We checked 500 Google Maps searches. The most-reviewed business is #1 less than 1 time in 5.
Short version: in 500 Google Maps searches for home-service businesses in 25 large US cities, the top 3 had about twice the reviews and more photos than the businesses below them. But the most-reviewed business was #1 in only 18% of searches, a quarter of the top 3 had fewer than 100 reviews, and the usual checklist items (claimed profile, hours, matching category, city in the website title) were nearly universal, so they did not separate anyone.
How we did it, and the limits
- What: one Google Maps search per trade and city pair, for example "plumber Denver, CO". 20 home-service trades × 25 large US metros = 500 searches. Top 20 results each.
- When and how: October 29, 2026, through DataForSEO (location United States, English, desktop). 499 searches returned 10 or more results: 9,972 business appearances (9,671 unique businesses).
- Websites: we checked the homepage (and sitemap) of each business in positions 1 to 10. The check worked for 4,356 of 4,999; the rest blocked automated requests, had no website on their profile, or did not respond.
- Limits:
- One search point per city, as Google resolves the city name. Distance from the searcher is a major ranking factor that this study does not measure.
- Home-service trades and large metros only. Small towns and other industries may differ.
- One day, one snapshot.
- Correlation, not cause. This shows what top-3 businesses have, not why they rank.
- We use medians, not averages, because review counts are extremely uneven. No business is named anywhere in this study.
Finding 1: the top 3 have about twice the reviews
| Top 3 | Positions 4 to 10 | Positions 11 to 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Businesses | 1,497 | 3,493 | 4,982 |
| Median reviews | 275 | 140 | 92 |
| Median photos | 117 | 83 | 62 |
| Median additional categories | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Median rating | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.9 |
Reviews and photos rise steadily with rank. Top-3 businesses also tend to list one more category on their profile.
Finding 2: but the most reviews does not mean #1
The business with the most reviews among the top 20 was ranked #1 in only 18% of searches (n = 499). And 26% of top-3 businesses had fewer than 100 reviews (13% had fewer than 50).
So review count alone does not explain who is #1. Factors this study did not measure, such as how close the searcher is and how well each business matches the search, also play a part. Chasing the competitor's review count is not the whole plan.
Finding 3: rating does not separate anyone
The median rating was 4.9 stars in every rank band. This is a ceiling effect: almost every business on the first two pages has a very high rating, so the data cannot show rating as a difference between them. Read it as "a high rating is the entry ticket", not as "rating does not matter".
Finding 4: the basics are table stakes
| Top 3 | 4 to 10 | 11 to 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claimed profile | 99% | 99% | 98% |
| Hours listed | 100% | 99% | 99% |
| Primary category matches the search | 98% | 98% | 97% |
| Website on the profile | 98% | 96% | 93% |
Only 2% of top-3 businesses had no website on their Google profile. Category match uses a keyword rule per trade (for example "roof" for roofers).
Finding 5: website checklist items barely differ
| Homepage signal | Top 3 (n = 1,318) | 4 to 10 (n = 3,032) |
|---|---|---|
| City in the title tag | 75% | 71% |
| Service in the title tag | 80% | 79% |
| City in the H1 | 50% | 46% |
| LocalBusiness schema | 53% | 55% |
| Click-to-call link | 77% | 79% |
| Review schema | 19% | 18% |
| FAQ schema | 18% | 18% |
| 1 or more location pages | 68% | 64% |
Most of these are just as common below the top 3 as in it. That does not mean they are useless: it means most competitors already have them, so in this data they rarely set the top 3 apart from the businesses below.
The review bar by trade
Median reviews of the #1 and #4 result in each trade (25 searches per trade; pool service 24).
| Trade | #1 | #4 |
|---|---|---|
| HVAC repair | 3,675 | 673 |
| Plumber | 2,262 | 592 |
| Junk removal | 1,913 | 247 |
| Carpet cleaning | 1,760 | 321 |
| Garage door repair | 1,178 | 378 |
| Pest control | 938 | 373 |
| Locksmith | 853 | 338 |
| Electrician | 762 | 299 |
| Appliance repair | 660 | 361 |
| House cleaning | 476 | 232 |
| Tree service | 437 | 205 |
| Roofer | 272 | 164 |
| House painter | 245 | 177 |
| Lawn care | 161 | 80 |
| Pressure washing | 123 | 68 |
| Remodeling contractor | 104 | 59 |
| Landscaping | 91 | 70 |
| Pool service | 89 | 67 |
| Water damage restoration* | 80 | 103 |
| General contractor | 50 | 40 |
* Small sample per trade (25 searches). In water damage restoration the #4 result had more reviews than #1, which we would not generalize from one trade.
What this means for a local business
- Know your market's review bar, not the national one. In HVAC the leaders have thousands; in general contracting, dozens.
- Reviews and photos are where the top 3 differ most from the rest, so a steady review routine and fresh photos are worth the effort.
- Do the basics, knowing they rarely set you apart. Claiming your profile, matching your category and putting your city in your title are things nearly every business above you already has.
- Look at your own top 3, not averages. Our free gap audit compares your profile and website with the businesses ranking above you, and the local grid shows the part this study cannot: how your rank changes across your area. For listings, see the local citations guide.
Methodology and aggregate tables are available on request.
Frequently asked questions
Do more reviews get you to number one on Google Maps?
Not by themselves. In our 500 searches, top-3 businesses had about twice the reviews of positions 4 to 10 (median 275 vs 140), but the business with the most reviews was number one in only 18% of searches.
Does star rating matter for Maps ranking?
In this data, rating did not separate the top 3 from the rest. The median was 4.9 stars in every rank band. Almost everyone on the first two pages has a high rating, so it works as a requirement more than as an edge.
How was the data collected?
One Google Maps search for each trade and city pair ("<trade> <city>"), 500 searches in total, top 20 results each, collected on October 29, 2026 through DataForSEO (US, English, desktop). We also checked the homepages of positions 1 to 10.
Can I get the data?
The methodology and the aggregate tables are available on request. We do not publish row-level data.