TL;DR
Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is not really a directory — it is Google's owned-listing tool. Contractors claim and control their own listing on Google Search and Maps. There is no editorial verification, no curated set, no "we said yes or no." ProFix Directory is an editorial Ohio home-services directory with documented license and permit verification. The two tools are complementary, not competitive — most Ohio homeowners benefit from using both.
- Google Business Profile is global, free for contractors, and self-claimed. ProFix Directory is Ohio-only, $10–$35/year per metro for contractors, and editorially verified.
- Google verifies that the business owner controls the address and phone. ProFix verifies the state license, permit history, insurance, and Secretary of State registration.
- Google Maps is the most-used Ohio business surface in existence. ProFix surfaces public-record evidence that Google does not display.
- ProFix publishes its data as an MCP server, an OpenAPI spec, an llms.txt feed, and a CC-BY-4.0 Hugging Face dataset. Google's catalog is accessible to advertisers and Maps API customers but is not open data.
- Use Google Business Profile to read reviews and find distance. Use ProFix to verify license and permits. Use both before hiring.
Quick comparison
| Dimension | ProFix Directory | Google Business Profile |
|---|---|---|
| Product category | Editorial directory with curated verification | Owned-listing tool — contractors claim and manage their own profile |
| Geographic focus | Ohio only | Global |
| License verification | Cross-checked against Ohio OCILB / state board on licensed-trade profiles | "License Verified" badge in some categories/states via third-party partner |
| Contractor pricing model | Flat $10–$35/year per metro; $99/year optional claim subscription | Free listing; monetized by Google Ads and Local Services Ads alongside it |
| Permit-pull data | Yes; permit counts surfaced on profile and leaderboard pages | Not surfaced |
| Who built it | ProFix Directory LLC, Ohio-registered, editorial team in NW Ohio | Google LLC (Alphabet, NASDAQ: GOOGL) |
| Distribution | Directory pages, MCP server, OpenAPI, Hugging Face dataset | Google Search, Google Maps, Google Knowledge Panels (largest surface in existence) |
| AI / MCP access | Public MCP server at /api/mcp (9 tools), OpenAPI, Hugging Face dataset, CC-BY-4.0 | Google Places API and Maps API (commercial); no open MCP server |
What Google Business Profile does well
Google Business Profile is the most important free contractor surface that exists. The strengths are real and worth naming clearly.
- Massive distribution. Google Search and Google Maps are the largest discovery surfaces on the internet for local businesses. A complete Google Business Profile reaches more Ohio homeowners than any directory possibly can on its own.
- Contractor-owned. The contractor controls hours, photos, services, and replies to reviews. That control matters — a stale or wrong directory entry hurts everyone, and Google's owned-listing model puts the contractor in charge of their own data.
- Free for the contractor. There is no listing fee. Google monetizes through ads that sit alongside profiles, not by gating the profile itself. That is unusually homeowner- friendly.
- Reviews tied to real Google accounts. Each Google review is tied to a Google account with its own posting history. That is not a guarantee of authenticity, but it is more friction than an anonymous form. Google's spam filtering catches a meaningful share of obvious fake reviews.
- Maps integration. One tap opens directions, calls the contractor, or shares the listing. That UX advantage is hard to beat from a directory site.
Where ProFix is different
ProFix is not trying to replace Google Business Profile. We are doing something different — adding editorial verification and public-record evidence on top of (or alongside) the Google listing.
- License verification on every licensed-trade profile. Every Ohio plumber, HVAC, electrician, hydronics, fire-protection, and water-well listing is matched against the state's OCILB record. The license number appears on the profile and links to the state record. See the methodology.
- Permit-pull history as a trust signal. Building permits prove a contractor actually shows up for inspection. ProFix surfaces this on permit leaderboards. Google does not display permit data on Business Profiles.
- Editorial curation, not pay-to-appear. A contractor cannot buy a higher position on ProFix. The algorithm is documented on /algorithm and the verification process on /verification. On Google, the organic profile is free but Ads ride above it.
- AI-native open data. ProFix exposes a public MCP server at
/api/mcp, an OpenAPI spec, an llms.txt feed, and a CC-BY-4.0 Hugging Face dataset. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity can cite ProFix data directly. Google's catalog is accessible via commercial APIs but is not open. - Bilingual EN/ES editorial. Buyer's guides, cost ranges, and key tools have dedicated Spanish versions at
/es. Google translates listing content, but the editorial framing is not built for Ohio Spanish- speaking homeowners the same way.
When you should use Google Business Profile instead
Honestly, for almost every Ohio homeowner the answer is: use Google Business Profile and ProFix together. But there are specific cases where Google is clearly the right starting point.
- You are a contractor and want to claim/own your own listing. Claim your Google Business Profile first. That listing is yours, you control it, and Google's distribution dwarfs anything an editorial directory can match.
- You live outside Ohio. We do not cover any other state. Google Business Profile covers everywhere a business operates.
- You only need Google Maps visibility. If your decision is "is this contractor close to me and what do their reviews say?" then Google Maps is the better starting tool. ProFix is more useful for the next step — verifying that the credentials check out.
- You want to read the largest available pool of reviews. Most established Ohio contractors have many more Google reviews than ProFix tracks. Reading recent reviews on Google is a strong first signal.
- You are checking a non-home-services business. Restaurants, salons, auto repair, retail — Google Business Profile is the right tool. ProFix only covers Ohio home-services trades.
How to verify any contractor (regardless of directory)
A Google "Verified" check, a ProFix tier, a BBB grade — none of them replace objective public records. The same five checks make a hire safer no matter where you found the contractor.
- Verify the state license. Search Ohio eLicense or use the ProFix verification tool. The license type must match the work.
- Confirm insurance directly. A certificate of insurance emailed from the insurer or agent. Not a photocopy or a forwarded PDF.
- Read permit pulls, not just stars. Use the permit leaderboards to see who actually pulls permits in your county.
- Cross-check Google reviews against a second source. Read the most recent Google reviews, then look at the contractor's BBB profile, ProFix profile, and Secretary of State filing. Two or three sources is much stronger than one.
- Get three itemized, written quotes. Compare scope, not just price. See the full process in how to choose an Ohio plumber.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google Business Profile a directory?
Not in the traditional sense. Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is Google's free owned-listing tool — contractors claim and manage their own business presence on Google Search and Google Maps. There is no editorial team curating which contractors appear; any business that meets Google's eligibility rules can claim a listing. ProFix Directory is an editorial directory with a defined verification process documented on /methodology. The two are different categories of product. Most Ohio homeowners use both: Google Maps for distance and reviews, an editorial directory like ProFix for license and permit verification.
Does Google Business Profile verify contractor licenses?
Google introduced a 'License Verified' badge in some categories and states (notably plumbing, HVAC, and electrical in many US markets) through a third-party verification partner. Coverage varies by trade and metro, and the badge depth is not always equivalent to a state-board cross-check. ProFix Directory verifies every Ohio plumbing, HVAC, electrical, hydronics, fire-protection, and water-well listing against the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) or the relevant state board — the same source Ohio regulators use.
How much does Google Business Profile cost contractors?
Google Business Profile is free for contractors. The monetization happens elsewhere — Google Ads (Local Services Ads, Search Ads, Maps Ads) sit alongside organic profiles, and many contractors run paid campaigns to appear above organic results. ProFix Directory charges contractors $10–$35/year per metro for a basic listing plus an optional $99/year claim subscription. The two pricing models are structurally different: Google's free listing is monetized by ads above it, while ProFix's flat per-year fee is the entire economic relationship.
Are Google reviews the same as ProFix reviews?
No. Google reviews are tied to a Google account and appear on the Google Business Profile and in Maps. Google's spam filtering catches some fake reviews and misses others. ProFix Directory does not run a competing review system; we link out to the contractor's Google profile where it exists and pair that with license, permit, and Secretary of State evidence. The two are complementary signals: Google reviews tell you how customers describe the contractor; ProFix tells you whether the credentials check out.
Should I trust Google's 'Verified' checkmark on a Business Profile?
Google's verification step confirms the business owner controls the address and phone — typically via a postcard, phone call, video, or email loop. That is a useful anti-impersonation check, but it is not a license check or a quality check. A scammer with a real address can pass Google verification. For licensed Ohio trades, layer Google verification with a state-license check (Ohio eLicense), a permit history check (ProFix permit leaderboards), and a Secretary of State filing check before hiring.
Should an Ohio contractor claim their Google Business Profile?
Yes, absolutely. A claimed Google Business Profile is one of the highest-leverage free things any contractor can do — it controls their hours, photos, services, and how they respond to reviews on the largest search surface in the world. Claiming a Google Business Profile is not a substitute for being in ProFix Directory, and being in ProFix is not a substitute for a Google profile. They serve different roles.
Why is ProFix Directory only in Ohio while Google is global?
Google Business Profile is a self-serve listing tool that scales effortlessly because contractors do the work of claiming and updating their own listings. ProFix Directory is an editorial product where we cross-check every licensed-trade record against state data — that work scales linearly with effort, not exponentially. Going national in the same depth would take years. For now, Google Business Profile is the better default for nationwide visibility; ProFix is more specialized for Ohio licensed-trade verification.
Sources and what we got wrong
References used in this comparison include the Google Business Profile homepage, the Google Business Profile help center (verification + license-badge documentation), the Ohio eLicense system, and the ProFix methodology. Google changes its Business Profile features, badge eligibility, and verification flow frequently; if a specific claim is out of date, please report it at /contact and we will correct it. The ProFix Editorial Team reviews this page quarterly.