LocalBusiness schema for AI search: a UK small business guide

LocalBusiness schema is a small block of code that states your business name, address, phone number, opening hours and type in a format machines read reliably. It won’t make an AI assistant recommend you on its own, but it removes guesswork about the basic facts.

Last updated 16 October 2026 · Written by GPT Visibility

The short answer

Pick the most specific type for your business, such as Plumber, Dentist, LegalService or AccountingService, rather than plain LocalBusiness.
Include the two required fields Google lists: name and address.
Add the useful extras: telephone (with the +44 country code), url, openingHoursSpecification, priceRange and geo.
Make every value match the visible page and your Google Business Profile.
Test it with Google’s Rich Results Test and the Schema Markup Validator.

What LocalBusiness schema is

Schema markup is structured data written in the schema.org vocabulary, usually added to a page as a JSON-LD script. LocalBusiness is the schema.org type for a business with a physical location or service area. Google uses it to understand details such as opening hours and departments, and it’s a sub-type of Organization, so Google recommends following its Organization fields as well.

Does schema help with ChatGPT and AI search?

Be wary of anyone who says schema is a shortcut into AI answers. Google says no special structured data is needed to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and that structured data should match the visible content of the page. OpenAI and Perplexity don’t publish a list of schema types they use.

What schema does do is state your core facts once, clearly and consistently, in a form any crawler can parse. That supports what matters most for AI visibility: being easy to read, easy to verify and described the same way everywhere.

Which type to use

Google’s guidance is to use the most specific sub-type possible. Common ones for UK small businesses:

Business	Schema.org type
Plumber, electrician, roofer, locksmith	`Plumber`, `Electrician`, `RoofingContractor`, `Locksmith`
Builder or general contractor	`GeneralContractor`
Accountant or bookkeeper	`AccountingService`
Solicitor or law firm office	`LegalService`
Dentist, clinic, GP practice	`Dentist`, `MedicalClinic`, `Physician`
Salon, barber, gym	`HairSalon`, `BeautySalon`, `ExerciseGym`
Agency or consultancy with an office	`ProfessionalService`

If you genuinely do several things, Google accepts an array of types, for example ["Electrician", "Plumber"]. It says additionalType isn’t supported for this.

The fields that matter

name and address are the required properties. Fill in as many address parts as you can: street, town (addressLocality), postcode and addressCountry (GB).
telephone should be your main customer number, including the country code.
url should be the working page for that location.
openingHoursSpecification lists days with opens and closes times. Google’s docs explain how to mark 24-hour opening, closed days and seasonal closures.
priceRange must be under 100 characters, or Google won’t show it. A plain range like “£60–£120” is fine.
geo takes latitude and longitude to at least five decimal places.
sameAs (an Organization property) can link to your official profiles, such as your Google Business Profile, Companies House record or a regulator listing.

An example for a UK business

This is example data for a made-up business. Replace every value with your own details exactly as they appear on your page.

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Plumber",
  "name": "Example Plumbing Ltd",
  "url": "https://www.example.co.uk/",
  "telephone": "+44 113 496 0000",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "1 Example Street",
    "addressLocality": "Leeds",
    "postalCode": "LS1 1AA",
    "addressCountry": "GB"
  },
  "areaServed": ["Leeds", "Bradford", "Wakefield"],
  "priceRange": "£60–£120 per hour",
  "openingHoursSpecification": [{
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"],
    "opens": "08:00",
    "closes": "18:00"
  }],
  "sameAs": ["https://www.example-directory.co.uk/example-plumbing"]
}
</script>

Mistakes to avoid

Marking up things visitors can’t see. Google’s general structured data guidelines say not to mark up content that isn’t visible to readers of the page. If your hours or prices aren’t on the page, add them there first.
Adding your own star rating. Google lists review and aggregateRating for LocalBusiness only for sites that capture reviews about other local businesses. Don’t paste your Google rating into your own schema.
Details that disagree. A different phone number or old address in your schema, website footer and Google Business Profile makes your business harder to verify.
Forgetting to update it. Change your schema when you move, change hours or change your number.
Treating a plugin as done. SEO plugins often add generic markup. Check what they output and that the type is right for you.

How to test it

Run your page through Google’s Rich Results Test and fix critical errors.
Check it in the Schema Markup Validator, which reads all schema.org types, not only those Google shows as rich results.
Use our free AI visibility check, which looks for business schema on your homepage alongside AI crawler access.

Frequently asked questions

What is LocalBusiness schema?

LocalBusiness schema is structured data, usually in JSON-LD, that states a business’s name, address, phone number, opening hours and type using the schema.org vocabulary, so search engines and other tools can read those facts reliably.

Does schema markup help with ChatGPT?

OpenAI doesn’t publish a list of schema types ChatGPT uses, and Google says no special structured data is needed for its AI features. Accurate schema helps by stating your core business facts clearly and consistently; it isn’t a shortcut into AI answers.

What fields are required for LocalBusiness schema?

Google lists name and address as required. It recommends adding telephone, url, openingHoursSpecification, priceRange and geo, plus Organization fields.

Can I add my Google star rating to my own schema?

No. Google lists review and aggregateRating for LocalBusiness only for sites that capture reviews about other local businesses, so don’t mark up your own rating on your own site.

How do I test my schema?

Use Google’s Rich Results Test to check eligibility and errors, and the Schema Markup Validator to check all schema.org markup on the page.