Local SEO for plumbers: what the Google Maps top 3 have in common
Short answer: in 25 Google Maps searches for plumber businesses in 25 large US cities (October 29, 2026), the top 3 had a median of 1,548 reviews and 166 photos, against 684 reviews and 139 photos for positions 4 to 10. The most-reviewed business was #1 in 16% of these 25 searches, and 4% of the top 3 had fewer than 100 reviews.
These numbers come from our study of 500 Google Maps searches. They describe what top-3 businesses have, not why they rank. Distance from the searcher was not measured.
The numbers for plumbers
| Top 3 | Positions 4 to 10 | Positions 11 to 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Businesses | 75 | 175 | 250 |
| Median reviews | 1,548 | 684 | 274 |
| Median rating | 4.8 | 4.8 | 5.0 |
| Median photos | 166 | 139 | 83 |
| Median additional categories | 2 | 3 | 2 |
The review bar: the median #1 result had 2,262 reviews; the median #4 result had 592.
#1 against positions 4 to 10 for plumbers
In 25 plumber searches (October 29, 2026), the #1 business had a median of 2,262 reviews against 684 for positions 4 to 10, and 267 photos against 139. Of the two, reviews differed most. This shows what #1 had, not why it ranked first. Across all 20 trades in our Map Pack study, among the top 10, recent reviews are what differs most (499 searches, recent reviews measured in a 100-search sample).
A worked example: one plumber search
One real search from the study: "plumber [city]" in a large metro in the Midwest, October 29, 2026. Names are removed and counts are rounded.
| Position | Rating | Reviews | Photos | Primary category | City in homepage title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 4.7 | 2,250 | 210 | Plumber | Yes |
| #2 | 4.8 | 310 | 25 | Same as #1 | Yes |
| #3 | 5.0 | 410 | 80 | Same as #1 | Yes |
| #7 | 4.9 | 650 | 190 | Same as #1 | Yes |
| Median of #4 to #10 | 4.9 | 4,250 | 210 |
If you were the business at #7: you would be about 1,600 reviews behind #1 and about 20 photos behind, with the same primary category. In this search, 4 of the 9 businesses at #2 to #10 had more reviews than #1. The review gap does not close in a month, so the useful question is how many reviews #1 gets each month and whether you can match that pace. A free audit shows these numbers for your own search.
The category the top 3 use
99% of top-3 plumbers use "Plumber" as their primary Google category. Others seen in the top 3: "HVAC contractor". If your primary category is something else, that is the first thing to check. Our free gap audit compares your categories with the 3 businesses above you.
Website basics in this trade
| Homepage signal | Top 3 (n = 55) | 4 to 10 (n = 155) |
|---|---|---|
| City in the title tag | 85% | 81% |
| Service in the title tag | 60% | 64% |
| LocalBusiness schema | 53% | 57% |
| Click-to-call link | 87% | 83% |
| 1 or more location pages | 73% | 82% |
Where plumbers should be listed
Start with the core listings every US business needs (Yelp, BBB, Facebook, Nextdoor, Foursquare, Yellow Pages, LinkedIn), then the home-services directories: Angi, HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack first, then Houzz, Porch, BuildZoom, Networx, Bark, Expertise, eLocal. The full list and order is in our local citations guide, and the citation checker shows which of these the businesses above you have.
What to work on first
- Match the primary category most of the top 3 use, if it fits your business.
- Close the review gap with your own top 3, not the national median. In this trade the median #1 had 2,262 reviews, and only 4% of the top 3 had fewer than 100, so the bar in big cities is high.
- Add photos regularly. The top 3 had a median of 166.
- Check your rank across your whole area. One search point hides most of the map; the Google Maps rank checker shows it point by point.
How we measured
One Google Maps search per city ("plumber