Why Are My Google Reviews Not Showing?
If your Google reviews are not showing, it's usually one of two things: they're still being checked, or Google removed them for breaking its rules. Google says reviews are checked against its policies, and that this can take a few days. Reviews it removes for a policy breach don't come back, so the real question is which of those two you're looking at.
You'll know the moment. A customer says "I left you a review", you go to look, and it isn't there. It happens to a salon on the high street and a cake maker working from home alike, and the checks below are the same for both.
Why are my Google reviews not showing?
Usually because they're either waiting for Google's checks or they've been taken down. Google's help page, About missing or delayed reviews, lists the reasons it recognises:
- Checks still running. Reviews are checked against Google's policies first, and Google says this can take a few days.
- Removed for a policy breach. Spam, fake engagement and similar problems get a review taken down, and Google says those won't be restored.
- A recent merge. If two profiles were merged, reviews from both can take a few days to show.
- The customer's phone. Older phones or software can struggle to submit a review at all, and Google suggests updating the Maps app.
- Reviews switched off. Google may temporarily disable reviews and other user content for some profiles or whole business categories.
What you won't find on that page is any promise of how long "a few days" means, or a button that tells you which reason applies to a given review. Anyone who claims to know exactly why Google held one back is guessing.
Which reviews does Google take down?
The ones its rules count as fake or biased, even when the person writing meant well. Google's prohibited and restricted content policy for Maps is the list to read, and a few lines in it catch small businesses out more than any others:
- Conflict of interest. Google counts current or former employment, a contractual relationship and "other professional or personal affiliations". Your sister's glowing review may well be honest. It's still the kind of review the policy has in mind.
- Anything paid for. That includes "in kind", so a discount or a free extra in return for a review counts.
- One person, several accounts. Content posted from multiple accounts by, or at the request of, one person is banned.
- Asking only the happy ones. Selectively asking for positive reviews is banned, and so is setting staff a target number of reviews to collect.
Google also says it looks at the content, the account, what the account has been doing and whether there's a pattern. So a sudden run of reviews after a push can look different to Google than the same number spread over a few months.
What should you check first?
Match what you're seeing to the likeliest cause before you do anything. The table runs from the harmless to the serious.
| What you see | Likely reason | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| A customer posted a review in the last day or two | It may still be going through Google's policy checks, which Google says can take a few days. | Wait a few days before doing anything else. |
| You recently merged two profiles | Google says reviews from both can take a few days to show after a merge. | Give it a few days, then check both sets are there. |
| The customer says it would not post at all | Google notes that older phones or software can have trouble submitting reviews. | Suggest they update Google Maps and try again. |
| Reviews from staff, family or friends have gone | Google's policy treats reviews based on employment or other close ties as a conflict of interest. | Leave them gone, and don't ask for them back. |
| A batch arrived after a voucher, a quota or a push to happy customers only | Paid-for reviews, staff quotas and selectively asking happy customers are all banned. | Change how you ask before asking again. |
| Nobody can leave a review at all | Google says it may temporarily switch off reviews for some profiles or business categories. | Keep the profile up to date and wait it out. |
"Likely" is doing real work in that table. Google doesn't confirm which reason applies to any one review, so this is a way of narrowing it down, not a diagnosis.
Should you ask customers to post their review again?
Only one at a time, and only when it plainly never went through. A single customer whose review failed to submit on an old phone can try again after updating the app, and that's fine. A message to everyone asking them to repost is a different thing: it's exactly the kind of coordinated burst the policy is written to catch, and if the first batch was removed for a reason, a second batch posted the same way is likely to go the same way.
If one customer tells you their review didn't go through, something like this works:
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review. It doesn't seem to have come through on our side. Google says older versions of the Maps app can have trouble posting reviews, so if you're happy to, updating the app and trying once more might fix it. No worries at all if not, and thanks again.
Notice what it doesn't do: offer anything in return, or suggest what to write. Our guide to getting more Google reviews the honest way covers how to ask everyone in a way that keeps the reviews you get.
What if your reviews have been switched off?
Then there's nothing for a customer to fix, and nothing for you to resend. Google says it may temporarily disable reviews for certain profiles or business categories, and it doesn't say for how long. Keep the profile accurate and up to date, and keep your own website carrying the things a review would have told a stranger: what you do, where you work and how to get hold of you.
A profile is Google's page about you, and Google decides what shows on it. Your own site is the one place where that's your call.
What should you do next?
Wait a few days on anything new, check the table against what you can see, and leave removed reviews alone. If the trouble is a review you think is fake rather than one that's missing, that's a different job, and our guide to getting a fake Google review removed walks through it. There's more on showing up properly in our guides to fixing your website and getting found.
If you'd like a website that does the job a profile can't, ByRender builds one from a short form, with setup from £495, care from £69 a month and a private preview before you pay anything. Start the form whenever you're ready.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get Google to put a removed review back?
Not if it was removed for breaking the rules. Google's help page on missing reviews says reviews removed for policy violations won't be restored, so the useful move is making sure future reviews come in a way the policy allows.
Is this the same problem as my reply not showing?
No. A missing review is about what your customer wrote. A reply that hasn't appeared is your own words going through checks, which our guide to replying to Google reviews covers separately.