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How to Fix Wrong Business Information in Google AI Overviews
You can’t edit an AI Overview, but you can fix what it reads. The order that works, Google’s feedback route, and how long the change takes.
By AnswerMentions ResearchPublished Jul 8, 2026Updated Oct 11, 20267 min read
Bottom line
You can’t edit a Google AI Overview. You can fix what it reads. Capture the wrong answer, trace its source, correct your Business Profile, your own pages and the listings, then report the answer and request recrawls. Expect days to weeks, because the docs we checked give no timeline for the overview itself.
Key takeaways
- No form edits an AI Overview. Google’s help page describes only the thumbs-down report.
- Wrong facts usually trace to a Business Profile field, an old listing or your own pages. Fix those first.
- Screenshot the answer first. An AI Overview version lasts about two days, so a change may not be your fix.
How we checked this: Checked on 2026-10-11 against Google’s AI Overviews, Business Profile and Search Console help pages, Google Search Central documentation, and published studies from Ahrefs and arXiv. Undated help pages were read on that date. We did not test these fixes on a live business. The docs we checked give no timeline for when an overview changes after a source is corrected, so the timing section adds Google’s per-step figures and labels the result as our reading.
AnswerMentions sells its own AI visibility audit, which appears in some comparisons on this page. No vendor paid for placement or reviewed this article before publication.
Can you edit a Google AI Overview?
No. Owners cannot edit an AI Overview, and Google’s help page describes no correction process beyond a thumbs-down report. Your fix has two parts: report the answer to Google, and correct the pages, profiles and listings the overview reads. The second part is the one you control.
Google says AI Overviews can and will make mistakes. To report one, click the thumbs-down, choose “Report a problem,” pick a category and submit.
Then fix the sources. A page must be indexed and eligible to show with a snippet before an overview can link to it, so correct pages give the next overview something better to read. If your business is missing rather than wrong, start with why your business isn’t appearing in Google AI Overviews.
Step 1: Capture the wrong answer
Screenshot the whole AI Overview now, with the exact query, the date and every cited link. The overview can change within days, so this record is your proof of what Google said and your baseline for every retest. Take it before you edit anything.
Ahrefs tracked 43,000+ keywords and found an AI Overview has a 70% chance of changing between observations, with one version lasting about 2.15 days. Without a record, you can’t tell a real fix from a coincidence.
- The query, word for word, plus your device, location and sign-in state.
- The full overview text and every link it cites.
- The date and time.
- The correct answer, written once, so every fix uses the same facts.
Step 2: Find the source the AI Overview used
Open every cited link and compare it with the wrong claim. A page that states the wrong fact is your target. If the cited pages say the right thing, Google’s summary is at fault and only the feedback route applies. Search the wrong phrase in quotes for uncited sources too.
Don’t assume the culprit ranks well. Ahrefs studied 863,000 SERPs and found only 37.9% of AI Overview citations come from the top 10, while 31.0% come from outside the top 100. The source can be a page you have never heard of.
Sometimes the source is right and the summary isn’t: a study of 98,020 claims found 11.0% unsupported by the cited pages. Match your error to its likely origin below, and use the missing source map to prioritize recurring directories.
| Error you see | Where it usually comes from | Where to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong hours or “closed” | Your Business Profile or an old listing | Your Business Profile, then the listings |
| Wrong address or phone | An old directory listing, stale profile field or outdated site footer | Profile first, then each directory and your pages |
| Wrong prices or services | An old page on your site, or an article that quotes it | The page that states it, then request a recrawl |
| Wrong claim, such as “no free plan” | A review site, forum thread or competitor post | That site’s owner, plus the fact stated on your own page |
| Cited page is right, summary is wrong | Google’s summary of the page | The thumbs-down report; your pages are fine |
Free check
Check what other AI tools say about you
If Google’s AI Overview is wrong, ChatGPT and Perplexity may be too. The free audit shows what AI says about your business when buyers ask.
Step 3: Fix your Google Business Profile and your own site first
Fix your Business Profile and your own pages first, because you control both. Edit the profile, save, and wait for Google’s review. Then make your site, footer, contact page and markup say exactly the same thing. Two versions of a fact give Google two answers to choose from.
At business.google.com, choose Edit profile, change the field and Save. Google reviews edits before they go live. They usually take up to 10 minutes but can take up to 30 days. If Google can’t confirm an edit, it shows Not approved and you can appeal.
Then match your site: the same name, address, phone and hours on your home, contact and location pages. Google advises you to keep Business Profile info current and make structured data match what visitors see. Markup is housekeeping, not a lever.
Step 4: Correct third-party listings and directories
Correct every third-party page that repeats the wrong fact, starting with the ones the overview cited. Directories, review sites and local listings each have their own owner and update flow. Google can’t change those pages for you, so send each correction to the site that publishes it.
Search your business name plus city, then the wrong phrase in quotes, and list every result that repeats it. Fix the cited pages first. Where AI tools get company facts lists the directories worth checking.
Use each site’s claim or correction form, give the same details every time and keep a dated record. A site that never updates is one source among many, so make everything you control agree.
Step 5: Send feedback to Google and request recrawls
File the thumbs-down report as soon as you have your screenshot, then ask Google to recrawl each page you fixed. In the overview, click thumbs-down, choose Report a problem, pick a category and submit. In Search Console, paste the URL into URL Inspection and click Request indexing.
The three-dot menu is another way into the report. Recrawl requests only make sense after the page is corrected.
Google says indexing typically takes a day or so but can take up to a week or two. There is a daily limit and no guarantee. Asking again won’t speed up the crawl, so for many URLs submit a sitemap.
How long until the AI Overview changes?
Plan for days to several weeks, with no guaranteed date. The docs we checked give times for some steps but none for the overview itself. A profile edit can go live in minutes or take 30 days, and indexing takes a day to two weeks.
Add Google’s worst cases, 30 days for a profile edit plus two weeks for indexing, and one fix can take about six weeks. The best case is about a day. That range is our arithmetic, not a Google promise. Crawling can take a few days to a few weeks, and the docs we checked give no date for your query’s next rebuild.
Retest the same query weekly from the same device and location. Log each result. If nothing moves after a month, confirm the source pages are indexed and correct, then repeat Step 2.
Tools to see why AI Overviews cite wrong info
Three checks show why an overview cites wrong information: reading the cited links, Search Console’s URL Inspection, and an audit of what other AI tools say. None forces a correction, but each shows which source feeds the error and where to fix it.
Start free: reread the cited links and use URL Inspection to confirm your corrected page is indexed. Then check other AI tools. A free AI visibility audit asks AI the questions your buyers ask and shows which brands get named instead of you.
If ChatGPT repeats the mistake, see fixing wrong business information in ChatGPT. If Perplexity cites a bad page, see what to do when Perplexity cites the wrong source.
Test the premise
See who AI recommends in your market.
Ask ChatGPT three real buyer questions about your market and see who it recommends, free, in about 90 seconds.
Reader questions
Frequently asked questions
Can I remove an AI Overview about my business?
Not by yourself. Google’s help page describes only the thumbs-down report, not a removal option. Google shows an overview only when it judges it additive to classic Search. Report a wrong answer, fix the sources behind it, and retest the same query.
Does Google Business Profile control AI Overviews?
Not directly. Google’s advice for AI search is to keep Business Profile info current, so fix it first. But overviews link to indexed web pages found through query fan-out, and the docs don’t say your profile alone decides what an overview says.
Will structured data fix wrong AI Overview answers?
Not by itself. Google says AI features need no special schema, and markup must match the visible text. LocalBusiness markup states your name, address, hours and phone clearly, which helps. The fix is still correcting the page, profile or listing that holds the wrong fact.
What if a website keeps publishing my old address?
Ask the site owner for a correction through its edit or claim form, and keep a dated record. You can’t force a third-party site to update. Make your profile, site and major listings agree, and use the thumbs-down report on any overview that still repeats the old address.
Sources and further reading
- Google Search Central: AI features documentationPages must be indexed and snippet-eligible to be linked; query fan-out; no special schema needed.
- Google Search Help: AI Overviews and reporting a problemAI Overviews can make mistakes; the thumbs-down “Report a problem” route.
- Google Business Profile Help: profile edits and review timesEdit review times (usually up to 10 minutes, sometimes up to 30 days) and edit statuses.
- Search Console Help: URL Inspection and Request indexingRequest indexing; indexing time, daily limit and no guarantee.
- Google Search Central: ask Google to recrawl your URLsCrawling can take a few days to a few weeks; repeat requests don’t speed it up.
- Google Search Central: LocalBusiness structured dataRequired and recommended properties; last updated 2026-09-08.
- Google Search Central blog: succeeding in AI search (May 2025)Guidance to keep Business Profile info current and structured data matched to visible content.
- Ahrefs: how often AI Overviews change43,000+ keywords; 70% chance of change between observations; a version lasts about 2.15 days.
- Ahrefs: AI Overview citations and the top 10863,000 SERPs; 37.9% of citations from the top 10; 31.0% from outside the top 100.
- Xu, Iqbal & Montgomery: AI Overviews claim-support study (arXiv)98,020 claims; 11.0% unsupported by the cited pages.
Continue reading
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