How to set holiday hours on your Google Business Profile

Short answer: for a holiday or short break, use Special hours in your Business Profile (Edit profile → Hours → Special hours). For a closure longer than seven days, or one with no fixed end date, Google recommends marking the business Temporarily closed instead. Its help pages conflict about closures of exactly seven days; see the boundary below. If you're open as usual on a public holiday, it's still worth confirming those hours so customers can see they're accurate.

Below is how to do each, plus the details that commonly go wrong: overnight hours, multi-day breaks and remembering to undo a closure.

Why this is worth five minutes before every holiday

Regular weekly hours do not confirm your holiday schedule. Google may show a warning that hours could differ. Confirm your special hours so customers can check whether you are open. (Google Business Profile Help: About holidays)

Google's own help page puts it plainly: it suggests you confirm your hours for official holidays even when they're the same as your regular hours, because this makes it clear to customers that the hours are accurate. (Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours)

Special hours or "temporarily closed": which one to use

Google's special-hours page describes special hours for closures of up to six days and temporarily closed for seven or more. Its closed-business page says special hours for seven days or less and temporarily closed for longer closures. For a closure of exactly seven days, Google's help pages conflict. Check the current guidance before changing the profile; we cannot state one consistent Google rule for that boundary.

How to set special hours, step by step

These steps follow Google's help page for the Business Profile on the web.

1. Open your Business Profile (search for your business name on Google while signed in to the account that manages it).
2. Select Edit profile, then Hours.
3. Next to Special hours, select Edit (the pencil icon).
4. Choose the date:
   • If Google is suggesting an upcoming holiday, select Review to confirm it.
   • Otherwise select Add a date and enter it.
5. Set the hours for that date:
   • Closed all day: make sure Closed is ticked.
   • Open with different hours: untick Closed and enter the opening and closing times.
   • Open twice in one day (for example, a lunch and dinner session): select More, then Add hours.
6. Select Save.

(Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours)

One thing to check first: Google says special hours only appear if your regular hours are set to Open with main hours. If your profile has no main hours set, add them before you rely on special hours. (Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours; Edit your opening hours)

Hours that run past midnight

Google says a special-hours period cannot exceed 24 hours. For a period that starts before midnight and continues past noon the next day, split it at midnight. Its example uses 19:00–00:00 on the first date and 00:00–17:00 on the second. Re-enter any additional opening period on the second date. (Google Business Profile Help: How to set special hours)

In Google's documented example, the business also opens from 20:00–22:00 on the second date. The entries are:

• First date: 19:00–00:00
• Second date: 00:00–17:00, plus a second period of 20:00–22:00

Adding special hours for the second date replaces that date's regular hours, so include every period you intend to open. These are Google's documented examples; check the entries and public result for your own profile.

Check the result on your public profile after saving.

How to mark your business temporarily closed (for longer breaks)

1. Open your Business Profile and select Edit profile, then Hours.
2. In the business hours section, select the edit control and choose Temporarily closed.
3. Select Save.

Your profile will then show "Temporarily closed" on Google Maps and Search. (Google Business Profile Help: Mark your business as closed)

Two things to know before you use it:

• It can affect visibility. Google says temporarily closed businesses can rank below open businesses for broad searches, depending on the category, the type of search and how many similar businesses are also closed. (source) That's a reason not to use this setting for a one- or two-day closure.
• Remember to mark your business as reopened when you resume trading. Put a reminder in your calendar for the day you reopen, and follow Google's steps to mark your business as reopened.

Dates to plan for in Singapore

The Ministry of Manpower publishes the official public holiday list. As at October 2026, the remaining dates this year are Deepavali on Sunday 8 November (with Monday 9 November a holiday for those whose rest day falls on the Sunday) and Christmas Day on Friday 25 December. The 2027 list begins with New Year's Day on Friday 1 January and Chinese New Year on 6–7 February. Monday 8 February is also a public holiday for employees whose rest day falls on Sunday 7 February. Always check the MOM public holidays page for the current list.

Many businesses also change hours on days that aren't public holidays, such as Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and the eve of Chinese New Year. Google's suggested dates won't necessarily cover those, so add them yourself with Add a date.

A quick pre-holiday checklist

• ☐ Regular hours are set to Open with main hours.
• ☐ Every public holiday in the period is either confirmed as normal or set to special hours.
• ☐ Eves and half-days are added as custom dates.
• ☐ Check overnight entries and any additional hours on the following date.
• ☐ Longer closures use Temporarily closed, with a calendar reminder to reopen.
• ☐ Hours on your website, social pages and WhatsApp Business away message match what's on Google.
• ☐ You've checked the public profile on your phone after saving.

Common mistakes

• Only posting about the closure. A Google post or a social media update is easy to miss. Customers may rely on the hours shown on your profile.
• Using "temporarily closed" for a single public holiday. Use special hours to show a closure for that date.
• Forgetting the eves. An early Christmas Eve closing can catch customers out too.
• Skipping a review of upcoming dates. Special hours apply only to the dates you set. Review the upcoming holiday period for missing or incorrect entries.