Local Search
Every month, people in the US search about 2.5M times for a plumber, roofer, electrician, AC tech, exterminator or garage door pro near them. Google shows three local businesses first.
Pick Your Trade
Real monthly searches. Pick a trade to see yours.
What they type into Google
Searches / month
US average, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026. Source: Ahrefs Keywords Explorer, US. City searches are typed with the city name, on top of "near me" searches from that city.
Plumbing, every month
926K
searches for these terms across the US
"plumber near me" peaks in Feb. Be ready before then.
Advertisers pay up to
$20 a click
for "emergency plumber". A complete profile can show up for it free.
Who Gets the Call
Every search on this page showed Google's map pack: three local businesses with stars, hours and a call button. Most calls go to those three.
The Whole Journey
Each step is one page. Start anywhere.
Guides
Plain-English guides for pros. New ones each month.
The 10 things that move you into the map pack.
Google Guaranteed, pay per lead, explained.
When Facebook and Instagram ads pay off.
What changed on Google and Meta, and what to do.
Questions Pros Ask
Short answers. Real numbers.
Customers type the job plus "near me" ("plumber near me", "ac repair near me") and Google answers with a map of three local businesses before any website. If you aren't in that map, most customers never see you.
Across six trades, the main "near me" searches add up to about 2.5M searches a month in the US (Ahrefs Keywords Explorer, US, Oct 2025 – Sep 2026). "Plumber near me" alone is about 462,000 a month.
The map pack is the box of three businesses with a map that Google shows for local searches. It comes from Google Business Profiles, ranked by relevance, distance and prominence (reviews, ratings, complete details). Every search on this page showed one.
It varies by trade and city. Advertisers paid about $25 a click for "ac repair dallas" and $20 for "emergency plumber". A complete Google profile and a free directory listing can show up for the same searches without paying per click.
Local Services Ads are the "Google Guaranteed" or "Google Screened" ads at the very top of local searches. You pay per lead instead of per click, after Google checks your licence and insurance.
Yes. Your ServiceForge listing is free, with no per-lead fees. Customers call you directly. Answering, booking and payments are optional add-ons when you're ready.
Step 2 of 5
Show up on Google when they search.