Bing, Apple Maps and the Search Engines Most Small Businesses Ignore

Most small businesses fix their Google listing and stop there. That leaves real customers on the table. Bing handles about 1 in 10 US searches and nearly 1 in 5 on desktop. It also feeds Microsoft Copilot. Apple Maps is built into every iPhone. Both listings are free, and you can set up each one in about an hour.

Key takeaways

• Bing held 9.89% of US search in September 2026 and 18.80% of US desktop search, per StatCounter.
• Microsoft Copilot pulls web answers from Bing, so a missing Bing presence can mean a missing AI answer.
• Apple folded Business Connect into a free platform called Apple Business in April 2026. That is now where you claim your Apple Maps listing.

How much search actually happens outside Google?

About 15% of US searches happen somewhere other than Google. StatCounter's September 2026 numbers put Google at 85.19% across all devices. Bing is next at 9.89%, then Yahoo at 2.64% and DuckDuckGo at 1.75%. On desktop the gap shrinks a lot. Bing reaches 18.80% there.

That desktop number matters for service businesses. Plenty of buying happens at a desk. Office managers book vendors, facility teams request quotes, and older homeowners often research on a laptop. Many of those computers run Windows with Edge set as the default browser, and Edge searches with Bing unless someone changes it.

Mobile is a different story. Google holds 94.13% of US mobile search, and Bing sits at 2.15%. So the case for Bing is mostly a desktop case. The case for Apple Maps, covered below, is a mobile case.

US search engine share, September 2026. Source: StatCounter Global Stats.

One more detail raises Bing's real reach. DuckDuckGo says it sources most of its traditional links and images from Bing. So a page Bing has never indexed is likely missing from DuckDuckGo's regular results too.

Why does Bing matter more now that people search with AI?

Bing now feeds AI answers, not just blue links. Microsoft's documentation says Copilot sends a search query to the Bing search service when it needs web information. OpenAI says ChatGPT search partners with outside search providers, and industry analysts link it to Bing's index. If Bing cannot find you, those tools may not either.

Here is how the pieces fit together, based on what each company has published:

• Microsoft Copilot. Microsoft states that when web search is on, Copilot "may fetch information from the Bing search service" to ground its answers. That is a direct, documented link.
• ChatGPT search. OpenAI's help page says ChatGPT search "sometimes partners with other search providers." It does not name them, but it links to Microsoft's privacy statement. Search Engine Land's analysis put it plainly: if Bing does not have your page, ChatGPT likely does not either.
• DuckDuckGo. As noted above, its standard results lean largely on Bing.

Be careful with the ChatGPT part. Ranking well on Bing does not guarantee a mention in ChatGPT. ChatGPT uses its own system to pick and order sources. But being in Bing's index is the floor. A page that Bing never crawled is a page that cannot be cited.

This is the main reason we tell owners to stop treating Bing as an afterthought. The share of people who start a search in an AI tool is still small. BrightLocal's 2025 survey of 1,000 US adults found 5% default to ChatGPT for general searches. But 40% said they actively use generative AI features when searching. That group is growing, and it is cheap to be ready for it.

What is Apple Business, and what happened to Business Connect?

Apple Business is Apple's free platform for managing how your company shows up on Apple Maps and other Apple apps. Apple announced it in March 2026 and launched it on April 14, 2026. It replaced Apple Business Connect, Apple Business Essentials and Apple Business Manager. Claiming your Maps location now happens there.

If you read an older guide that tells you to go to Business Connect, the steps are close, but the name and sign-in have changed. Apple says the core service is free in the US. The brand tools carried over from Business Connect include:

• Place cards with photos, hours and location details.
• Showcases for a current deal or new product.
• Custom actions such as order, reserve or book an appointment.
• Location insights showing searches, views and taps on your listing.

Apple also said in its 2026 announcement that ads in Apple Maps would come to the US and Canada that summer. Ads appear at the top of Maps search results and in a Suggested Places section, and they are labeled as ads. That is one more reason to claim your listing now. Paid placements will sit right next to the free listings people already tap.

Why Apple Maps at all? Apple's own figures put the reach of its business tools at more than a billion Apple users across Maps, Messages, Wallet, Siri and other apps. In the US, StatCounter shows Apple devices at 53.58% of mobile use in September 2026. When someone asks Siri for a nearby plumber, the answer is not coming from your Google profile.

How many businesses have actually claimed these listings?

Fewer than you would think, which is the opportunity. A 2023 BrightLocal poll of 384 of its own customers found 58% had not claimed their Apple Maps listing, and 59% were not aware of Business Connect's tools. Those are agency and marketer customers, so the wider small business picture is likely worse.

Bing has a similar gap. Microsoft rebuilt Bing Places in October 2025 after research showed owners had trouble finding the portal to claim their businesses. Microsoft said the redesign aimed to make the portal easier to find, simpler to use and easier to import into. When the platform owner admits people could not find the front door, you can assume many of your competitors never walked through it.

An unclaimed listing is not the same as no listing. Apple and Bing both build place data from other sources. That means your business may already appear with an old phone number, wrong hours or a pin on the wrong building. Claiming it lets you fix what customers see.

How do you set up Bing Places using your Google listing?

Go to Bing Places for Business, now located at bing.com/forbusiness, and choose to import from Google. Bing pulls your name, hours, phone and other details from your Google Business Profile. Review everything, fill in what is missing, complete verification, and you are done. Most owners finish in under an hour.

Microsoft's October 2025 relaunch moved the tool off the old bingplaces.com address. It also rebuilt the Google import. Microsoft described the new flow as faster and better at keeping key details like business name, hours and contact information. Here is the order we use:

1. Clean up Google first. The import copies whatever is there. Fix hours, categories and your service description in your Google Business Profile before you start.
2. Sign in at bing.com/forbusiness with a Microsoft account your business controls, not a staff member's personal login.
3. Import from Google. Select the locations you want to bring over.
4. Review every field. Check the address format, phone number, website link and categories. Imports are good, not perfect.
5. Add what Google did not send. Bing's new Recommendation Tool suggests missing items such as photos, hours, website and social links.
6. Verify. Complete whichever verification method Bing offers your listing, then watch the dashboard until the status shows it is live.

Do not stop at the listing. Bing also runs Bing Webmaster Tools, the Microsoft version of Google Search Console. You can import your verified sites and sitemaps straight from Search Console, which skips manual verification. That tells Bing where your pages are, which helps both Bing search and the AI tools that draw on it.

How do you claim your business on Apple Maps?

Sign in to Apple Business, verify your organization, then go to Brands, then Locations, and add your business. Search for it if it already appears on Maps, or create it as new. Set the map pin, category, phone and hours. Existing locations can be verified by a phone call with a four-digit code.

Apple's support guide walks through each step. A few points save time:

• Allow Apple's email. Apple tells you to make sure your filters accept mail from apple.com domains. Verification notices land there.
• Move the pin if needed. Use the Hybrid or Satellite view to put the pin on your actual entrance. A pin on the wrong building sends customers to the wrong door.
• Check the phone number on file. Phone verification calls the number Apple already has. If that number is old, contact Apple Business support.
• Someone else manages it? If another organization controls your location, you can request a transfer. Apple asks for proof such as a business license or utility bill, and review can take up to five business days.

Once you are live, add real photos, a Showcase if you have an offer, and a custom action that links to your booking page. Apple's earlier Business Connect tools also included Branded Mail, which shows your logo in the Mail app, and Business Caller ID for verified businesses. Check which of these your account offers.

Which listing should you fix first?

Start with Google, since everything else copies from it. Then do Bing, because the import makes it fast and it feeds Copilot. Then claim Apple Maps, which takes a bit more care but reaches iPhone users and Siri. After that, keep all three matching. Mismatched details hurt more than a missing listing.

Then build a simple habit. Each time something changes, update all of them in one sitting:

• Holiday and seasonal hours
• A new phone number or call tracking number
• A move, new service area or new location
• New services or a new booking link
• Fresh photos every few months

The work is not hard. It is just easy to forget. That is why so many listings outside Google sit unclaimed or out of date.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bing worth the time for a small business?

Yes, for most service businesses. Setup takes about an hour if your Google listing is already in good shape, because Bing Places can import it. In return you show up for roughly one in ten US searches, nearly one in five desktop searches, and in tools like Copilot that pull from Bing. Few local competitors bother, so the field is thin.

Do I need an iPhone to manage my Apple Maps listing?

No. Apple Business, the platform that replaced Apple Business Connect in April 2026, runs in a web browser on any computer. You sign in on the Apple Business website, verify your organization, then add or claim your location. If your business already shows on Apple Maps, Apple may verify it with a phone call that gives you a four-digit code.

Does ChatGPT use Bing or Google?

OpenAI does not name its search partners on its help page. It says ChatGPT search works with outside search providers and links to Microsoft's privacy statement. Industry analysts at Search Engine Land concluded in 2024 that ChatGPT search draws on Bing's index. The safe move is to make sure Bing can find and index your site, since that costs you nothing.

Will a Bing Places listing hurt my Google ranking?

No. Bing and Google run separate systems, and a Bing listing does not change how Google ranks you. The only risk is mismatched details. If your name, address, phone or hours differ between platforms, customers get confused and search engines get mixed signals. Import from Google, then keep both listings matching every time something changes.

How often should I update these listings?

Check each one at least every quarter and any time your hours, phone number, address or services change. Holiday hours are the most common miss. Put a recurring reminder on your calendar, and update Google, Bing and Apple in the same sitting so the three never drift apart. It takes about fifteen minutes once they are set up.

The bottom line

Google gets most of the attention, but Bing, the AI tools that draw on it, and Apple Maps reach a large share of your buyers. Claiming these listings is free and takes an afternoon. Most of your competitors have not done it. If you want help getting all of them right, Book a free call with Mike. Or run the free 60-second check to see how visible your business is in search and AI answers today.

Sources

• StatCounter: Search engine market share, United States, all platforms
• StatCounter: Desktop search engine market share, United States
• StatCounter: Mobile search engine market share, United States
• StatCounter: Mobile vendor market share, United States
• Microsoft Learn: Data, privacy, and security for web search in Microsoft Copilot
• OpenAI Help Center: ChatGPT search
• Search Engine Land: ChatGPT Search makes Microsoft Bing an SEO priority
• DuckDuckGo Help: Where do DuckDuckGo search results come from?
• Microsoft Bing Blog: Introducing the New Bing Places for Business (October 2025)
• Bing Webmaster Blog: Import sites from Search Console to Bing Webmaster Tools
• Apple Newsroom: Introducing Apple Business (March 2026)
• Apple Support: Add a location in Apple Business
• Apple Newsroom: Introducing Apple Business Connect (January 2023)
• Apple Newsroom: Apple expands tools to help businesses connect with customers (October 2024)
• BrightLocal: Are Businesses Using Apple Business Connect? (2023 poll)
• BrightLocal: Consumer Search Behavior (2025)

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