The essentials
- Definition: NAP = Name, Address, Phone: the three pieces of identity information for a business location, to be written identically on your site, your Google listing and every directory.
- What's at stake: Google cross-checks these mentions to confirm the business exists and where it is; contradictory versions dilute that confidence.
- Where: your site (footer, contact page), Google Business Profile, local directories, sector directories, social networks, Apple Maps, Bing.
- How to check: searching your phone number in quotation marks reveals the variants.
The NAP is the acronym for Name, Address, Phone : a business location's name, address and phone number. In local search, the consistency of those three pieces of information across the web is a trust signal: Google compares what your site says with your Google Business Profile listing and the directories, to verify the business really is where it says it is. Different versions (an old address on a directory, a different number on Facebook) muddy the signal and can push your listing down the local pack.
Why NAP matters to Google
Google ranks local businesses on three factors: relevance (the activity matches the search), distance and prominence, meaning the recognition Google can establish. Your local citations (mentions of your NAP on third-party sites) feed that prominence, provided they are consistent. An identical NAP everywhere lets Google attach every mention to the same entity; a variable NAP creates phantom entities that don't add up.
What counts as an inconsistency
| Element | Problematic variants | Tolerated |
|---|---|---|
| Name | "Dupont Plumbing" vs "Plumbing Dupont Nantes" vs "Dupont Ltd" | Capitals, accents |
| Address | An old address, a missing number, "bd" vs "boulevard" depending on the source | Standard abbreviations, if used consistently |
| Phone | A different tracking number per directory, an old number, mobile vs landline | Formatting (spaces, dots, +33) |
Call tracking numbers deserve particular care: a different number per platform lets you measure where calls come from, but it fragments your NAP. If you use them, keep your main number on your Google listing and your site, and reserve tracking numbers for advertising.
Where your NAP must appear, identically
- Your site : the footer of every page, the contact page, and structured data
LocalBusiness(see Schema.org for local SEO). - Google Business Profile : the reference Google compares against everything else.
- Apple Maps, Bing Places : increasingly consulted through voice assistants and AI.
- General directories : Yellow Pages, Solocal, Yelp, Foursquare.
- Sector and institutional directories : professional bodies, federations, chambers of commerce, franchise directories.
- Social networks : the "About" sections of Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
- Review sites : Trustpilot, booking platforms.
Checking and fixing your NAP
- Search Google for your phone number in quotation marks, then for your old number and old address if you have moved: every result is a citation to check.
- List the variants you find in a spreadsheet, with the URL and the correction to request.
- Fix the sources you control first (your site, your Google listing, your social profiles), then request changes from the directories, starting with the most visible.
- For a network of several locations, adopt a single naming rule ("Brand – City") and apply it everywhere.
NAP and visibility across AI
AI assistants (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini) that recommend a business draw on the same sources: your Google listing, the directories, your site. A consistent NAP lets them identify you unambiguously and cite you with the right contact details; a contradictory NAP produces wrong answers, or leaves you out. Entity consistency is one of the pillars of local GEO , and auditing these mentions is part of the local search audit.
How GreenRed helps
Rather than juggling several tools, GreenRed's Google Business Profile module brings these metrics together in a single dashboard, compares them over time and tells you which actions come first. You can try it free, with no card, from the Pricing.
Frequently asked questions
What does NAP mean in local SEO?
NAP is the acronym for Name, Address, Phone. It refers to a business location's identity details, which must be written identically on your site, your Google Business Profile listing and every directory, so that Google attaches them all to the same business.
Does a small difference in address formatting cause a problem?
Formatting variants ("bd" and "boulevard", spaces in the phone number, +33 and 0) are generally understood by Google. The real inconsistencies are a different name, an old address or another number. Be consistent all the same: it's simpler and safer.
Should I use a different phone number per directory to measure calls?
It's a trade-off: tracking numbers measure where calls come from but fragment your NAP. Keep your main number on your site and your Google listing, reserve tracking numbers for advertising and printed material, or use a call tracking tool that shows the main number to crawlers.
How do I correct an old address still showing on directories?
Search Google for the old address and the old number in quotation marks, list the sites concerned, then request a change from each one (a listing claim form or a contact). Prioritise the most visible directories. Allow several weeks for every correction to take effect.