The Google Maps Pack Is a 2 km Game: Grid Data on 286 Local Businesses

Most business owners check their Google Maps ranking from their own front door. From there they usually look great. Customers aren't searching from your front door, though.

We wanted to know how far a Map Pack ranking actually reaches. So we ran grid scans across four cities, recording the top 10 Google Maps results at every point of a 5×5 grid, and measured how far each business was from the person searching.

Key findings

• 78% of Map Pack (top 3) spots went to businesses within 2 km of the searcher. 46% went to businesses within 1 km.
• The median #1 result was 0.9 km from the searcher. Results ranked #4 to #10 were about twice as far away (1.9 km).
• Only 3 of 286 businesses held a top-3 spot across half the grid or more. Being in the Map Pack is local and patchy, even for strong businesses.
• Across one 4 × 4 km area, 6 to 16 different businesses held the #1 spot, depending on the city and search term. In Vancouver, 16 different plumbers ranked #1 somewhere on the same grid.
• Businesses with 250+ reviews held top-3 spots at about 7 times as many grid points as businesses with fewer than 25 reviews (3.4 points vs. 0.5).
• Map Pack businesses had more photos: a median of 44, vs. 32 for businesses ranked #4 to #10.

<a href="https://gmb-doneright.com/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study"><img src="https://gmb-doneright.com/images/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study/chart-distance.png" alt="Bar chart: 46% of Google Maps top-3 spots go to businesses within 1 km of the searcher, 32% within 1–2 km, 11% within 2–3 km, 6% within 3–5 km, 3% within 5–10 km, 1% beyond 10 km" width="1200" height="675"></a>
<p>Source: <a href="https://gmb-doneright.com/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study">GMB Done Right Google Maps distance study</a></p>

Proximity decides most of the Map Pack

Nearly half of all top-3 spots went to a business less than 1 km from the searcher. Past 3 km, only 10% of top-3 spots remained. For most local searches, Google is answering "who is closest and credible?" more than "who is best in the city?"

That's why one ranking number is misleading. A plumber can be #1 at their own address and absent from the Map Pack 2 km away, where many of their customers live.

Reviews extend your reach

Distance sets the baseline, and reviews push it outward. Businesses with 250+ reviews held a top-3 position at an average of 3.4 of 25 grid points and appeared in the top 10 at 8.8 points. Businesses with fewer than 25 reviews held top-3 at 0.5 points and appeared at 2.0.

<a href="https://gmb-doneright.com/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study"><img src="https://gmb-doneright.com/images/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study/chart-reviews.png" alt="Bar chart: businesses with 250+ Google reviews hold a top-3 spot at 3.4 of 25 grid points on average, vs 0.5 for businesses with under 25 reviews" width="1200" height="675"></a>
<p>Source: <a href="https://gmb-doneright.com/blog/google-maps-ranking-distance-study">GMB Done Right Google Maps distance study</a></p>

This is a correlation, not proof that reviews alone cause the difference. Businesses with more reviews also tend to be older, more active, and better optimized. Still, the gap is large.

What this means for a local business

1. Measure across your service area, not at your address. A grid scan shows where you're visible and where you disappear.
2. Expect to win the area near you first. Ranking 10 km away against closer competitors is very hard. Ranking 2 to 3 km away is realistic.
3. Build reviews and photos steadily. They are the levers that most clearly track with a wider reach.
4. Treat the Map Pack as many small markets. With 6 to 16 different #1s in a few square kilometres, there is room to win specific neighbourhoods.

Methodology

• Scans: 5 grid scans. Plumber in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Chicago, plus house cleaning service in Chicago.
• Grid: 5×5 points with 1 km spacing, centred on each city's downtown. 125 search points in total.
• Data per point: the top 10 Google Maps results on mobile, with each business's location, review count, rating and photo count.
• Sample: 1,248 ranking results covering 286 unique businesses.
• Distance: straight-line distance from each grid point to each business's map location.
• Date: November 1, 2026.
• Limits: Five scans in four cities, downtown areas only, two search terms, a single snapshot in time. Treat these results as directional. We plan to expand the dataset to more industries and cities.

Want to see your own map? Run a free grid rank check.

You're welcome to use these charts and figures with a link to this page as the source.