The Leeds map pack, measured — not guessed
Most "local SEO in Leeds" pages tell you the city is competitive and stop there. We measured it: 300 live Google Maps listings across 15 real searches — plumber to conveyancing solicitor — captured from central Leeds twice, 24 hours apart, as part of our UK map-pack study.
Leeds posted the highest overall pack review bar in our whole study: across all 15 searches the top-3 carried a median 139 reviews. But that headline hides an enormous spread — the same map that demands 1,317 reviews for an indian-restaurant pack lets an accountant pack sit at 6.
In short
Leeds had the highest overall top-3 review bar of any city we measured — a median 139 reviews, well ahead of the 58 carried by ranks 4–20. But the range is the widest in the study: indian-restaurant packs at 1,317, dental-implant packs at 715, and accountant packs at just 6. The averages are set by a handful of very heavy consumer searches; drop into professions and trades and the wall falls away fast. Four of the 45 top-3 seats were still held by unrated profiles.
Leeds in numbers — our capture
300
live listings measured across 15 Leeds searches
139 vs 58
median reviews: top 3 vs ranks 4–20 — our highest pack bar overall
4.71★
average star rating inside the top 3
91.1%
of top-3 profiles are claimed — table stakes, not an edge
4 of 15
packs changed members within 24 hours
4 of 45
top-3 seats held by profiles with no rating at all
Live Google Maps captures from central Leeds, 6–7 July 2026, 15 searches × 20 results, two passes 24 hours apart. Listings without a visible review count are counted as zero. Full method in the UK map-pack study.
Where Leeds is brutal — and where it's wide open
The averages hide the real story: the review bar swings by more than two orders of magnitude depending on the search. This is the median review count of the top-3 listings for each search we captured in Leeds.
| Search family | Median reviews in the pack | Average pack rating |
|---|---|---|
| "indian restaurant" | 1,317 | 4.57★ |
| "dental implants" | 715 | 4.87★ |
| "restaurant" | 463 | 4.70★ |
| "hair salon" | 448 | 4.70★ |
| "conveyancing solicitor" | 205 | 4.67★ |
| "plumber" | 139 | 4.90★ |
| "locksmith" | 126 | 5.00★ |
| "mot test" | 118 | 4.70★ |
| "solicitor" | 47 | 4.57★ |
| "electrician" | 43 | 4.95★ |
| "emergency plumber" | 27 | 4.97★ |
| "dentist" | 20 | 4.80★ |
| "ev charger installation" | 9 | 3.53★ |
| "roofer" | 8 | 4.95★ |
| "accountant" | 6 | 5.00★ |
Median review count and average rating of the top-3 listings per search, central Leeds capture, 6–7 July 2026.
Three honest observations from the Leeds capture
The highest overall bar we measured — but averages lie
Leeds' median top-3 listing carried 139 reviews, the highest citywide bar in our study, against 58 for ranks 4–20. But that figure is pulled up by a few very heavy consumer searches — indian restaurant at 1,317, dental implants at 715, hair salon at 448. Read the citywide number and you will overestimate your own fight; read your row in the table and you will see it clearly.
The widest range in the study
From 1,317 reviews (indian restaurant) down to 6 (accountant), Leeds had the broadest spread of any city we captured. Professions and lighter trades sit far below the headline: accountant at 6, roofer at 8, EV-charger at 9, dentist at 20. The same city that looks impossible in one category is wide open in the next — which is exactly why "Leeds is competitive" is a useless statement on its own.
Even at a high bar, seats sit unrated
4 of Leeds' 45 top-3 seats were held by profiles with no rating at all, and 4 of the 15 packs changed membership within 24 hours. A high citywide median does not mean every seat is hard-won — in the lighter searches, a complete and well-categorised profile could still take a place. We record a day-0 baseline and track movement monthly rather than trusting one screenshot.
What this means if you trade in Leeds
- ✓Ignore the citywide 139 median — it is set by a few heavy consumer searches. Read your own row in the table instead.
- ✓The spread here is the widest we measured: your fight could be 1,317 reviews or 6, depending on the exact search.
- ✓In thin packs (accountants, roofers, dentists at 6–20), a complete claimed profile with the right categories can be most of the battle.
- ✓In heavy packs (restaurants, dental implants, salons), review depth is a multi-year moat — start now or compete on a more specific search.
- ✓Four seats sat unrated and packs churn within a day — judge progress against a recorded baseline, not a one-off screenshot.
Your trade, in depth
The city sets the arena; your trade sets the rules. Each guide below covers the categories, review strategy and trust signals for that trade across the UK — pair it with the Leeds numbers above.
Local SEO for restaurants
Leeds' heaviest packs — 1,317 median reviews for cuisine searches.
Local SEO for dentists
Implant packs at 715, but a general "dentist" pack sat at just 20.
Local SEO for salons
448-review packs — a serious review base is table stakes.
Local SEO for solicitors
Conveyancing packs at 205; general "solicitor" packs at 47.
Local SEO for accountants
The softest pack here — 6 median reviews. Completeness wins.
Local SEO for roofers
An 8-review median pack — one of the most open trade maps here.
Leeds questions, straight answers
Is local SEO harder in Leeds than elsewhere in the UK? +
On the citywide number, Leeds looks the hardest we measured — a median 139 reviews across the top-3 packs. But that figure is inflated by a handful of very heavy consumer searches. For professions and lighter trades, Leeds is among the most open cities in our study: accountant packs sat at 6 reviews and roofer packs at 8. Your search family decides everything.
How many reviews do I need to reach the top 3 in Leeds? +
Leeds had the widest range in our study — from 6 (accountant) to 1,317 (indian restaurant). Check the table for your exact search family before assuming anything. The citywide median of 139 will mislead you in either direction unless you read your own row.
Does the Leeds map pack change often? +
4 of the 15 Leeds packs we tracked changed membership within a single 24-hour window, and 4 of the 45 top-3 seats were held by unrated profiles. Movement is normal, and even a high citywide bar leaves open seats in the lighter searches. We record a day-0 baseline for every keyword and measure monthly against it.
Leeds looks impossible for my category — is it really? +
Maybe not. The heavy headline numbers come from restaurants, dental implants and salons. If you are a roofer (8 median reviews), accountant (6) or general dentist (20), your pack was far more open than the citywide figure suggests. Read your row in the table, then judge — and track your own baseline rather than the city average.
Done for you
Our Google Maps SEO service
Fixed monthly prices, geo-grid rank reporting, no 12-month lock-in. The full climb, handled.
Done for you
Business Profile optimisation
The one-off rebuild that fixes what Google sees first — categories, services, photos.
See where you stand first — free
Before you spend a pound: a human checks your map presence across your patch and tells you honestly whether we can help.