If a customer says they left you a Google review and you cannot see it, wait a few days first. Google says reviews are checked against its policies before they appear. After that the usual causes are a different listing, a review left on another site, a policy removal, or the customer never finishing the post. Work through the checklist below in order.
This sits alongside the rest of the system in How to get more Google reviews. If you have just sent a review link and are waiting on the first result, this is the post to check.
The checklist
1. Is it just slow?
Google's Help Center says reviews are screened for policy compliance and that this can take a few days. Don't ask the customer to post it again straight away, or you could end up with a duplicate.
2. Did the customer actually finish posting?
On a phone it is easy to select the stars, get distracted and close the page. Ask the customer to open Google Maps, search your business, and check if their review shows under "your review". Or ask for a screenshot.
3. Are you looking in the right place?
Open your Business Profile, go to your reviews and sort by newest. Also search for your business on Google Maps while signed out. A review can show in one place before it shows in another.
4. Did it go to a different listing?
Duplicate listings are common for tradies: an old address, a business name with and without "Pty Ltd", a listing a previous owner started. Ask the customer which business name and suburb appeared on the review form. If it was the wrong one, you may need to merge or remove the duplicate. Test your own link by opening it signed out, as covered in how to find your Google review link.
5. Was it filtered?
Google does not publish how its filters work, so nobody outside Google can say for sure. Reviews with links or phone numbers may be filtered, and that is the customer's call to make, not yours. Don't tell customers what to write, and don't ask them to repost over and over.
6. Did it break the content policy?
Google can take down reviews that break its contributor policy, and says reviews removed for policy violations will not be restored. The policy covers fake engagement, incentivised reviews, conflict of interest and offensive content. Examples that trip people up:
- You offered a discount or a freebie for a review. This is banned and can get reviews removed.
- The reviewer is a family member, employee or competitor.
- Several reviews were posted from one device in a short time. Google's policy lists one person posting from several accounts as fake engagement. It does not say how its filters treat a shared device, but the pattern looks odd, so send the link to each customer's own phone instead of handing over yours.
7. Is the customer's Google account the issue?
Customers have to be signed in to a Google account to post. Google also says an older phone or outdated software can cause trouble posting, so ask them to update the Google Maps app and try again, or use a normal browser tab.
8. Is it on another site?
Check where the customer left it. Reviews left on hipages, Facebook or elsewhere stay on those sites and don't count toward your Google rating. Ask for a screenshot or the page address.
When a real review disappears
Other causes are a merged profile, a profile that was suspended and reinstated, or Google temporarily turning off reviews on certain profiles. If a genuine review that used to show has vanished:
- Confirm it was removed and not just moved. Check your reviews list sorted by newest and oldest.
- Ask the customer if they edited or deleted it. Customers can do both.
- Contact Google Business Profile support (use Contact us in the Help Center, or the Help Community) and tell them which review is missing, who posted it and when. There is no guarantee it will come back.
- Do not offer the customer anything to repost it. Incentives for reviews are banned.
Some of this takes patience. Support responses can take days.
When a review appears that you want gone
That is a different problem. The short version: businesses can't delete reviews, but you can report ones that break policy. The full steps are in Can you delete a Google review?.
How to avoid missing reviews in the first place
- Send the link to the customer's phone. Don't hand them yours.
- Use your Business Profile link, tested. Open it signed out and check it lands on the right business.
- Don't offer anything for a review.
- Ask everyone. A scattering of reviews from friends and family looks different from steady reviews from customers.
- Keep a list of who you sent the link to. If a review is missing you know who to check with.
- Check your reviews weekly. How to see all your Google reviews in one place shows you where.
Spotting it early
Reviews you did not know about are reviews you cannot reply to. A weekly check of your reviews list catches the missing ones early, while the customer still remembers writing it.
On the Local and Complete plans, Mitch sends the review request after each job and drafts a reply when a review arrives, so you see what has actually landed on your profile. It cannot make Google publish a review, and it does not get around Google's filters.
Plan: Requests that go out one job at a time
Local sends each request 24 to 72 hours after the job, so they spread across the week rather than landing in a burst. Try it free for 14 days, no card. See [how it works](/au/platform/reviews).
Sources
- Google Business Profile Help: Missing or delayed reviews
- Google Business Profile Help: Get reviews and respond to them
- Google Business Profile Help: Flag or report reviews
- Google Maps policy: Prohibited and restricted content
Know what lands on your profile
Mitch texts customers who've agreed to hear from you, and drafts the replies. 14 days free, no card.