More Google reviews, without breaking the rules.
Google lets you ask every customer for a review. It doesn't let you pay for one, reward one, or ask only the happy customers. Below: how to ask the right way, a free printable QR card for your tables, how to reply, and what happens to restaurants that cheat.
Checked against Google's review policy and help pages and the Competition Bureau on 24 September 2026 · Shawn Mann, Glass Floor Studio
What Google allows, and what it removes
From Google's own review policy. The short version: ask everyone, the same way, and offer nothing for it.
| What you do | Allowed | What Google's policy says |
|---|---|---|
| Ask every customer for a review | Yes | Google tells businesses to ask, with a link or a QR code, on receipts, in thank-you emails or on a printed card in the restaurant. |
| Reply to reviews, good and bad | Yes | Replying is one of Google's own tips for improving your local ranking. |
| Report a review that breaks the rules | Yes | Google removes reviews that break its policy. It won't remove one just because you disagree with it. |
| Offer a discount, free item or payment for a review | No | Any reward for posting, changing or removing a review is banned, and those reviews are removed. |
| Ask only the customers who seem happy | No | Businesses may not "selectively solicit positive reviews from customers". |
| Send unhappy customers to a private form first | No | That filters out the bad reviews before they reach Google. Google bans discouraging negative reviews, as well as asking only the happy customers. |
| Have staff, friends or family review you | No | Reviews from a conflict of interest are banned. Google's examples include working for the business and family relationships. |
| Give staff a target number of reviews | No | Named in Google's policy as something a business may not do. |
| Ask customers to mention a dish or a server | No | Asking for specific content is banned, including naming a staff member. |
| Pressure someone to post before they leave | No | Businesses may not require or pressure a customer to review while they're on the premises. A card on the table is an invitation. Standing over someone until they post is pressure. |
Get your review link
Google gives the owner of a Business Profile a link that opens straight to the review form. It's the link that goes on everything else on this page.
1. Sign in
Use the Google account that manages your Business Profile, then search your restaurant's name on Google or open Google Maps. Your profile shows its owner controls.
2. Read reviews, then Get more reviews
That's the path in Google's own help page. It shows a short link you can copy and share.
3. Copy it, and test it
Open it on your phone. It should land on your review form. Google only makes its QR code from a computer browser, so if you're on a phone, use the card maker below.
Print a review card for your tables
Paste the review link from your Business Profile and you get a card with a QR code that opens your review form. Print four to a page and cut them out, or download the QR code for your menus and receipts. Nothing you type here leaves your browser.
Test it before you print: scan the preview with your own phone and check it opens your review form.
Ask at the moments people are happy
Every customer, the same way, every day. Google's own suggestions are receipts, thank-you emails and a printed code in the restaurant.
At the counter
One sentence, said the same way to everyone: "If you enjoyed it, a Google review helps us a lot." No quotas for staff, no asking for a mention of a dish or a name.
On the table and in the bag
A card with the QR code, on every table and in every takeout bag. Pickup and delivery customers eat at home, away from your counter, so the card in the bag is how you reach them.
On the receipt
Print the short link on the bottom of the receipt. If your receipt printer can print an image, the QR code from the card maker above works there too.
On your own ordering
When someone orders on your own site, the confirmation page is yours to put the review link on, and you have their email because they gave it to you. On the apps the customer mostly stays the app's: DoorDash's own page says its Marketplace customers are left out of its restaurant email tools. Ordering on your own site.
By email, within the law
If the email promotes anything, even an "order again" link, Canada's anti-spam law applies. A purchase in the last two years counts as implied consent. The email must say who it's from, how to reach you, and have an unsubscribe link that works within 10 business days.
Steady beats a burst
In a 2026 survey of US adults, 74% said they only care about reviews from the last three months. A card that asks every day keeps your newest reviews new. A one-week push goes stale.
How to answer a review, good or bad
Google's advice for replies: keep them short and professional, conversational rather than promotional, and never offer deals in a reply. Never share anything private about the reviewer. Apologise where it's warranted, and take a complicated complaint offline by asking them to call or email.
Your reply appears publicly under your business name, not your own name. The reviewer is notified and can still change their review, which is why a calm answer to a bad one is worth the effort. Google checks replies before they show, usually within 10 minutes, though it can take up to 30 days.
Write each one fresh. In the same US survey, half of those asked said templated replies put them off.
Three examples, to rewrite in your own words
- Five stars: "Thanks, Priya. Glad the lamb karahi travelled well. See you next Friday."
- Three stars: "Fair point about the wait on Saturday, Dan. We were a driver short, and we've added one for weekends. Thanks for telling us."
- One star: "Sorry, Marc, that's not the order we meant to send. Please email us with your order number and we'll make it right."
What happens to restaurants that cheat
Google removes the reviews, and it can go further. Its published restrictions include stopping a profile from getting new reviews for a while, hiding the reviews it already has, and putting a warning on the profile telling customers that fake reviews were removed. Google emails the owner before it restricts a profile, and the owner can appeal.
This isn't a rare event. Google says that in 2025 it blocked or removed more than 292 million reviews that broke its policies.
In Canada it can also be a Competition Act problem. The Competition Bureau says employees who review their employer have to disclose the connection even when the review is honest, and that anyone who writes or allows a misleading review can be liable. Bell Canada paid a $1.25 million penalty in 2015 over employee reviews of its apps. Amp Me agreed to a $1.5 million penalty in 2023 over what the Bureau said were bought reviews.
Getting a bad review removed
Google removes reviews that break its policy: fake ones, spam, conflicts of interest, abuse and off-topic content. It won't remove a real customer's bad review because you disagree with it, and it doesn't step into disputes between a business and a customer.
To report one, open your reviews in Business Profile, choose Report on the review, pick the reason and send it. Google says a decision usually takes several days, and you can follow it in its Reviews Management Tool. If Google says no, there's a one-time appeal covering up to 10 reviews.
Questions people ask
Can I offer a discount for a Google review?
No. Google's policy bans any reward for posting, changing or removing a review, including payment, discounts and free food. Those reviews are removed, and Google can restrict the profile and show customers a warning that fake reviews were removed.
Can I ask only my happy customers for reviews?
No. Google bans selectively asking for positive reviews and discouraging negative ones. Sending unhappy customers to a private feedback form first, and only the happy ones to Google, does both.
Can my staff or family leave reviews for my restaurant?
No. Google removes reviews from a conflict of interest, and its examples include working for the business and family relationships. In Canada the Competition Bureau says an employee who reviews their employer must disclose it, and Bell Canada paid a $1.25 million penalty over employee reviews.
How do I get my Google review link?
Sign in to the Google account that manages your Business Profile, find your restaurant on Google Search or Maps, and choose Read reviews, then Get more reviews. Copy the link it shows and test it on your phone.
How do I make a QR code for Google reviews?
Google makes one in the same Get more reviews panel, but only in a computer browser. The free card maker on this page also turns your review link into a printable table card and a downloadable QR code, and nothing you type into it leaves your browser.
Can Google remove a bad review?
Only if it breaks Google's policy, such as fake reviews, spam, abuse or a conflict of interest. Report it from your reviews in Business Profile. A decision usually takes several days, and there's a one-time appeal for up to 10 reviews.
Does replying to reviews help my Google ranking?
Google lists replying to reviews among its tips for improving local ranking. It doesn't say replying is itself a ranking factor. It does say that more reviews and positive ratings can help.
Can I email customers to ask for a review?
Yes, with care. If the email promotes anything, Canada's anti-spam law applies: someone who bought from you in the last two years counts as implied consent, and the email must identify you, give your contact information and include an unsubscribe link honoured within 10 business days.
Ask me about your reviews
Tell me your restaurant and what's happening with your reviews. You'll get a straight answer on what I'd change, including if the answer is to keep doing what you're doing.