How to add holiday hours to your Google Business Profile (2026 dates)

1. The short version

• Use special hours. Google says to set special hours for holidays, special events and other exceptional circumstances, when your hours change or you are closed for up to six days in a row.
• Confirm the days Google suggests. Google says it is a good idea to confirm your hours for official holidays, even if they are the same as your regular hours.
• Do it before the day. On the holidays Google lists, it says a warning may appear on your Business Profile telling users your business hours might differ. Setting special hours in advance is how you tell customers the real hours.

We describe Google's steps from its own help pages, checked on 23 October 2026. Menu names change from time to time, so follow what you see on screen. Dates come from government sources and from Google's own holiday list; see the sources at the end. If your hours are already wrong on Maps, read why Google Maps shows the wrong holiday hours and how to fix it.

2. How to set special hours

Google's page on how to set special hours gives these steps for the Business Profile manager:

1. Go to your Business Profile at business.google.com.
2. Select Edit profile, then Hours.
3. In the "Business hours" section, next to "Special hours", select Edit.
4. Pick the date. To accept a date Google suggests, select Review. For your own date, select Add a date and enter it. To change a date already there, select it.
5. Set the hours. If you are open, clear the Closed box and enter the hours. If you are closed, keep Closed checked. For a second set of hours on the same day, select More, then Add hours +.
6. Select Save.

Google says saved special hours then appear in the "Hours" tab under "Business information", or under "Special hours" in "Edit profile". Google's page on editing opening hours says you set and edit your hours on your Business Profile for Google Maps and Search, so the same hours show in both. Google's page on editing your Business Profile says it reviews your changes before they go live, and its edit status page says edits usually take up to 10 minutes to review, but sometimes it can take up to 30 days.

Rules that catch people out

• Main hours must be on. Google says special hours only show if your main hours are set to "Open with main hours".
• Up to six days in a row. For seven or more days, or an unknown period, Google says to mark your business as temporarily closed instead.
• Open past midnight. A set of special hours cannot be longer than 24 hours. Google says to split it into two entries at midnight, and that the special hours replace the next day's regular hours, so add back any you want to keep.
• Many locations. Google says you can use the "Special hours" column of the bulk upload spreadsheet, with "x" for an all-day closure. It warns that for existing businesses, empty columns or columns with headings but no data erase existing information in those columns.

3. The "confirm your holiday hours" prompt

Google's page says that for a suggested date you select Review, then either leave the hours as they are or mark the day closed, and save. Google's page says it is a good idea to confirm your hours for official holidays even if they are the same as your regular hours.

Google also publishes a list of the holidays it knows, About holidays on Google, by country. It says that on the holidays listed there, a warning may appear on your Business Profile that tells users your business hours might differ, and that you can set special hours in advance for these dates to let customers know your holiday hours. We found no other detail on that page about prompts or notifications, so look in your own profile and in your email for what Google sends you.

4. What happens if you don't set them

• A warning may show. On the holidays Google lists, a warning may appear on your profile telling users your business hours might differ. Google does not say it will always appear.
• Your regular hours still apply. Without special hours for a date, your main hours are what the profile shows for that day. If you are closed or open late, customers have no way to tell from the profile.
• Other people can suggest hours. Google's page on Google updates on your Business Profile says users can suggest edits, and that if a suggestion needs your review you may get an email or an in-product notification and have 4 days to accept or reject it. If you don't respond, Google says it may publish the update if other public information, such as your website, supports it. The same page says Google may apply some user edits without prior review when needed to meet policy guidelines.

If the wrong hours are already live, see Google Maps shows the wrong holiday hours.

5. Holiday dates, late 2026 and early 2027

These dates come from official sources and from Google's own list. A public holiday is not always a day you must close, and rules for pay and substitute days differ by country, state and award. This table is only so you know which dates to set on your profile.

Canadian Thanksgiving has already passed: the CRA lists it as Monday 12 October 2026. In Australia, public holidays vary by state; the table uses New South Wales as the official example, and Google's list also shows state-only days such as Proclamation Day in South Australia. Check your own state or province, and your own situation, before you set hours.

6. A 5-minute holiday hours check

1. Decide your hours for each date in the table that applies to you: open, open late, closing early or closed.
2. Set them in Edit profile, then Hours, then Special hours, and save.
3. Check main hours. They must be set to "Open with main hours" or the special hours will not show.
4. Search your business name in a private window, and read the hours as a customer would. Edits can take a while to appear, so don't leave this to the day before.
5. Match your website. Put the same holiday hours on your site and in any social profiles. Google says it may publish a user-suggested update when public information such as your website supports it, so a website with different hours can work against you.

Our Google Business Profile checklist covers the other basics. For the Saturday after Black Friday, see the Small Business Saturday Google profile checklist. The Holiday Rush Check lists what else to look at before Black Friday.

Sources

• Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours
• Google Business Profile Help: Edit your opening hours
• Google Business Profile Help: Edit your Business Profile
• Google Business Profile Help: Understand what happens to your Business Profile edits
• Google Business Profile Help: About holidays on Google
• Google Business Profile Help: Understand Google updates on your Business Profile
• US Office of Personnel Management: Federal holidays
• GOV.UK: UK bank holidays
• Workplace Relations Commission (Ireland): Public holidays
• Canada Revenue Agency: Public holidays
• NSW Government: Public holidays
• Employment New Zealand: Public holidays and anniversary dates

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SiteDokAI is not affiliated with Google or any of the government bodies named here. We can't change what Google shows or give legal advice on holiday pay or opening duties.

Common questions

How many days can special hours cover?

Google says you can set special hours if your business temporarily adjusts its hours or stays closed for up to six days in a row. For a closure of seven or more days, or for an unknown period, Google says to mark the business as temporarily closed instead.

Do I need to confirm holiday hours if they are the same as my normal hours?

Google says it is a good idea to confirm your hours for official holidays, even if they are the same as your regular hours, so customers know your special hours are accurate.

Why are my special hours not showing on my profile?

Google says special hours only show if your main hours are set to "Open with main hours". Google also reviews edits before they go live. It says edits usually take up to 10 minutes to review, but sometimes it can take up to 30 days.

What if I am open past midnight on a holiday?

Google says a set of special hours cannot be longer than 24 hours, so you split it into two entries at midnight. The special hours then replace the next day's regular hours, so add back any regular hours you want to keep.

Is Black Friday on Google's holiday list?

Yes, for the US. Google's list of holidays includes Black Friday, Friday 27 November 2026. It is not on the US Office of Personnel Management list of federal holidays.