Original Australian and New Zealand local SEO data
Local SEO research: what Google Maps actually shows your customers
Research for local business owners who need to know where they are visible, what is linked with better positions and which SEO claims the data does not support.
480
local search grids
12,000
search locations
20
industries
24
AU/NZ cities
2026 Google Maps study
One ranking check does not show your local market
Google Maps results changed across the 25 fixed search points in each grid. The median grid returned 65 different businesses, about 20 reached the top three somewhere, and the businesses visible near the office were not always the businesses customers saw across town.
The study also found a positive relationship between review count and position in 17 of 20 industries. Average star rating produced a different result: it had no consistent ranking relationship in this sample, although rating can still affect which business a customer trusts and calls.
What a business owner should do with this
- Measure a market, not one spot. Check valuable searches across the areas that produce customers.
- Keep review growth moving. More reviews were linked with better positions in most industries, without creating a magic target.
- Benchmark locally. The same industry behaved differently in different city panels.
- Connect rankings to leads. Coverage only matters when it produces qualified calls, bookings or sales.
Five findings worth using
The plain-English result
One rank is not your ranking
The result changes with the customer's location. A check from the office can hide weak coverage nearby.
Close helps, but is not enough
Even within 1 km, 67% of recorded appearances were outside the top three.
Your competitor set changes
A typical grid returned 65 businesses, while about 20 reached the top three somewhere.
Reviews remain important
Review count was positively linked with position in 17 of 20 industries.
National averages can mislead
The sampled footprint was larger in the extension panel for 19 of 20 industries.
Practical explainers
Turn the findings into better marketing decisions
These guides answer the questions that affect reporting, reviews, service areas and competitive strategy. Every article points back to the full method and keeps the claim inside what was measured.
Local SEO
Local SEO competition: why Google Maps gets harder in some markets
Google returned more businesses in some markets than others, and top-three winners covered less ground where the result set was broader. Here is what that means without turning correlation into a rule.
Read the guideLocal SEO
Google Maps ranking radius: why your visibility changes street by street
Google Maps does not give a business one fixed ranking radius. Learn what 480 local search grids showed about distance, changing competitors and the right way to measure your own market.
Read the guideLocal SEO
Do Google reviews help Map Pack rankings? What 480 grids showed
More reviews were associated with better Google Maps positions in 17 of 20 industries. See where the relationship was strongest, what star rating showed and what the study cannot prove.
Read the guideLocal SEO
What is a good Google Maps ranking? Measure coverage and leads, not one position
A good Google Maps ranking means visible coverage where valuable customers search and qualified leads that justify the work. One position from the office is not enough.
Read the guideLocal SEO
Local rank grid guide: how to read a Google Maps heatmap
A local rank grid shows how Google Maps results change across a market. Learn how to choose search points, interpret the colours and connect the map to leads instead of chasing a vanity score.
Read the guideIndustry comparisons
What the same study means for six types of business
These articles compare city panels, review patterns and business decisions for clinics, trades, workshops and agencies. The figures are sample benchmarks, not promised ranking radii.
Clinics
Physio Google Maps rankings: what changed across 24 cities
The physio result was much more local in the higher-competition city panel than in the extension panel. Here is what that means for clinic reporting, reviews and multi-location decisions.
Read the comparisonClinics
Dentist Google Maps rankings: what 24 cities showed
Dental practices had a much larger sampled top-three footprint in the lower-competition city panel, and review count was positively linked with position in 23 of 24 grids.
Read the comparisonPsychology
Psychologist Google Maps rankings: what 24 cities showed
Psychology practices had a smaller top-three footprint in the higher-competition panel. Review count had a weak but positive relationship with position, not a zero result.
Read the comparisonTrades
Roofer Google Maps rankings: what changed across 24 cities
Roofers had a wider sampled top-three footprint than many premises businesses, but the result changed sharply between city panels and review count was positively linked with position.
Read the comparisonAutomotive
Mechanic Google Maps rankings: what 24 cities showed
Car servicing results were much more local in the higher-competition panel. Review count was positively linked with position in 23 of 24 grids, although the relationship was modest.
Read the comparisonReal Estate
Real estate Google Maps rankings: what 24 cities showed
Real estate agency visibility was much more local in the higher-competition panel, while review count was positively linked with position in 20 of 24 grids.
Read the comparisonShareable findings
Charts a local business owner can understand
Download and share these graphics with attribution and a link to the study. Each one states the buyer-level lesson and keeps the sample or limitation on the image.
In validation
What ranks in ordinary local organic results?
The next study covers ordinary organic results rather than Google Maps. Its pilot exposed problems in city context and automated site classification, so no ranking-factor conclusion is being published from that capture.
The rerun will use exact city context, checked labels, repeat captures and comparisons inside each search result. The result will be published only when the method can support a conclusion useful to a buyer.
How to judge an SEO studyPublication standard
What the research has to earn
- A decision a business owner recognises. The result must affect leads, customers, spend, reputation or location planning.
- An honest unit of evidence. Repeated sightings of one business are not separate markets.
- A claim that matches the measurement. Association is not sold as causation, and a sampled point is not sold as a radius.
- Visible limitations. The page says what the data excluded and what it cannot answer.
- A practical next step. The reader should know what to measure or change without being sold a magic number.
Want to use the data in your own market?
Share the charts, challenge the method or ask what the findings mean for your locations. The point of publishing the work is to make better decisions, not to manufacture a ranking rule.
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