To keep your Google hours accurate all year, set your regular hours once, then add special hours for every holiday and event where you open late, close early or stay closed. Google lets you do this without changing your regular hours, and customers see the special hours only on the dates you choose.
Why do accurate hours matter so much?
Hours are one of the first things a customer checks. If your profile says you are open and you are not, you lose trust and a wasted trip. If it says you are closed and you are open, you lose a sale you would have won. Google also says that complete and accurate information makes a business more likely to show up in local searches, and that inaccurate information can keep a profile from appearing for relevant searches. You can read that on Google's page about improving local ranking.
How do special hours work on Google?
Special hours are a separate set of hours for specific dates. According to Google's help page on special hours, you can use them for holidays, special events, or other unusual circumstances without changing your regular hours.
- Pick a date and mark it either open with specific hours or closed.
- Customers see them only on those dates. After the date passes, your regular hours show again.
- Your main hours must be set to open with main hours for special hours to appear.
- Use them for short changes. Google says special hours fit closures of up to six days in a row. For seven days or more, or if you do not know when you will reopen, use the temporarily closed setting instead.
- Split overnight hours. A single set cannot run more than 24 hours, so split hours that pass midnight into two entries.
Google also suggests confirming your hours even for official holidays when they match your regular hours. That way customers know the hours are accurate.
Which dates should you check every year?
Every business is different, but this list covers most local shops and service companies:
- New Year's Day
- Memorial Day
- Independence Day (July 4)
- Labor Day
- Thanksgiving and the day after
- Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
- New Year's Eve
- Any local events, trade shows, or planned closures you already know about
Add your own: a slow summer week, an owner vacation, a staff training day. Anything that changes the hours customers expect belongs on the list.
How do you set special hours step by step?
The details can change when Google updates its tools, so use the steps on Google's page if something looks different. In general it goes like this:
- Sign in to the Google account that manages your Business Profile.
- Open your profile and choose to edit it.
- Find the hours section and open special hours.
- Choose a date, then pick open with hours or closed.
- Save and look at your profile on a phone to confirm it shows correctly.
If you manage more than one location, Google also offers a bulk option with a spreadsheet. Check the help page above for the format.
What else should match your hours?
Your website, your Facebook page, Yelp, Apple Maps and other listings should say the same thing. Customers see whichever one they find first. Conflicting hours look careless, and they are one of the easiest mistakes to fix. I cover more common profile mistakes in 3 Google Profile Mistakes.
Your phone should match your hours too. If you say you are open and nobody answers, you have the same problem in a different form. See Missed a Call After Hours?
What can you do this week?
- Open your profile and read your regular hours out loud. Are they correct?
- Add special hours for the next holiday on your calendar.
- Set a reminder at the start of each quarter to check the next three months.
- Check your website and other listings for the same hours.
- Ask a friend to look you up on their phone and tell you what they see.
If you want a clear picture of how your listing, website and reviews stack up, ask for my free marketing report.
Frequently asked questions
Do special hours change my regular hours?
No. They apply only to the dates you set, and then your regular hours show again.
How far ahead can I set them?
Google's help page does not say how far ahead you can schedule them, so check your profile for what it allows.
What if I am closed for a week or longer?
Use the temporarily closed setting instead of special hours, as Google recommends for seven days or more.
Does this help me rank higher?
Accurate hours help your profile stay complete and trustworthy. Google does not promise a ranking boost, but wrong information can keep you from showing up.
— Barry Scheurweghs, Sureway Marketing, Peoria, AZ. Updated October 2026.
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Sureway Marketing is a local marketing agency in Peoria, Arizona. Our free marketing report shows you where you stand against your local competitors and how to reach customers within 30 miles of Peoria, so you can plan steady growth over the next six months.
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