Guide · Google policy
Google's Review Rules for Businesses: What's Allowed and What Isn't
Asking customers for reviews is allowed and encouraged by Google. How you ask is where businesses get into trouble. This is a plain-language summary of Google's rules, with the policy text they come from.
Short answerYou may ask any customer for an honest review, with a link or QR code. You may not offer anything in exchange, ask only happy customers, pressure people on your premises, ask for specific content such as a staff member's name, or post reviews that are not based on a real experience.
Allowed and not allowed at a glance
| Practice | Allowed? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Showing a review QR code or link to every customer | Yes | Google encourages businesses to remind customers to leave reviews with a link or QR code. |
| Replying to reviews, good and bad | Yes | Google recommends replying. |
| Giving a discount, freebie or cashback for a review | No | Incentives in exchange for reviews are fake engagement. |
| Asking only customers who seem happy (review gating) | No | Selectively soliciting positive reviews is prohibited. |
| Sending unhappy customers to a private form instead of Google | No | Discouraging negative reviews is prohibited. A private channel is fine only as an extra option. |
| Asking customers to mention a staff member by name | No | Businesses may not request that specific content be included, including content that identifies a staff member. |
| Standing over customers until they post | No | Businesses should not require or pressure people to review on the premises. |
| Staff, owners or family reviewing the business | No | Conflict of interest. |
Review gating, explained
Review gating means checking whether a customer is happy first, and only sending happy customers to Google while unhappy ones are routed somewhere else. Many older review tools worked this way. Google's policy prohibits it: businesses may not "discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews."
What is fine: asking every customer the same way, and additionally giving unhappy customers a private way to reach you so you can fix the problem, without blocking or discouraging them from posting on Google.
Incentives, including the "discount for a review" offer
Google prohibits offering "payment, discounts, free goods and/or services" in exchange for posting any review. This includes common offers like 10% off the next visit, a free dessert or a lucky draw entry for reviewers, even if you do not ask for a positive review. Google's help page adds that this also covers incentives to change or remove negative reviews, and that violations can lead to Business Profile restrictions.
Asking for specific content and staff names
Businesses may not ask that specific content be included in a review, and Google's policy names content that identifies a staff member as an example. Asking customers to "please mention Priya in your review" to reward staff is not allowed. Letting customers say whatever they genuinely want, including a staff member they chose to mention, is their right.
What about review suggestions and AI?
Google's test is whether content reflects a genuine experience. A review invented for a customer, or posted on their behalf, fails that test. A tool that helps a real customer put their own experience into words, built only from what they tell it, which they then edit and post themselves, is a different thing. If you use one, keep it optional, never add details the customer did not give, never insert keywords or staff names, and give every customer the same help whatever their rating.
What happens if a business breaks the rules
Google can remove reviews that violate the policy, and repeated or serious violations can lead to restrictions on the Business Profile. Reviews can also be removed long after they were posted, so a review count built on incentives or gating can disappear.
Frequently asked questions
Is review gating against Google policy?
Yes. Google prohibits discouraging negative reviews or selectively soliciting positive ones. Ask every customer the same way; a private feedback option is fine only as an extra, not as a detour away from Google.
Can I offer a discount for a Google review?
No. Offering payment, discounts, or free goods or services in exchange for a review is prohibited, even for honest reviews.
Can I ask customers to mention my staff in their review?
No. Google's policy says businesses may not request that specific content be included, including content that identifies a staff member.
Are AI-written Google reviews allowed?
A review must reflect a genuine experience. Reviews invented or posted on a customer's behalf are not allowed. Helping a real customer describe their own experience, which they edit and post themselves, is different, as long as nothing is added that they did not say.
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Sources: Google Maps user-contributed content policy: Prohibited and restricted content · Google Business Profile Help: Create a Google link or QR code to request reviews · Google Business Profile Help: Tips to get more reviews