What Happened to Google Guaranteed? It Is Now Google Verified

If you are looking for Google Guaranteed, it no longer exists. On 20 October 2025 Google retired it, along with Google Screened and License Verified by Google, and replaced all three with a single blue Google Verified badge on Local Service Ads.

For businesses already verified, the swap happened automatically. Nothing needed doing. But one part of the old programme did not survive the change, and it is the part that mattered most to homeowners.

What actually changed

The new badge also displays which specific checks a business has passed, which is more transparent than the old system where the badge name did that job implicitly.

The guarantee ending is the real story

Under the old programme, a customer who booked through a Local Service Ad and was unhappy with the work could claim from Google, up to a lifetime cap. That was a genuine differentiator: Google was putting its own money behind the businesses it listed.

That protection is gone. If a customer is dissatisfied now, the matter sits between them and you, exactly as it would if they had found you any other way.

What it means in practice

The badge has gone from a differentiator to a cover charge. Every verified advertiser in your category displays the same one, so it no longer separates you from the business listed beneath you.

What does separate you is what always separated you, only more so now that Google is not underwriting the outcome:

• Review score and review volume, which now carry the trust the guarantee used to carry
• How fast you answer, since responsiveness feeds directly into where you place
• Your own guarantees — workmanship warranties, on-time promises, anything you control and can state plainly
• Licence numbers, insurance details and real photographs on your own website, rather than relying on a Google badge to do that work

How to get the badge

You cannot buy it separately. It comes with running Local Service Ads in an eligible category, and appears once verification is complete.

• Sign up for Local Service Ads and confirm your category is supported in your country
• Submit your business licence, where your trade requires one
• Submit liability insurance at the level Google specifies for your category
• Complete background checks on the business and, depending on category, on owners and field staff

Check your own marketing

A lot of service businesses still have Google Guaranteed on their website, their vans and their quote templates. It has been retired for well over a year. Anyone who looks it up finds a programme that no longer exists, which reads as a business that has not updated anything in a while — not the impression you want at the point someone is choosing between you and two competitors.

FAQs

Is Google Guaranteed gone completely?

Yes. The badge was retired on 20 October 2025 and replaced by Google Verified. The name survives only in how people still search for it.

Did I lose my verification when the badge changed?

No. Businesses already carrying Google Guaranteed, Google Screened or License Verified transitioned to the new badge automatically, with no action required and no gap in eligibility.

Does Google Verified cost extra?

There is no separate fee. You pay for Local Service Ads leads, and the badge comes with completing verification.

Can I still tell customers Google backs my work?

No, and you should stop if you are. Google verifies your licence, insurance and background. It no longer stands behind the quality of the job. Saying otherwise is a claim you cannot support if a customer checks.

Can I lose the badge?

Yes. A lapsed licence or insurance policy, serious complaints, or falling out of category eligibility will remove it. It is a status you maintain rather than a one-off award.

Is Google Verified available outside the US?

Local Service Ads run in several countries including Canada, the UK and Australia, but eligible categories and verification requirements differ by market. Check the specifics for your country rather than assuming US terms apply.