How to Blur Your House on Google Maps

By Chris Clark, founder of Senior Tech Cafe

Here’s how to blur your house on Google Maps: open your home in Street View, click Report a problem in the bottom-right corner, choose My home, and upload proof that you live there. Google reviews the request, and once it blurs your house, the blur is permanent.

Remember the good old days when the only way someone could see your house was by physically driving by it? Times have changed.

Now anyone with an internet connection can take a virtual stroll down your street and admire your prized petunias, or worse, case your joint for a burglary.

So here’s how to become the Harry Houdini of the internet and make your house disappear from Google Maps. (Well, go blurry. Even Houdini had limits.)

What Google Street View Shows (and What It Doesn’t)

Google Maps has two kinds of pictures of your house. The satellite view shows your roof from above. Street View is the 360-degree photos taken by Google’s camera cars, which show your front door, windows, driveway and whatever’s parked in it. It’s like having the whole world at your fingertips, minus the jet lag and overpriced airport sandwiches.

Street View is the part you can blur. It’s also the part that feels a little too invasive when you realize anyone can look at your front porch just by typing in your address.

3 Reasons to Blur Your House on Google Maps

Now, you might be thinking, “Why on earth would I want to hide my beautiful home from the world?” It’s not just about modesty (although we all know your garden gnome collection is the envy of the neighborhood). Here are the three main reasons people do it:

Privacy: Privacy is rarer than a typewriter repair shop these days. Blurring your home on Google Maps is like pulling the curtains closed, but for the entire internet.
Security: Remember when the biggest threat to your home was the neighborhood kid’s errant baseball? Now a burglar can scout your windows, fences and side gates without leaving the couch. Blurring your house takes that close-up view away.
Peace of mind: If the idea of strangers virtually peeking into your yard gives you the heebie-jeebies, a blur makes that go away.

Blurring won’t hide your address or stop anyone driving past. It just stops your house being a click away from a close-up.

How to Blur Your House on Google Maps, Step by Step

To blur your house on Google Maps, you send Google a blur request from the Street View image of your home, along with proof that you own or rent it. Only the owner or a tenant can ask. Google says the request works from the Maps app too, but it’s easiest on a computer, where the picture is bigger.

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Open Google Maps in your web browser at google.com/maps.
Find your home. Type your address into the search bar and press Enter.
Open Street View. Click the photo of your street that appears, or drag the little yellow person (bottom right of the map) onto your street.
Spot your house. Move along the street until your home is in view. It’s like a game of “Where’s Waldo,” except Waldo is your house.
Click Report a problem in the bottom-right corner of the picture. Click it faster than you hit mute during an obnoxious commercial.
Choose My home as the thing you want blurred.
Confirm it’s yours. Tick the box saying you have the authority to make the request, type your address, and upload your proof of address with Choose file (more on that below).
Add your email if you’d like an update. It’s optional, and Google isn’t going to sign you up for a newsletter about street photography. (If you’d rather not hand out your main address, here’s why a second email address helps.)
Submit.

Google doesn’t say how long a review takes, only that it works through requests as fast as it can. Once your blur is applied, it’s permanent.

The Proof of Address Google Asks For

Google wants one document showing you live at the address. Any of these works:

A utility bill, bank statement or official letter dated within the last six months
A lease (any date)
Homeowners insurance or property tax records

It has to be a photo, scan or PDF (PNG, JPG or PDF) under 10 MB. No handwritten documents, and no driver’s license or other government ID.

Google asks you to black out your name and account numbers first, so it only sees the address. Do that properly: a black box drawn over a PDF can still be read underneath. Our guide on how to redact a document shows the safe way, or print the bill, use a thick marker and photograph it. Google says it deletes the documents after 60 days.

Can You Remove Your House From Google Maps?

No. You can’t remove your house from Google Maps. Your address, the pin on the map and the satellite view of your roof all stay, and Google doesn’t blur satellite or aerial pictures. A Street View blur is the only privacy tool Google offers for a home.

Two related things you can do:

Blur it on Apple Maps too. Apple’s street-level photos are called Look Around. Email MapsImageCollection@apple.com with your address and ask Apple to blur your house.
Fix a wrong address. If the pin for your address is in the wrong place, use Suggest an edit on the map to correct it. That’s worth doing so deliveries and emergency services find you.

Locking Down Your Digital Privacy

Remember, once your home is blurred, it stays that way. If you ever sell your house, potential buyers will have to use their imagination or actually visit in person. How quaint.

A blur also only covers Google. Real estate websites can keep old listing photos of your home, and people-search sites publish addresses for anyone to look up. Our guide to removing your information from data brokers deals with the second one, and we’ve got a guide to removing location from your photos so your pictures don’t give your address away either. For the rest, start with our online safety guide for seniors.

Just remember: your house might be hidden on Google Maps, but your neighbors can still see you dancing in your living room. Some things are better left unblurred.

Questions About Blurring Your House on Google Maps

How Long Does Google Take to Blur a House?

Google doesn’t give a timeframe. Its help page says only that it reviews reports as fast as it can. Check your house in Street View every week or two. If nothing has changed after a month or so, send the request again, making sure your proof of address is clear and recent.

Can I Unblur My House Later?

No. Google says that once it applies a blur request, the blur is permanent. That holds even if you change your mind or sell the house, and a new owner can’t undo it either. If you’re planning to sell soon, you might wait until after the sale and leave the decision to the buyer.

Does Blurring Hide My House From Satellite View?

No. Google says it doesn’t blur satellite or aerial imagery, so the view of your roof from above stays as it is. The blur covers the street-level Street View photos, which are the ones that show your front door, windows, car and yard in close-up detail. Those are what most people want hidden.

Can I Blur My House on Apple Maps Too?

Yes. Apple Maps has its own street-level photos, called Look Around. Apple asks you to email MapsImageCollection@apple.com with your address and a request to blur your house. Apple already blurs faces and license plates automatically, but it blurs a house only when someone asks.