Skip to content
GetProfit
Log in

← All terms

Product ratings

Product ratings are 1-to-5 star ratings with a review count that Google shows for a product on Shopping ads and free listings, compiled from several sources.

How it works

Google compiles one rating per product from merchants, review aggregators, review sites and Google users. Free listings can show these stars whether or not the store takes part in the Product Ratings programme. For stars on Shopping ads, the store has to join the programme and share its reviews with Google: through a supported reviews aggregator or as a product reviews file uploaded to Merchant Center.

Google’s conditions for the programme: at least 50 reviews across all of the store’s products, a full and updated reviews file at least once a month, and product URLs on the domain registered in Merchant Center. Onboarding can take a few weeks.

Google matches reviews to products mainly by GTIN. Without it, Google tries SKU, brand plus MPN and the product URL, and fewer reviews usually match. Even a matched product may not show stars: Google filters ratings for accuracy and relevance. Our guide to stars in Google Shopping covers where a Czech or Ukrainian store can get its reviews.

Where you see it

Merchant Center keeps the reviews files and their processing results under Analytics → Reviews → Product reviews. A store that submits files there also sees a programme status: “inactive” during onboarding and “active” afterwards.

Not to be confused with

  • Seller ratings — a rating of the store as a whole, not of one product. Google now calls them store ratings.
  • Review snippet — stars in ordinary search results, taken from review markup on a web page.

Right and wrong readings

  • Wrong: “We passed 50 reviews, so every product will show stars.” Right: 50 is the threshold for the whole account. A product shows stars only when reviews match it and Google decides to display them.
  • Wrong: “Reviews on our product pages will appear on our Shopping ads by themselves.” Right: to be eligible for stars on Shopping ads, the store has to share its reviews with Google through an aggregator or a reviews file in Merchant Center.

Sources