Your review count went down, or a customer says they left a review you can't see. Three questions narrow it down: did one review go or many, is it a new review that never appeared, and did your profile change recently? Most causes are Google's own policy and spam checks.
Google says reviews removed for policy violations won't be restored, so the useful work is finding the cause, then keeping real reviews coming in. The table gives the short answer; the sections below explain each case.
| What you saw | Likely cause | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| One older review is gone | Likely causeThe reviewer deleted it, or Google removed it for breaking a policy | What you can doNothing to restore. If you're sure it was genuine, contact Google support. |
| Several reviews went at once | Likely causeGoogle's automated spam detection | What you can doIf real reviews were removed by mistake, contact Google support. Stop any review drive that offered a reward. |
| A new review never showed | Likely causeGoogle's policy check is still running, or the customer's app is out of date | What you can doWait a few days. Ask the customer to update Google Maps. |
| Reviews missing after two profiles merged | Likely causeThe merge is still settling | What you can doWait a few days for reviews from both profiles to show. |
| Reviews missing after a suspension was lifted | Likely causeReviews can be removed when a profile is reinstated | What you can doContact Google Business Profile support. |
Question 1: did one review go, or many at once?
One review. The person who wrote it can edit or delete it at any time. Google also removes single reviews that break its policies, such as a review from an employee or one written in return for a discount (Google's policy).
Many at once. Google says its automated spam detection removes reviews it identifies as spam, and that you can contact support if genuine reviews were removed by mistake (source). Reviews that arrived in a burst, or in return for a reward, are the kind Google's policies count as fake engagement or rating manipulation.
Question 2: is it a new review that never appeared?
Google checks new reviews against its policies, which Google says can take a few days (source). A customer on an older phone or an old version of Google Maps may not be able to post at all, so ask them to update the app. If a customer is sure they posted and it still isn't there after a few days, Google's checks most likely held it back.
Question 3: did your profile change recently?
Google names these profile changes as causes on its missing reviews page:
- Two profiles were merged. Reviews from both can take a few days to show.
- The profile was suspended, then reinstated. Reviews can be removed after reinstatement. Contact Google Business Profile support if that happened.
- Google turned reviews off for a while. Google can temporarily turn off reviews and other user content for some profiles or categories.
- The primary category is a school for ages 6 to 18. Google removes and turns off reviews on these profiles. If that category is wrong for you, change it (category guide).
What not to do
- Don't ask customers to post the same text again. Repeated content breaks Google's policies.
- Don't offer a discount or a gift for a new review. Google counts incentivised reviews as rating manipulation.
- Don't pay anyone who says they can bring removed reviews back. Google says reviews removed for policy violations won't be restored.
Keep your own count from now on
Next time, the first question is “when did this happen?”. A weekly note of your review count and rating answers it in seconds.
Date | Review count | Rating | New reviews this week | Anything changed on the profile (merge, category, suspension)
Common questions
- Can Google restore a deleted review?
- Not one removed for a policy violation: Google says those won't be restored. If you believe genuine reviews were removed by mistake, contact Google support.
- Why did my rating drop when no new bad review came in?
- Your rating is the average of the reviews still on the profile. If some 5-star reviews were removed, the average falls even though nothing new arrived.
- Do reviews come back after two profiles merge?
- Google says reviews from both profiles can take a few days to show after a merge. Replies to reviews may be lost.
Next: bring real reviews in steadily
The answer to lost reviews is new ones from real customers. The free review link generator gives you your link, a QR code and a WhatsApp message, and the guide to asking for reviews covers when and how to ask.
See every review in one list
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Reach collects your Google reviews in one list, sorted by date and rating, with the ones still waiting for a reply easy to find. It drafts replies in the review's language for you to edit, and nothing is posted until you confirm it.