Uncover trends and insights from 50,000 deleted Google reviews. Learn key takeaways and expert tips to keep your reviews safe and compliant.
Sebastian Żarnowski
Co-founder & CEO
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Google has been removing reviews from Google Business Profiles.
There has been a lot of ongoing discussion on social media and among business owners about this.
To understand how Google moderates reviews we can look at the changes in the number of deleted reviews, shifting time patterns, as well as sentiment, and review length analysis.
This analysis offers insights to help business owners manage reviews on their Google listings.
It covers nearly 50,000 deleted reviews from over 5,500 business profiles across various countries - all based on Localo’s data from November 2023 to September 2024.
Google Reviews are one of the most important factors impacting the visibility of local businesses in search results.
Reviews not only build trust in your brand, but also increase your chances of ranking higher and influence potential customers’ decisions .
Google uses reviews to evaluate the quality of services, as well as the number, quality, and responses of reviews.
Google constantly monitors the quality and authenticity of reviews on business profiles to ensure they comply with Google’s guidelines.
Reviews can be removed for various reasons, such as violating policies , being flagged as spam, containing false information, or manipulating ratings.
Reviews can be deleted if algorithms deem them to be in violation of the guidelines.
An analysis of 50,000 deleted reviews demonstrates the patterns and trends behind Google’s actions. You will learn how to better protect your reviews and business profile in the future.
During the analysis, some months showed a sharp rise in deleted reviews.
Over 8,000 were removed in November 2023, and over 7,500 in September 2024.
This might be due to new algorithms catching fake reviews or stricter moderation. (Data from October 2024 is incomplete.)
The number of reviews removed by Google changes dynamically . If you notice a sudden increase in removals, it may be due to a newly implemented algorithm or changes in guidelines.
Use tools like Localo to monitor deleted reviews in real-time. This will help you react quickly and try to recover lost reviews or improve those that are at risk of being removed. Learn more about how to monitor deleted reviews with Localo and how to restore them.
Of the deleted reviews, 89.6% were 5-star ratings.
This suggests Google may focus on removing highly-rated reviews, which are more often seen as fake or against guidelines.
Almost 90% of deleted reviews are the highest-rated ones. Google monitors and removes these types of reviews intensively, so it’s important to ensure they are authentic .
Ask customers for genuine reviews that describe their experiences without excessive praise or overuse of keywords . A well-written review appears more natural and is less likely to be deleted.
Most reviews are deleted on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, making up over 40% of all deletions. In contrast, weekends see fewer deletions—around 6% on Saturdays and 7% on Sundays.
Most deleted reviews occur on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Monitor your profile’s activity on these days, as any changes may be more noticeable.
Try to get new reviews from customers at the beginning of the week to quickly fill any gaps caused by deletions. Also, ensure that each review is authentic . Use tools like review posters from Localo to encourage customers to leave reviews.
Most new reviews are created on Mondays, accounting for about 15.5% of all reviews. However, the difference between the busiest day (Monday) and the least active day (Sunday, just over 12%) is only 3%.
Reviews appear throughout the week with a slight increase at the beginning of the week. Businesses need to be ready for regular interactions with reviewers regardless of the day.
Don’t focus on asking for reviews on specific days. As you can see, it doesn’t make a significant difference.
Most review deletions happen in the morning , especially between 9:00 and 12:00 .
The majority of new reviews appear in the afternoon , between 12:00 and 18:00 .
This suggests that Google’s algorithms are more active in removing reviews in the morning, while users tend to leave new reviews after work.
Deletions mostly occur in the morning , while new reviews are posted in the afternoon .
Try to solicit new reviews from customers in the afternoon, when the likelihood of them leaving a review is highest. Monitor your profile in the morning to stay on top of potential removals.
Data shows that 77.19% of deleted reviews stayed on profiles for over 10 days, while only 4.27% were removed within a day of being posted. This suggests Google rarely removes reviews right away, as its algorithms take time to analyze them.
Most deleted reviews remained on profiles for over 10 days. Businesses should monitor their reviews regularly but be prepared for deletions to occur even weeks after publication.
Always ensure that the reviews appearing on your Google Business Profile comply with Google’s guidelines. This way, you minimize the risk of having them removed.
52% of deleted reviews received a response from the owner within the first 24 hours. Another 18% were responded to within 2 to 5 days, while only 5% got a reply within 6 to 10 days. 25% were responded to after 10 days.
This shows that responding quickly doesn’t guarantee the review will stay on the profile, even if the owner replies promptly.
52% of deleted reviews received a response within 24 hours, yet they were still removed by Google. Even if the owner responds quickly to a review, it may be deleted if it violates Google guidelines or if algorithms consider it inauthentic .
Avoid using automatic responses that reply to reviews immediately after they are posted. Try to tailor your responses to the content of the review and avoid hasty reactions. Also, refrain from responding to reviews outside of business hours. A review management tool like Localo can help you efficiently manage your responses.
60.6% of deleted reviews had a response from the owner, while 39.4% of reviews were removed without any reaction from the business.
This means that while responding to reviews can improve relationships with customers and build a positive business image , it does not guarantee that reviews will remain on the profile.
Google deletes reviews regardless of the owner’s response if they are deemed non-compliant with regulations or potentially fake .
Responding to reviews is important from a business reputation standpoint, but it does not always prevent reviews from being deleted by Google.
Respond to reviews as it is important for maintaining a positive business image. However, if you notice that a review may violate Google standards or appears suspicious, it may be better to report it instead of responding, as the response might be deleted along with the review.
Over 60% of removed positive reviews had a response from the business owner, while only about 40% of removed negative reviews received a reply.
This suggests Google removes reviews regardless of whether the owner responds, but not replying to negative reviews might increase the chance of their removal.
Business owners tend to respond more to positive reviews, which could prompt Google to review and remove them if they violate guidelines. (Neutral reviews are not included.)
Positive reviews with a business owner’s response can be removed just as often as negative reviews, or even more frequently. Responding to positive reviews can paradoxically increase the likelihood of them being reviewed and removed by Google’s algorithms, especially if the reviews seem artificially generated or overly promotional.
If you receive a negative review , consider reporting it to Google instead of replying immediately, especially if it appears to violate the guidelines. However, not responding could discourage potential customers. The best approach is to carefully craft a professional and sincere reply , avoiding hasty reactions.
Data shows that negative reviews (1-2 stars) are the longest, averaging about 80 words .
Dissatisfied customers usually describe their experiences in more detail.
Positive reviews are shorter and less descriptive, with their length decreasing as the rating increases: 4-star reviews average 30 words , while 5-star reviews average 20 words .
Satisfied customers write shorter reviews, while dissatisfied users provide more detailed comments, describing exactly what went wrong.
Monitor negative reviews and focus on the details that customers include in their comments. This way, you can better understand their needs and respond more effectively to their expectations while improving the quality of services . You can use the review management tool from Localo for this.
The largest group of deleted positive reviews are those with a length of 11 to 50 words (56.82%) . The next group includes reviews with more than 51 words (25.02%) . Shorter reviews (6-10 words and 1-5 words) account for only 18% of deleted reviews in total.
This suggests that longer comments are more likely to be removed .
As many as 81.84% of deleted positive reviews were over 11 words long, which suggests that longer comments may be more suspicious for Google’s algorithms and easier to verify. They may also more frequently violate Google’s guidelines .
Encourage customers to add positive reviews , while suggesting that their content be concise and genuine , not overly broad or vague. This will reduce the risk of them being removed by Google’s algorithms.
More than half (53.07%) of deleted negative reviews were over 51 words long. The next group includes reviews with 11 to 50 words (34.99%) . Shorter comments (6-10 words and 1-5 words) make up only a small percentage of deleted negative reviews — 6.03% and 5.92% respectively.
Over 88% of deleted negative reviews are comments with more than 11 words , which may indicate a higher level of suspicion towards detailed, negative comments .
The longer a negative review you receive, the greater the chance it might be removed—especially if you manually report it to Google.
Business owners tend to respond more negatively to low ratings (1-2 stars), while they respond in a friendlier manner to positive reviews (4-5 stars).
Sentiment analysis of owners’ responses indicates that a negative tone dominated responses to lower-rated reviews, while a positive sentiment was predominant in responses to higher-rated reviews.
Business owners should avoid a negative tone in their responses to reviews. Maintaining a positive sentiment even with negative reviews can help build trust and improve the business’s image.
When responding to negative reviews, try to show your understanding of the problem and offer a solution in a positive tone. Even with negative reviews, responses filled with empathy and professionalism can minimize their negative impact.
Deleted reviews with low ratings (1-2 stars) most often had a negative sentiment , while positive sentiments were predominant with higher ratings (4-5 stars).
The sentiment rating was assigned based on the content of the reviews.
The sentiment of deleted reviews varies depending on the star rating , but not always according to intuitive predictions. In the case of 1- and 2-star reviews, a significant portion of them not only has a negative tone but also includes neutral or even positive sentiments.
Ensure that the content of all reviews (even those with 1- and 2-star ratings) complies with Google’s policies , and that responses to them are factual and empathetic . If a review has a neutral tone , don’t treat it as criticism, but as an opportunity to improve your relationship with the customer. Ensure that professionalism and willingness to resolve the issue dominate in your responses to such reviews.
Google removes reviews that violate its guidelines or are deemed potentially fake . This can include reviews that contain links , are overly promotional , look like spam , or come from users with no history of activity on Google . Google’s algorithms particularly scrutinize long reviews and those with the highest 5-star rating to ensure they are authentic.
If you believe a review was removed unfairly, you can try contacting Google Support and reporting the issue. However, in most cases, deleted reviews are a result of algorithmic action, and restoring them can be challenging. To avoid such situations in the future, ensure that all reviews comply with Google’s guidelines .
According to our analysis, 89.6% of deleted reviews are those with the highest possible 5-star rating . Google removes them more frequently because they are considered potentially fake or overly promotional . Google’s algorithms pay special attention to these types of reviews to ensure they are authentic and not manipulating the company’s rating.
Unfortunately, no. Over 60% of deleted reviews had a response from the business owner, which means that simply responding to reviews does not protect them from being deleted. It is essential that reviews and responses comply with Google’s guidelines and do not contain elements that could be considered a violation.
Most review deletions occur on Tuesdays and Wednesdays . This suggests that Google’s algorithms are most active on these days, and the number of deleted reviews is even three times higher than on weekends. It’s advisable to monitor your profile’s activity on these days and be prepared for potential review deletions.
Yes, according to our analysis, only 18.3% of deleted reviews were those without content. This means that reviews with comments are more likely to be deleted, as Google’s algorithms verify not only the rating but also the content of the comment for compliance with guidelines.
Google rarely deletes reviews immediately after they appear. Google’s algorithms need time to analyze the data thoroughly. Our data shows that as many as 77% of deleted reviews remained on the profile for more than 10 days before being removed. This means that Google may monitor the history of a particular review and only later decide to delete it.
Yes, according to our analysis, long reviews , both positive and negative, are more frequently deleted by Google. This could be because Google’s algorithms have more data to analyze, increasing the chance of detecting potential violations. As many as 81.84% of deleted positive reviews were longer than 11 words .
Ensure that reviews are authentic , written by real customers , and comply with Google’s guidelines . Avoid overly promotional content , links , repetitive phrases, and language that might appear as spam . Regularly monitor your reviews and report those that may violate the guidelines.
No, Google deletes both negative and positive reviews if they violate the platform’s guidelines. According to our data, positive reviews longer than 11 words are deleted more frequently than shorter comments, which may suggest that Google’s algorithms pay special attention to their authenticity.
If your review has disappeared from the profile, you can check this in your Google account by going to the “ My Reviews ” section. You can also use monitoring tools like Localo , which track deleted reviews and provide real-time updates to users.
Encourage customers to write honest and authentic reviews that describe specific experiences with your business. Avoid suggesting pre-made content filled with keywords that might look unnatural. Respond to reviews in a factual and empathetic manner, adhering to Google’s guidelines.
The analysis of 50,000 deleted reviews on Google reveals clear patterns and trends that can help better understand Google’s review moderation rules . Deletions primarily affect high-rated reviews and those containing content. Google pays special attention to longer comments , both positive and negative. Most deletions occur at specific times, hours, and days of the week.
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Sebastian Żarnowski
Co-founder & CEO
Sebastian Żarnowski
Co-founder & CEO
Sebastian Żarnowski
Co-founder & CEO
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