LocalBusiness Schema: Establishing Your Business Entity for Local AI Query Answers
LocalBusiness schema is structured data you add to your website that tells Google who you are, where you are, when you're open, and what you do - in a format machines can read perfectly. When AI systems answer 'Is [business] open now?' or 'Where is [business]?', they rely on LocalBusiness schema. It's the machine-readable ID card for your business that AI systems read and trust.
LocalBusiness schema provides the structured NAP (name, address, phone), hours, geo-coordinates, and service descriptions that AI systems use to answer local queries. With over 200 schema.org subtypes, choosing the most specific applicable subtype improves local entity classification precision and unlocks subtype-specific properties that directly answer queries unique to your business category.
See also: Local AEO Basics and sameAs Entity Linking.
Entity Layer Diagram - sameAs Network
LocalBusiness Subtypes
@type: Restaurant - Subtype-Specific Properties
Restaurant subtype enables Google to answer 'What cuisine does X serve?', 'Does X accept reservations?', and 'What's on the menu at X?' - high-value local AI queries. Always include hasMenu with a URL to a machine-readable menu page.
Complete Schema Pattern
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": ["LocalBusiness", "ProfessionalService"],
"@id": "https://acmeseo.com/#local-business",
"name": "Acme SEO Agency",
"url": "https://acmeseo.com",
"telephone": "+1-555-0100",
"email": "[email protected]",
"description": "AEO and technical SEO consulting for Bay Area businesses.",
"address": {
"@type": "PostalAddress",
"streetAddress": "123 Market Street, Suite 400",
"addressLocality": "San Francisco",
"addressRegion": "CA",
"postalCode": "94105",
"addressCountry": "US"
},
"geo": {
"@type": "GeoCoordinates",
"latitude": 37.7937,
"longitude": -122.3965
},
"openingHoursSpecification": [{
"@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
"dayOfWeek": ["Monday","Tuesday","Wednesday","Thursday","Friday"],
"opens": "09:00",
"closes": "18:00"
}],
"priceRange": "$$",
"areaServed": {
"@type": "GeoCircle",
"geoMidpoint": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": 37.7937, "longitude": -122.3965 },
"geoRadius": "50000"
},
"sameAs": [
"https://www.google.com/maps/place/acme-seo-sf",
"https://www.yelp.com/biz/acme-seo-agency",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/acme-seo"
]
}