Google Adds Local Businesses To EEA Search Result Units via @sejournal, @MattGSouthern
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Google updated its Search documentation to add local business queries to the two result units rolled out in the EEA for directories and direct providers. SEJ STAFF Matt G. Southern September 18, 2026 ⋅ 3 min read SEJ STAFF Matt G. Southern Senior News Writer at Search Engine Journal Bio Follow 178 READS Google says the two result units it rolled out in the European Economic Area this month now support local business queries. The company logged the change on September 18 and updated its Search Central pages for the aggregator unit and the supplier unit the same day. Both pages now list local businesses next to hotels, flights, long distance trains or buses, and products. When I covered the rollout on September 8, Google’s supplier page named brick-and-mortar businesses and plumbers as examples but didn’t list local queries as supported. Now it does, which means local results in the EEA can include a unit for directories and a companion unit for the businesses themselves. Google’s changelog entry gives one line of explanation: “The aggregator unit and supplier unit now support local business queries.” How the two units work hasn’t changed. The aggregator unit shows listings from approved vertical search services, a group Google says includes directories, comparison shopping services, and metasearch engines. The top-ranked provider’s results are expanded by default, and only one aggregator unit shows at a time. The supplier unit appears alongside it and shows the businesses themselves. A separate Google Actions Center page describes local searches as those involving dining, services such as beauty salons, and things to do such as attractions. Directories and other aggregators need approval as a vertical search service before they can appear. Google now sends local applicants to the same interest form it uses for hotel, flight, and ground transportation queries. For local queries they also have to supply a point of interest feed, which carries fields such as business name, address, phone number, category, images, and ratings. The Actions Center page says data sent through the feed is used only to fill the partner’s own unit and won’t be used for Google’s services or competitors’ units. The same page says the aggregator unit “replaces existing units” on the results page for local searches. It doesn’t name those units, and neither Search Central page mentions the local pack or Business Profiles. Businesses themselves don’t have to send anything. The supplier page says direct providers must serve users in the EEA and don’t need to provide data beyond what Google can crawl, though feeds can enhance their results. The supplier unit only appears when an aggregator unit does. For local queries where these units appear, EEA results now have an aggregator side and a supplier side. Approved directories and other vertical search services can compete for placement once they supply the feed. Local businesses can appear in the supplier unit next to them without sending Google extra data. Google’s pages don’t say how often the units show for local queries or which aggregators have been approved. For local queries, rank tracking and Search Console data from EEA countries may now reflect a different search experience than the same queries get elsewhere. Google made the redesign to comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act, and a deadline in the European Commission’s Search decision is approaching. The Commission’s July 23 press release said Google had 60 days to comply with its decisions. I found no Commission statement as of September 18 on whether this Search redesign satisfies the order. The same release said Google risks periodic penalty payments if it doesn’t comply. Add SEJ as a preferred source on Google Read Full Bio SEJ STAFF Matt G. Southern Senior News Writer at Search Engine Journal See short video versions of news stories on YouTube and TikTok. Matt G. Southern is the Senior News Writer at ... Learn how to connect search, AI, and PPC into one unstoppable strategy. How Search Generative Experience Will Affect Local SEO & Businesses How Can You Begin To Rank In New Markets (Local, National, International) How To See Google Search Results And Rankings For Different Locations Join 75,000+ Digital Leaders. Learn how to connect search, AI, and PPC into one unstoppable strategy. Learn how to connect search, AI, and PPC into one unstoppable strategy. In a world ruled by algorithms, SEJ brings timely, relevant information for SEOs, marketers, and entrepreneurs to optimize and grow their businesses -- and careers.
Source: Search Engine Journal
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