How Do You Set Business Hours and Holiday Hours on Google?

By Bill Stilwell · Last reviewed October 16, 2026

The short answer

Post the hours when customers can actually visit you or reach someone. On Google Business Profile (GBP), set your regular weekly hours, then add special hours for holidays and short changes before they happen. Google says special hours cover changes or closures of up to 6 days in a row. For 7 days or longer, mark the business temporarily closed.

What this means

Your regular hours are your normal week. Google’s guidelines ask for your regular customer-facing hours. That means the hours customers can come in or get someone on the phone, not the hours you spend on paperwork.

Special hours are for short changes. A holiday, a training day, or a snowstorm closure. Your regular hours stay the same underneath and come back on their own.

Say a lawn care company is open Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. They close on Thanksgiving and the Friday after. In early November, they add two special hours entries. Google shows “Closed” on those days, and the normal hours return on Monday without anyone touching them.

GBP also lets you:

Split a day into two blocks, such as 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Mark a day as open 24 hours
Add “More hours” for specific services, such as delivery or senior hours
Choose “Open with no main hours” if you don’t want hours to show

Google’s guidelines say some businesses shouldn’t list hours at all. That includes businesses that operate only by appointment and businesses with varied hours, such as classes.

Why it matters

Angry customers. Someone who drives over and finds a locked door may leave a bad review.
Missed calls. If Google says you’re closed when you’re open, people call the next business.
Holiday warnings. Google says a warning may appear on your profile on holidays telling people your hours might differ. Setting holiday hours ahead of time gives customers a clear answer.
Search results. Google says businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up in local results.

Who this applies to

Any business that posts hours anywhere.

Pay extra attention if:

You’re seasonal, like a pool service or snow removal company. Google says to use your season’s hours as regular hours while you’re open and mark the business temporarily closed in the off season. Google’s eligibility rules also say seasonal businesses need permanent signage at their location year-round
You work only by appointment (see 7.2.7 Appointment-Only Business)
You’re a service area business and your phone hours differ from your job hours
You close for holidays most businesses don’t

How to do it

Write down when customers can reach you or visit each day. Use hours you can actually keep.
Decide whether to show hours at all. If you work only by appointment or your hours change every week, “Open with no main hours” may fit better.
In GBP, select Edit profile, then Hours. Set each open day and its times. Save.
Make a holiday list for the year. Mark which days you’ll close or change hours.
Add those dates under Special hours a few weeks ahead. Google may suggest holiday dates you can confirm. Keep in mind special hours only show if your profile is set to “Open with main hours.”
If you’re open past midnight on a special day, split it across two dates. Google says one special hours entry can’t run longer than 24 hours.
For a closure of 7 days or more, use Temporarily closed. Switch it back the day you reopen. Don’t mark the business permanently closed by mistake.
Put the same hours on your website, Bing Places, Apple Business Connect, Facebook, and your voicemail greeting.
Set a reminder each quarter, and before every holiday season, to check your hours on every listing (see 14.4.5 Listing Monitoring).

What proof to keep

Your written hours policy
Your holiday schedule for the year
Screenshots of your GBP regular hours and special hours

Keep these with your operations records. They help if a customer disputes when you were open, and they make the next holiday season faster.

Common mistakes

Posting hours you can’t staff. If the phone goes to voicemail half the posted time, people stop trusting your hours.
Changing regular hours for a holiday. Then you forget to change them back. Use special hours instead.
Waiting until the day before. Add holiday hours weeks ahead.
Using special hours for a long closure. Seven days or more belongs under Temporarily closed.
Fixing Google and forgetting everything else. Your website and Yelp still show summer hours in December.
Marking the business permanently closed. That’s very different from temporarily closed. Read the screen before you save.

When to get help from a pro

Most owners can handle hours alone. Get help if:

A GBP specialist: your profile shows hours you didn’t set, or your edits keep getting changed back.

Employment attorney or payroll provider: you’re extending hours and need to understand overtime or scheduling rules for staff. Questions to ask:

Do longer hours change how I must pay overtime?
Does my state have rules on scheduling notice or breaks?

Bill’s note

[Bill: add a short story or lesson here. For example, a client who got a bad review because Google showed them open on a holiday, or your routine for setting holiday hours each fall.]

If you’d rather have this done for you, SiteSmarty handles Google Business Profile setup.

How I did this for SiteSmarty

[Date I did this:]
[What I actually did, step by step: which hours I chose for SiteSmarty and how I set the holiday schedule]
[What it cost and how long it took:]
[What surprised me or what I’d do differently:]
[Screenshot or photo to add, with private info blurred: the GBP Hours screen and the Special hours list]
[Result so far:]

Questions people ask

How do I add holiday hours on Google? In your Business Profile, select Edit profile, then Hours. Next to Special hours, select Edit, pick the date, and either keep it closed or enter hours. Save.

What’s the difference between special hours and temporarily closed? Special hours cover changes or closures of up to 6 days in a row. Temporarily closed is for 7 days or longer, or when you don’t know how long you’ll be closed.

Should an appointment-only business list hours? Google’s guidelines say businesses that operate only by appointment shouldn’t provide hours.

Can I show that I’m open 24 hours? Yes. GBP lets you set a day as open 24 hours. Only do it if someone truly answers around the clock.

How do seasonal businesses handle hours? Use your season’s hours while you’re open, mark the business temporarily closed in the off season, and set regular hours again when you reopen.

Audit check

Question: Do the hours on the Google Business Profile match when customers can really reach the business, with holidays set ahead of time and the same hours on every listing?
Pass looks like: Regular customer-facing hours set. The next holidays entered under Special hours. Long closures marked temporarily closed. The same hours on the website, Bing, Apple, and voicemail.
Fail looks like: Hours nobody staffs. Holiday changes made to regular hours and never reversed. No holiday hours. A long closure shown as special hours. Different hours on different sites.
Evidence to collect: Screenshots of GBP regular and special hours, the written holiday schedule, and screenshots of hours on the website and other main listings.

Where this fits

Do this first: 14.1.5 Email, 17.1 Scheduling, 12.3.6 After-Hours Calls

Do this next: 14.1.7 Services

Sources

Google Business Profile Help, "Guidelines for representing your business on Google" (checked October 16, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "How to set special hours" (checked October 16, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "Edit your business hours" (checked October 16, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "About holidays on Google" (checked October 16, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "Business eligibility and ownership guidelines" (checked October 16, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "Tips to improve your local ranking on Google" (checked October 16, 2026)

This page explains general rules and Bill's own experience. It is not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Talk to a qualified professional about your situation.