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County Donegal

SEO in Donegal: more customers from Google

Getting found on Google, for Donegal businesses. In October 2026 we checked where the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny turned up: Google Maps, the ordinary results, the ads and ChatGPT's answers. This page shows what we found, and one step to take in each place.

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A fold-out map of Donegal with Errigal, the mountain near Gweedore, an inlet reaching Letterkenny, a green pin, and a search bar and an answer bubble above itA fold-out map of Donegal with Errigal, the mountain near Gweedore, an inlet reaching Letterkenny, a green pin, and a search bar and an answer bubble above it
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In Letterkenny, the businesses at the top of Google Maps had fuller Google profiles than the rest. In October 2026, the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny had a median of 24.5 photos against 8 for the other 39 in the same lists, and all 20 listed their opening hours. So the profile comes first in the steps below, then the three other places a customer finds a business.

Four places

Where a customer in Letterkenny finds a business.

Each has its own section below, with what we found and one step to take.

Checked · Study by , founder · How we checked

I set the rules for this study: one town per county, the same five searches in each, the businesses Google Maps shows first, and no business named.

1 Google Maps

How do I get my business on Google Maps in Letterkenny?

Claim your Google Business Profile and fill it in: that profile is your listing on Google Maps. In October 2026 the top four in each Letterkenny Maps list had slightly more reviews than the rest and sat at the same distance from the centre: a median of 18.5 reviews against 17 for the other 39 businesses in the same lists, and a median of 0.6 km from Letterkenny town centre for both.

Where they stood out was the profile itself: 18 of the 20 had claimed theirs, against 24 of the 39 further down, and they had a median of 24.5 photos against 8. Letterkenny's top four had a median rating of 4.9, against 4.8 for the rest.

Only four of the 26 towns in our county study had a lower median for reviews at the top than Letterkenny's 18.5, and Carlow's was the same. And two of Letterkenny's 20 had a booking link on their Google profile; only Cork, Dublin, Limerick and Roscommon had a higher share, and across all 26 it was 35 of the 505 businesses Google Maps showed first.

Three review cards stacked, each with a row of five stars, beside a map pinThree review cards stacked, each with a row of five stars, beside a map pin

Distance from Letterkenny town centre

Rest of the list: 0.1 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.1 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.2 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.2 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.2 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.3 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.5 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.5 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.5 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.6 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.6 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.7 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.7 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 0.8 km from the centreRest of the list: 1 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.1 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.7 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.9 km from the centreRest of the list: 1.9 km from the centreRest of the list: 2.4 km from the centreRest of the list: 2.5 km from the centreRest of the list: 2.6 km from the centreRest of the list: 12.1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.3 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.3 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.3 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.3 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.4 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.5 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 0.7 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 1.1 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 1.2 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 1.9 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 2.4 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 4.7 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 9.2 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 9.2 km from the centreTop four in Google Maps: 18.5 km from the centre
  • Top four in Google Maps 20
  • Rest of the list 39
Each dot is one business, placed by its distance and direction from Letterkenny town centre. 10 of the 20 top-four businesses sit within 0.5 km, against 18 of the 39 others. The rings are real distances; the space between them is squeezed so the crowded centre can be read.
Show the numbers
Distance from the centreTop four in Google MapsRest of the list
0 to 0.5 km1018
0.5 to 1 km211
1 to 2 km36
2 to 5 km23
5 to 10 km20
over 10 km11

The top four against the rest of the list

  • Top four in Google Maps
  • Rest of the list

Reviews (median)

18.5
17

Photos (median)

24.5
8

Distance from Letterkenny town centre (median)

0.6 km
0.6 km

Shorter is closer.

Rating (median)

4.9
4.8

Check where you show up

Search your trade and your town on your phone, from where your customers are, and note where you sit in the map.

Then open your Google profile and check that your hours, photos and services are all there and up to date.

Claim or check your Google Business Profile
The profile and reviews, in numbers

The Google profile

  • Top four in Google Maps
  • Rest of the list

Opening hours listed

20 of 20
31 of 39

Profile claimed by the owner

18 of 20
24 of 39

Website linked on the profile

11 of 20
14 of 39

Booking link on the profile

2 of 20
2 of 39

Reviews at the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first

  • 7 of 20 had a new review in the 30 days before our check
  • 10 of 20 replied to at least one of their ten newest reviews

Not every profile shows every figure: the top four's median rating is over the 18 with a figure and the median rating for the rest is over the 35 with a figure.

"Website linked on the profile" counts any web address in the profile's website field, a Facebook page or a site that no longer works included. "A website of their own" counts only the business's own working site, wherever we found it.

Local SEO

What the top four have in common

What the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny had in common.

  • More reviews

    A median of 18.5 reviews, against 17 for the rest of the Maps list.

  • The same distance from the centre

    A median of 0.6 km from Letterkenny town centre, the same as the rest.

  • Their Google profile

    18 of 20 have claimed it and all 20 list their hours, against 24 and 31 of the 39 further down.

  • A website of their own

    13 of 20, against 10 of the 39 further down the list: somewhere to send a customer from the profile to check a price, call or book.

That is what they share. It is not proof of what put them there: Google doesn't publish how it ranks the map. And we searched from Letterkenny town centre, so a customer searching from somewhere else can see a different map.

Across the 112 searches in our all-Ireland study, comparing businesses inside the same search, more reviews went with a higher place on the map in 89% of searches, and being closer to the town centre in 96%.

Your own website works on the list under the map: across our five Letterkenny searches, local businesses' own websites took 13 of the 50 places in the first ten ordinary results, and directories and listings took 14. A page of your own is how you take a place there in your own name, and it's where a customer goes from your Google profile to check a price, or to call or book.

A magnifying glass over a small map tile, its lens on the one green map pin among navy pins

Not in the map when customers search?

Pick a time for a free 15-minute call and tell us your business name and town. You'll get a straight read on your Google profile and where it shows up in the map.

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2 The ordinary results

How do I rank higher on Google in Letterkenny?

With a page of your own that answers the search. The ten ordinary results under the map box are web pages, not Google profiles. Across our five Letterkenny searches in October 2026, local businesses' own websites took 13 of those 50 places, and directories and listings took 14.

In Letterkenny, five of the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first made the first ten for their own search. Of the 13 local websites there, five belong to businesses outside the first 40 in Google Maps.

Across the 26 towns in our county study, 100 of the 505 businesses Google Maps showed first made the first ten for their own search. Letterkenny's five of 20 is over that: only six towns had a higher share, and Tralee and Kilkenny had the same.

A list of search results with a cursor on the top result, which is lit greenA list of search results with a cursor on the top result, which is lit green

What Google showed for each of the five Letterkenny searches

  • Local business website
  • Directory or listing
  • Social media page
  • News, forum or national chain
  • One of the top four
Show the numbers
SearchLocal business websiteDirectory or listingSocial media pageNews, forum or national chainOne of the top four
"plumber letterkenny"22241
"electrician letterkenny"34210
"cafe letterkenny"24222
"hairdresser letterkenny"13331
"physio letterkenny"51224
What the top-four sites we could read do
  • 4 of 10 read put the trade and the town in the page title
  • 3 of 10 read carry business schema, the code that tells Google what and where you are
  • 1 of 10 read posted on a blog in the last 12 months
  • 2 of 5 searches showed a question about price under "People also ask"

On 14 October 2026, Google showed an AI Overview above the results on one of the five Letterkenny searches: "cafe letterkenny".

Directories and listings took 14 of those 50, most often Tripadvisor with four and Yelp with three.

Social media pages took 11 of the 50 places. Social media

General SEO

3 Paying to appear

How do I get more leads from Google in Letterkenny?

Google ads put your business in the sponsored spots on the searches you pick, and you pay when someone clicks. In October 2026, two of the 13 Letterkenny businesses we could look up by web address had a Google ad shown in the 30 days before our check, going by Google's own ad records. Counting ads from any date, it was the same two.

When we searched, at about 3pm on 14 October 2026, none of the five searches showed an ad. That was a single look: ads can pause when the day's budget is spent, or be set to show only at some hours. Google's own estimate of what one click on an ad costs ran from €0.28 for "cafe letterkenny" to €1.84 for "plumber letterkenny".

Letterkenny's two of 13 with an ad in those 30 days is a little over the 26 towns in our county study together, 39 of 322, and level with Naas.

A megaphone beside a euro coin, with a price tag hanging from its handleA megaphone beside a euro coin, with a price tag hanging from its handle
Click costs and ad records, in numbers

What one click costs, by Google's estimate

  • "plumber letterkenny" €1.84 a click
  • "electrician letterkenny" €1.69 a click
  • "cafe letterkenny" €0.28 a click
  • "hairdresser letterkenny" €1.08 a click
  • "physio letterkenny" €0.88 a click

Google's own estimate of the average an advertiser pays for one click on an ad shown for that search. Google reports this estimate in US dollars; we converted it at the European Central Bank reference rate on 14 October 2026 (1 euro to 1.1195 US dollars). It is Google's estimate, not a Wagyu price.

Google ads: the businesses and the searches

  • 2 of 13 have ads in Google's ad records, from any date
  • 2 of 13 had an ad shown in the 30 days before our check
  • 0 of 5 searches showed an ad when we looked

Google's ad records are looked up by web address, so the seven with no website are left out.

Digital ads

4 AI answers

How do I get ChatGPT to name my business in Letterkenny?

With more reviews, a higher rating and a place on the sites it reads. Across our all-Ireland study, more reviews and a higher rating went with being named by ChatGPT. For Letterkenny, in October 2026, we asked ChatGPT, with web search on, "Who is a good [trade] in Letterkenny?" three times for each of the five trades. Directories and listing sites made up 23 of the 39 sources it cited.

ChatGPT named ten of the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny at least once, plus 14 others, seven of them outside the first 40 in Google Maps. Of the 24 businesses it named, 11 turned up in some answers and not others.

Across the 26 towns in our county study, ChatGPT named 275 of the 505 businesses Google Maps showed first. Letterkenny's ten of 20 is a little under that, level with four towns; only Dublin, Galway, Limerick, Castlebar and Longford had a lower share.

A speech bubble holding a short list, with the middle item tickedA speech bubble holding a short list, with the middle item ticked
Sources and site checks, in numbers

What ChatGPT cited: 39 sources across 15 answers

  • Directories and listings 23
  • Other 6
  • Official bodies 6
  • Local business websites 4

Each answer can cite several sources; 39 in all across the 15 answers.

On the 10 top-four Letterkenny sites we could read

  • 4 of 10 read have an FAQ section
  • 4 of 10 read let AI crawlers in (robots.txt)

AEO services

The websites

The websites of the same 20 businesses.

They have a page of their own: what the sites have, what they miss, and four fixes for a Letterkenny website.

Read web design in Donegal
A phone showing a shop's website with a green call button, beside a booking calendar

Not sure where you show up?

Send your website address and you'll get a straight read on how it shows up on Google, from the map to the ordinary results.

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A real person will get back to you.

See the SEO plans and prices

Steps you can take

Four steps for getting found in Donegal, each tied to a gap we measured in Letterkenny.

  1. Build up your reviews and keep your profile full

    10 of 20 businesses Google Maps showed first replied to none of their ten newest reviews

    Seven of the 20 at the top in Letterkenny had a new review in the 30 days before our check. Ask every customer for a review when the job's done, reply to each one, and keep adding photos: the top four had a median of 24.5 against 8 for the rest.

  2. Get into the ordinary results

    15 of 20 businesses Google Maps showed first did not make the first ten results for their own search

    Local businesses' own websites took 13 of the 50 places in the first ten on our Letterkenny searches. Give each service its own page, with the trade and Letterkenny in the page title (four of the ten Letterkenny sites we could read do), and answer what people ask. On our Letterkenny searches, Google's "People also ask" box asked "How much should a plumber charge for a call out?"

  3. Check your ads show when people search

    5 of 5 trade searches showed no ad when we looked

    Two of the 13 Letterkenny businesses we could look up had an ad shown in the 30 days before our check, yet none of our five searches showed one at about 3pm. If you run ads, look at your ad schedule and daily budget, and check from a phone at the times your customers search.

  4. Get listed where ChatGPT looks

    10 of 20 businesses Google Maps showed first were not named by ChatGPT

    ChatGPT cited directories and listing sites for 23 of its 39 sources on Letterkenny. Make sure each directory for your trade has your business with the same name, address and phone as your Google profile, plus your hours and the area you cover. Then keep the reviews coming: across our all-Ireland study, more reviews and a higher rating went with being named.

Where we can help

Our work

See the work we've done.

Every site here is real client work, live and public. Have a look around before you talk to us.

See all our work
Questions

What owners ask about getting found.

What do the businesses Google Maps shows first in Donegal have in common?

More reviews; they sat no closer to the centre. In October 2026, the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny, County Donegal, across plumbers, electricians, cafes, hairdressers and physio and physical therapy clinics, had a median of 18.5 reviews against 17 for the other 39 in the same lists, and sat the same median distance from Letterkenny town centre as the rest, 0.6 km. 18 of 20 had claimed their Google profile, and all 20 listed their hours. Across the 112 searches in our all-Ireland study, more reviews went with a higher place on the map in 89% of searches, and being closer to the centre in 96%.

Where does a website help a Letterkenny business get found?

In the ordinary results under the map. Across our five Letterkenny searches in October 2026, local businesses' own websites took 13 of the 50 places in the first ten, and five of those 13 belong to businesses outside the first 40 in Google Maps. A website is also where a customer goes from your Google profile to check a price or the area you cover, or to call or book.

Does ChatGPT recommend businesses in Letterkenny?

It names some. In October 2026 we asked ChatGPT, with web search on, "Who is a good [trade] in Letterkenny?" three times for each of five trades. It named ten of the 20 businesses Google Maps showed first in Letterkenny at least once, plus 14 others. Of the 24 it named, 13 turned up in all three answers for their trade and 11 in only some, so any single answer is one moment. Across our all-Ireland study, more reviews and a higher rating went with being named.

Is it worth paying for Google ads in Letterkenny?

It depends on what a job is worth to you against what a click costs. In October 2026, two of the 13 Letterkenny businesses we could look up had a Google ad shown in the 30 days before our check, but none of our five searches showed an ad at about 3pm. Google's own estimate of what one click on an ad costs ran from €0.28 for "cafe letterkenny" to €1.84 for "plumber letterkenny".

Digital ads

How did you choose the Letterkenny businesses?

We searched Google for plumbers, electricians, cafes, hairdressers and physio and physical therapy clinics in Letterkenny on 14 October 2026, on a phone, logged out, from Letterkenny town centre. From each Google Maps list we took the first four local businesses, after removing chains, wrong trades, duplicate listings and businesses outside the county: 20 in all. Four per trade is enough to count, but too few to compare one trade with another, so this page doesn't.

Do you only work with businesses in Letterkenny?

No. We work with businesses across Ireland. The study looked at Letterkenny because our method takes the biggest town in each county, and in County Donegal that is Letterkenny.

Michael Collins, founder of Wagyu Digital
MethodHow we checked
  • Checked October 2026. The searches ran on 14 October 2026 at about 3pm Irish time; ChatGPT was asked on 14 October 2026.
  • The 20 businesses are the first four local businesses in the Google Maps list for each of five trade searches. The searches ran on a phone, logged out, from Letterkenny town centre. Chains, wrong trades, duplicate listings and businesses outside the county were removed first. "The rest of the list" is everyone else in the same cleaned lists: 39 businesses.
  • "The first ten results for their own search" means the first ten ordinary results, under the map and the ads, for the business's trade-and-town search, such as "plumber letterkenny". Each result was put in one of four kinds: a local business's own website, a directory or listing, a social media page, or news, forums and national chains together.
  • Review figures come from each Google profile: the number of reviews, and the ten newest reviews, for when they were posted and whether the owner replied.
  • A website counts only if it is the business's own. A Facebook or Instagram page alone does not.
  • A website linked from the Google profile counts as live even when its host shows our checks a bot check or refuses our requests. We cannot read those sites, so they are left out of every page check: "of 10 read" means the 10 sites we could read.
  • Google ads come from Google's Ads Transparency Center, looked up by the business's own web address, plus one look at each search. So the ads figures count only businesses with a web address of their own, including sites that no longer work. The ad records cover every ad Google lists for that address, from any date; "in the 30 days before our check" counts the businesses with an ad last shown in that time. Facebook ads were not checked.
  • Cost per click is Google's own estimate for each search. Google reports this estimate in US dollars; we converted it at the European Central Bank reference rate on 14 October 2026 (1 euro to 1.1195 US dollars). It is Google's estimate, not a Wagyu price.
  • ChatGPT was asked "Who is a good [trade] in [town]?" three times for each trade, from Ireland, with web search on. A business counts as named if any of the answers names it. Its sources are the pages it cited, each put in one kind.
  • Distances run from the Letterkenny town centre point to each business's map pin. On the ring chart they are rounded to 0.1 km, and directions to 5 degrees.
  • The all-Ireland lines on Google Maps and ChatGPT come from every cleaned Maps list in the study with five or more businesses: 112 searches, 1,721 businesses. They compare businesses in the same search, and show what goes together, not what causes what.
  • Figures "across the 26 towns" add up the same count for all 26 study towns, one town per county. Every town was searched the same way on the same day, 14 October 2026.
  • Anything else we could not check is left out of that count, and the count says so.
  • A median is the middle value. With an even number of businesses it is the average of the two middle values.
  • No business from the study is named on these pages.

Sources: Google Ads Transparency Center; European Central Bank euro reference rates.