How to Fill Out Google's Missing Reviews Form and Get Reviews Reinstated
By Clay Lawrence, Review Harvest · · 6 min video
The short version
Sign in with the email that manages your Google Business Profile, go to support.google.com/business, click Contact us, choose Review missing, and pick the email option to open Google's form. Fill in your business details, your Business Profile ID, the names of the reviewers whose reviews are missing, and a description of what happened. Reviews have come back in less than 24 hours and have also taken weeks, so give it about 10 business days before you submit again.
Do this, in order
- 1
Sign in with the email that manages the profile
Use the email that manages the Google Business Profile that is missing reviews. That is what makes the profile show up in the form so you can tell Google which business the request is about.
- 2
Go to support.google.com/business and click Contact us
The page opens on How can we help. Scroll down to Contact us.
- 3
Select your business and choose Review missing
Pick your business from the dropdown. If it is not there, you are not logged in with the email address that manages the profile.
- 4
Click Next step, then choose the email option
Google first tries to get you to solve it on your own. Click Next step and then the email option. You are not actually writing an email: it opens a form.
- 5
Enter your name, phone number and relationship to the business
Most people will say they own the business. You can also say you are an employee, or a friend or family member.
- 6
Type the business name and address
Type the business name exactly as it is listed on Google. If your address is listed publicly, use that one. A service area business puts the address where the business is registered.
- 7
Copy your Business Profile ID into the form
Type your business name into Google to open the profile you manage. Click the three dots next to profile strength, then Business Profile settings, then Advanced settings, then Copy ID. Paste it into the form.
- 8
Answer Google's questions about the profile
Say whether the profile was recently suspended or disabled, whether it belongs to a school, how many reviews you think are missing, whether new reviews are still being published, and over what time frame the reviews have been disappearing.
- 9
List the names of the reviewers whose reviews are missing
Use the name on each person's Google account, the name that shows when they leave a review. Put in as many names as you can.
- 10
Describe the issue
Give Google the context. For example: you had been getting reviews consistently and lost 10 overnight, or you are getting 10 reviews and only eight of them show up on your profile.
- 11
Add a related case ID if you have one, then submit
Every support request for your Google Business Profile should come back with a case ID. Screenshot it or save it somewhere, so the next time you submit you can enter the case ID it relates to.
- 12
Wait about 10 business days before submitting again
Some businesses have had reviews back in less than 24 hours. For others it has taken weeks and weeks.
Why do Google reviews go missing?
Google filters reviews. One day your profile says 78 reviews, a couple of recent customers leave one, and the next time you look you are down 10. A while ago Google introduced an AI filtering process, and a review can be removed, or never posted to your profile at all, based on what the filter decides.
The filter is trying to work out whether a review is real. It looks at things like:
- Did the reviewer just create their Gmail account, or is it an old one?
- Has this person ever left a review before?
- Does the account show suspicious activity, like leaving loads of other reviews elsewhere?
- Probably the IP address the review was left from.
This is a good thing. People do leave fake reviews, and some business owners buy them. Purchased reviews get removed nine times out of 10, whether it takes a month or a year. In certain places in the UK, Google has started flagging businesses for fake engagement, so a customer deciding who to hire can see a notice on the profile saying Google suspects fake engagement. That means fewer clicks and fewer calls, and it could tank the profile.
The cost of the filter is that real reviews sometimes get caught. Those are the ones you can ask Google to reinstate.
Where is the form to report missing reviews?
It is behind Google’s Business Profile help page, and Google makes it a little tricky to reach.
- Log in with an email that manages the Google Business Profile that is missing reviews.
- Go to support.google.com/business. You land on a page that says How can we help.
- Scroll down to Contact us.
- Select the business you are asking about from the dropdown. If you cannot find it, you are not logged in with the email address that manages the profile.
- Click Review missing.
- Click Next step. Google is trying to get you to solve it on your own here.
- Click the email option. You are not actually going to email anyone. It gives you a form to fill out.
How do you fill out the missing reviews form?
Go through it in order and give Google as much context as you can.
- Your name and phone number.
- Your relationship to the business. For most people that is the owner. Employee and friend or family are also options.
- Business name. Type it exactly as it is listed on Google.
- Business address. A brick-and-mortar location with a publicly listed address uses that address. A service area business uses the address where the business is registered.
- Business Profile ID. See the next section.
- Has your profile recently been suspended or disabled? Yes or no.
- Does this profile belong to a school?
- How many reviews are missing? Pick the range, for example 1 to 10.
- Are new reviews being published to your profile? In other words, if someone left a review right now, would it show up?
- Over what time frame have reviews been disappearing? Has this been going on for years, or did you just lose five or six?
- Reviewer names. If you sent someone your review link and they told you they left a review, or sent you a screenshot of it, put their name in. Use the name on their Google account, the one that shows when they leave a review. Add as many names as you can.
- Describe your issue. Something like: everything was going well, we were consistently getting reviews, and overnight we lost 10. Or: we are getting 10 reviews but only eight are showing up on our profile.
- Related case ID. If you have contacted Google about this before, enter that case ID.
Then click Submit.
Where do you find your Business Profile ID?
It is in the advanced settings of the profile you manage.
- Type the name of your business into Google while logged in with the email that manages it.
- Click the three dots next to profile strength.
- Click Business Profile settings.
- Click Advanced settings.
- Click Copy ID, then go back and paste it into the form.
How long does it take to get reviews back?
Anywhere from a day to several weeks. After this form has been submitted, some businesses have had their reviews back in less than 24 hours, and for others it has taken weeks and weeks. Give it about 10 business days before you submit another request.
Every time you submit a support request for your Google Business Profile, you should get a case ID back. Screenshot it or save it somewhere safe. When you submit again, enter that case ID so Google can connect the requests.
Common questions
Why did my Google reviews disappear?
Google uses an AI filtering process that can remove a review or keep it from being posted to your profile. It looks at things like whether the reviewer just created their Gmail account, whether they have ever left a review before, and whether they show suspicious activity of leaving loads of reviews elsewhere. It probably also has insight into the IP address the review was left from. Real reviews sometimes get caught by it.
How do I get missing Google reviews back?
Sign in with the email that manages your Google Business Profile and go to support.google.com/business. Scroll to Contact us, select your business, choose Review missing, click Next step, and pick the email option to open the form. Fill it in with your business details, your Business Profile ID, the reviewers' names and a description of the problem, then submit.
Where do I find my Google Business Profile ID?
Type your business name into Google while logged in with the email that manages the profile. Click the three dots next to profile strength, click Business Profile settings, then Advanced settings, then Copy ID.
How long does it take Google to restore missing reviews?
It varies. Some businesses have had reviews back in less than 24 hours after submitting the form, and for others it has taken weeks and weeks. Give it about 10 business days before you submit another request.
What happens if a business buys fake Google reviews?
Nine times out of 10 the reviews are removed eventually, whether in a month or a year. In certain places in the UK, Google has also started flagging profiles with a notice saying it suspects fake engagement. A potential customer who sees that is less likely to click or call.
