The short answer
To rate a business on Google, sign in to your Google account, search for the business on Google or Google Maps, open its profile and select Write a review. Tap one to five stars, optionally add text and photos, then select Post. You can rate with stars alone. To change it later, go to Your contributions → Reviews in Google Maps and choose Edit or Delete next to the review.
- You need a Google account. Google does not accept anonymous reviews.
- Stars alone are allowed, but a few specific sentences are far more useful to other people.
- Your review is public and shows the name and photo from your Google profile.
- You can edit or delete your own review at any time; the date updates to the latest edit.
Before you start
- A Google account. A Gmail address works, and so does any account you use for YouTube or an Android phone. Google's help page is clear that you cannot add an anonymous review.
- The right listing. Chains and businesses with similar names can be confusing. Check the street address before you rate, so your stars land on the branch you actually visited.
- A genuine experience. Reviews must reflect your own real visit or purchase. Rating a place you have never used, or a competitor, breaks Google's rules.
How to rate a business on a computer
Sign in to Google
Open google.com or maps.google.com in your browser and make sure your account picture shows in the top-right corner.
Find the business
Search for its name and town. In Google Search, the business panel appears on the right; in Google Maps, it opens on the left after you click the result.
Select Write a review
In Maps it sits in the business panel, usually near the review summary. In Search, scroll the panel to the reviews area and look for the same button.
Choose your stars
Click one to five stars. One is very poor, five is excellent.
Add details and photos (optional)
Describe what happened in a few sentences. Google may also show quick questions about price, atmosphere or service that you can answer or skip.
Select Post
Your rating goes live, usually within moments, though Google's automated checks occasionally hold reviews for longer.
If the business sent you a review link or you scanned a QR code in the shop, those take you straight to step four. Businesses create them using the steps in our guide to getting a Google review link.
How to rate a business on iPhone or Android
On a phone, the Google Maps app is the most reliable route. Open Maps, search for the business and tap its name to open the full profile. Swipe along the tabs under the business name to Reviews, then tap the empty stars or Write a review. Choose your rating, add text or photos if you like and tap Post.
You can also do it from the Google app or the Chrome browser: search the business, open its panel and look for Reviews and the review button. App layouts change between versions, so if a label looks slightly different, look for the row of empty stars; tapping it always opens the form.
| Where you are | How to reach the review form |
|---|---|
| Google Maps on a computer | Business panel on the left → Write a review |
| Google Search on a computer | Business panel on the right → reviews area → Write a review |
| Google Maps app (iPhone or Android) | Business profile → Reviews tab → empty stars or Write a review |
| A link or QR code from the business | Opens the review form directly |
How to write a rating that actually helps
Stars tell people how you felt. Words tell them whether the same thing will happen to them. The most useful reviews we read every day have three things in common: they say what you came for, what happened, and one detail that would matter to someone in your shoes.
Compare "Terrible, avoid" with "Waited 50 minutes past my booking for an oil change and wasn't told why; the work itself was fine and fairly priced." The second one is fairer to the business and far more useful to the reader, and it gives the owner something concrete to fix and reply to.
- Mention when you visited if it matters, for example a weekend evening or a holiday rush.
- Name staff only if you are comfortable doing so and keep it about their service, not them as people.
- Leave out personal details such as phone numbers, health information or anyone's address.
- Stick to your own experience. Rumors and secondhand stories are what get reviews removed.
How to edit or delete your Google review
Changed your mind after the business fixed the problem? Or posted on the wrong branch? Your review stays yours to change. On a computer, open Google Maps, click the Menu icon at the top left, then Your contributions and Reviews. Next to the review, click More, then choose Edit review or Delete review. In the Maps app, tap your profile picture and look for Your contributions or your profile's reviews section; the same options appear under the three-dot menu.
Two things to know. When you edit, Google shows the date of your latest edit as the review date, so an updated review moves back near the top of "Newest." And deleting is permanent: if you want the review back, you will need to write it again.
What Google's review rules allow
Do
- Rate places you have genuinely visited or bought from.
- Be honest, including about a disappointing experience.
- Update your review if the business resolves your complaint.
- Report reviews you believe are fake or abusive.
Don't
- Accept a discount, freebie or payment in return for a review.
- Review your own business, your employer or a competitor.
- Include personal information, hate speech, threats or profanity.
- Post the same review on several branches or accounts.
These come from Google's Maps user-generated content policy. Reviews that break it can be removed, and Google's help page notes removed reviews are not reinstated. If a business offers you something in exchange for a review, you can decline; the offer itself breaks Google's rules.
For business owners: making it easy to rate you
If you landed here because you want customers to rate your business, remove every step you can. Send your direct review link, or put a review QR code on the counter, so customers skip the search entirely. Then ask everyone, not just the people you think enjoyed it; our guide on asking customers for Google reviews has wording that works.
Once ratings arrive, reply to them. Owners can answer every review from their Business Profile, and Responsly drafts those replies for you in your brand voice so no rating goes unanswered. See how to reply to Google reviews for the mechanics.