start the checks.
- Sign up and set your reach. Start at Google's Local Services sign-up, then pick job types like panel upgrades or EV chargers and the towns you serve.
- Submit and complete the checks. Upload documents and finish any background checks Google asks for, including field workers in urgent categories.
- Wait for the review. Google's requirements page says screening takes 3 to 4 weeks on average after you submit documents.
How long Google Verified takes, and what pre-badge ads are
Plan on about a month. Google puts the average at 3 to 4 weeks after your documents are in. Some businesses get accelerated verification and then have 14 days to finish the remaining steps, per Google's screening and verification page.
While you wait, you may qualify for pre-badge ads once you pass the first checks. Google's getting started page says those listings appear below providers who already have the badge.
Keep the checks current after you pass. Google re-evaluates advertisers and can pause ads or remove the badge if a requested review is not completed.
How much does the Google Verified badge cost?
Google's help pages list no fee for the badge itself; you pay for valid leads from your ad. Google's page on how leads work says you're charged for each valid lead, and businesses aren't charged for the background check. Plan your budget around leads, not around the badge.
Lead prices vary by location, job type, lead type and bidding mode, according to Google. Google does not publish a typical price per lead on these pages, so I don't quote one.
In Local Services Ads you set an average weekly budget. After the move to Google Ads, Google divides it by 7 into a daily budget, and monthly spend is capped at the daily budget times 30.4.
Missed calls during your ad hours can still be charged leads
These are Google's rules for charged leads, so set your ad schedule to the hours someone actually answers.
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You answer a call, or call the customer back and speak with them.
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You miss a call during your business hours and the caller stays on the line more than 20 seconds.
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The call goes to voicemail or a greeting during business hours and the caller stays on more than 20 seconds, message or not.
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You get a text message, an email, or a booking request through the ad.
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If your ad schedule differs from your business hours, missed calls are charged only when both are active.
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Follow-ups from the same number or email within 15 days are not charged again.
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Charged leads Google later judges low quality, duplicate or invalid are credited automatically. Credits don't apply to health care, tax specialists or advertisers in EMEA.
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Google no longer credits leads for job types or areas you don't serve, so keep those settings tight.
How reviews and the badge affect where Local Services Ads rank you
Local Services Ads rank you in an auction of bid, lead likelihood and profile quality. Google's ad rankings page lists rating, number of reviews, response time, photos and completed verification checks as profile quality. Treat those as levers, since Google says higher quality profiles may rank higher and pay less per lead.
Missed calls may hurt your responsiveness too. That makes answering the phone a ranking task as well as a sales task.
Reviews for these ads are managed through your Business Profile, not the ad account. If your rating needs work, start with my guide on how to improve your Google rating the honest way.
Local Services Ads are moving into Google Ads
Google's transition page lists what changes for a home service shop when its account moves.
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Your ads become a Performance Max campaign with pay-per-lead goals, still on Google Search and Maps, still paid per valid lead.
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Your account admin gets an email 14 days before your move date and a reminder 7 days later.
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Old performance reports do not carry over, so download or screenshot them first. Lead history and call recordings do carry over.
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Your verified status and Google Verified badge carry over automatically.
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Manual bidding and industry-level Target CPA bidding are being retired.
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Business name, address and hours sync one way from your Business Profile into Google Ads.
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New pay-per-lead campaigns still start at Google's Local Services sign-up for now.
Is Google Guaranteed worth it now that it is Google Verified?
It can be worth it if someone answers the phone during your ad hours and your job types match the work you want. Google's requirements page calls electrical, HVAC and plumbing urgent categories, where homeowners call for time-sensitive needs. Measure it by booked jobs per charged lead, not by the badge.
It breaks down when calls ring out, when you pick jobs you can't staff, or when your area runs past where you'll drive. One owner's paid leads were "for things that we did not service, or was not anywhere near our location."
Google publishes no figure for how much the badge lifts calls. If you are weighing it against organic work, compare it with my breakdown of local SEO vs Google Ads.
Nobody can sell you the Google Verified badge
The badge depends on your own license, insurance and background checks, so no outside company can promise it. Google's page on fraudulent calls says Google won't ask for payment information over the phone or promise you a special spot. If a caller claims to be Google and asks for money, hang up.
Paying for help can still make sense if you hate paperwork or want someone running the ads. Google's Local Services Ads requirements say third parties managing accounts must follow the same rules you do.
One owner on r/smallbusiness warned that the "guaranteed page 1" guys prey on people who don't know better. The same caution fits anyone selling a badge.
Questions to ask before paying for Google Verified setup
Ask these before you pay anyone, and get the answers in writing.
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Will the account and Google Ads billing stay in my business name, with me as admin?
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Which documents will you submit, and under which business name?
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Will you need my passwords, or will you request access as a user?
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Which job types and service areas will you choose, and why?
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What ad schedule will you set, and who answers calls in those hours?
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Will you rate poor leads in Google's feedback survey and check that automatic credits post?
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How will you report booked jobs, not just leads?
How to measure booked jobs from Local Services Ads leads
- Open the Leads page weekly. In Google Ads, check each lead's charge status: Charged, Not charged, In review, or Credited.
- Mark the booked jobs. Download your leads into your CRM or a spreadsheet and flag which charged leads became booked jobs.
- Divide spend by booked jobs. Take the Cost figure for the period and divide it by booked jobs. Compare that with your average job profit.
- Watch your credits. Google rechecks charged leads over 30 days and credits low-quality ones automatically. Use "Rate this lead" on poor ones; Google may occasionally credit those.
- Listen to call recordings. Look for missed calls in ad hours and calls you could have booked.
- Ask every customer. As one owner put it, "You'd need to ask every customer how they found you." Log the answer at booking.
Get the profile behind your Google Verified badge in order
Local Services Ads draw on your Business Profile for reviews, and after the move your name, address and hours sync from it into Google Ads. Spearleaf's Google Business Profile optimization covers the categories, reviews, photos and details your ads draw on.
Talk to Spearleaf about your Business Profile
- Compare them: local SEO vs Google Ads.
- Start here: Google Ads for small business.
- Find out why you are not in the Map Pack.