Heights Audit
A written read of your live profile that names the gaps and what to do about them. You can act on it yourself, or hand it to us.
Five clear written gaps in five business days, or you don’t pay.
Pricing guide
Google Business Profile management cost in South Africa
Google doesn’t charge for a Google Business Profile. What you pay for is someone’s time to set it up, fix it or look after it. This guide gives a plain answer to what Google Business Profile management costs in South Africa, what drives the price, and what each Local Heights plan includes.
The short answer
At Local Heights, review plans start at R249 a month: Watch R249 (up to 10 replies), Reviews Answered R399 (up to 20), Profile Active R499 (up to 30). Month to month, no sign-up fee, every review within one business day. Hands-on Heights Care is R1,490, R2,200 or R2,900 a month. A once-off Heights Audit costs R1,990, R2,900 or R3,900. Heights Launch, the setup of one new or unclaimed profile, is R690 once-off, or included when you choose Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months.
Prices are in rand and published in full. Add-ons start at R800 for Reply Rescue and R1,000 for Photo Lift. The same prices apply in Cape Town and Durban.
Review plans at a glance
Three month-to-month plans, no sign-up fee, 30 days’ notice either way. Every new review answered within one business day, up to your plan’s monthly number. You stay the owner of your Google profile; we only use manager access, never your password.
- Watch · R249/mo — up to 10 review replies (you post the ready reply we send on WhatsApp)
- Reviews Answered · R399/mo — we reply for you, up to 20 a month
- Profile Active · R499/mo — we reply for you, up to 30 a month, plus holiday hours and a short monthly note
Does Google charge for a Business Profile?
No. Google doesn’t charge for a Business Profile. It says you can manage how your business shows up on Maps and Search “at no charge”, and that you can add or claim your business at no charge.
So when a provider charges you, the fee is for their work: setting the profile up, keeping it accurate, writing posts, adding photos and replying to reviews. Google’s own rules for agencies say a manager who charges a fee must tell you the Business Profile itself is a service provided at no extra cost.
What drives the cost
Google Business Profile management is mostly skilled time. These are the things that change how much of it a profile needs.
Review volume and reply speed
A busy restaurant with daily reviews needs more replies than a quiet practice, and a firm reply time costs more than best effort. That is the main difference between Care Essential and Care Standard.
The starting point
A profile with wrong categories, old hours or a backlog of unanswered reviews needs work before monthly care makes sense. That is what the Heights Audit and Reply Rescue are for.
Photos and extras
Photo cadence comes with Care Standard and Plus. On-site shoot days are a Photo Lift add-on, and priority WhatsApp and competitor watch come with Care Plus. Each adds time, so each sits in a higher tier or an add-on.
No profile yet
If your business has no Google profile, or it has never been claimed, it needs building before it can be managed. That’s Heights Launch: R690 once-off, or included when you choose Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months.
Once-off or monthly?
Heights Care
Ongoing care: monitoring, review replies (fair use on Essential), 4 Google posts a month and holiday hours on every tier, with photo cadence on Standard and Plus. Outside the Launch plan, Heights Care stays month to month, with 30 days’ notice.
You keep ownership of your Google Business Profile.
Heights Launch
Create or claim, verification help, full first build, you stay the owner. R690 once-off, or included when you choose Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months.
What each plan includes
| Heights Launch (once-off) | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Heights Launch | R690 | Create or claim, verification help, full first build, you stay the owner |
| Launch with Care Standard or Plus | Included | Included when you choose Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months |
| Launch with Care Essential | R690 | Launch is not included with Care Essential |
- If you leave Care, or move down to Essential, within the 3 full paid months, the R690 Launch fee becomes payable.
- One location per Launch. Already have a verified profile? Start with the Heights Audit.
- Cancelling and refunds, including the 3-month rule: Refund and Cancellation Policy.
| Heights Audit (once-off) | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Snapshot Audit | R1,990 | Your 5 biggest gaps + short debrief |
| Full Heights Audit most clients | R2,900 | Full report + reply samples + 90-day roadmap |
| Audit + Sprint | R3,900 | Full Audit + 10 business days of implementation |
| Heights Care (monthly) | Price | Includes (summary) |
|---|---|---|
| Care Essential | R1,490 / month | Monitoring + review replies (fair use) + 4 Google posts / month. Best-effort same business day (no credit SLA) |
| Care Standard most clients | R2,200 / month | Everything in Essential + 4h reply SLA + photo cadence + monthly note |
| Care Plus | R2,900 / month | Everything in Standard + higher volume + priority WhatsApp + competitor watch |
Every new Google review answered within 4 business hours (Mon to Fri 08:00 to 18:00 SAST) on Care Standard & Plus, or that month’s Care fee is credited. Clock pauses only when we need a client-only factual answer.
All Care tiers: 4 Google posts a month, and Google holiday and special hours kept up to date. Outside the Launch plan, Heights Care stays month to month, with 30 days’ notice. Add-ons: Reply Rescue from R800 (volume bands up to R2,000), Photo Lift from R1,000 (on-site shoot day quoted separately).
How Google Business Profile management is usually priced
When you compare providers in South Africa, you will tend to see a few structures.
Common structures
- A setup or optimisation fee, then a monthly retainer
- Google Business Profile work bundled into a wider SEO or marketing retainer
- Software subscriptions where you do the work in a dashboard
- Once-off optimisation with no ongoing care
Questions worth asking
- Is the price published, and is it monthly, once-off or both?
- Who writes the review replies, and how quickly?
- How long is the contract, and what is the notice period?
- Do you stay the owner of your Google Business Profile?
- Will you be the Owner on Google, with the provider added as a Manager?
- If you leave, how quickly do they remove themselves from your profile?
Looking for the price list?
This guide explains how Google Business Profile management is priced. Our pricing page is the rate card: every tier, add-on and term in one place, with a printable version.
Pricing questions
How much does Google Business Profile management cost in South Africa?
At Local Heights, a once-off Heights Audit is R1,990 (Snapshot), R2,900 (Full Heights Audit) or R3,900 (Audit + Sprint). Monthly Heights Care is R1,490 (Essential), R2,200 (Standard) or R2,900 (Plus). Heights Launch, for a new or unclaimed profile, is R690 once-off, or included with Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months.
Does Google charge for a Business Profile?
No. Google doesn’t charge for a Business Profile. A provider’s fee is for their work on it, such as setup, posts, photos and review replies.
Is it a once-off fee or monthly?
Both options exist. The Heights Audit and Heights Launch are once-off. Heights Care is monthly: month to month with 30 days’ notice, except on the 3-month Launch plan with Care Standard or Plus.
What makes one plan cost more than another?
Mainly review volume, how quickly replies must go out, how often photos are refreshed and whether you want extras such as priority WhatsApp and competitor watch.
What is the review reply SLA?
Every new Google review answered within 4 business hours (Mon to Fri 08:00 to 18:00 SAST) on Care Standard & Plus, or that month’s Care fee is credited. Clock pauses only when we need a client-only factual answer.
Are there setup fees?
Heights Care has no setup fee for a profile that’s already verified. If you have no profile yet, or it was never claimed, it needs Heights Launch: R690 once-off, or included when you choose Care Standard or Plus on a plan of 3 full paid months. Many owners with a verified profile start with a Heights Audit instead.
Where can I see the full price list?
Our pricing page lists every tier, add-on and term in one table: localheights.co.za/pricing.
Start with a clear written plan
Book a Heights Audit, or WhatsApp your Google listing link and we’ll take a look.
[email protected] · WhatsApp 075 330 9812