Should restaurants reply to Google reviews?

What Google says

• Google's help pages say that when you reply to reviews, you show customers that you value their feedback (source).
• Google lists replying to reviews as a best practice and says to reply and share your perspective (source).
• Google also says you don't need to thank every reviewer publicly, and to reply when you have new or relevant info to share (source).
• When you reply, the reviewer is notified, and they can still change their review afterwards (source).

Why replying helps a restaurant

• Your reply is public. Diners deciding where to eat tonight read the replies as well as the reviews, and a calm, kind reply to a bad review tells them a lot about you.
• It gives unhappy guests a way back. Inviting someone to get in touch privately is often the start of putting things right.
• It thanks the people who took the time to write. Regulars notice when you do.
• It's your chance to add context, such as a menu change or a fix you've made, in a sentence.

Should you reply to every review?

Always reply to 1-star and 2-star reviews, and to anything that raises a specific problem. For 4-star and 5-star reviews, a short, personal thank-you is a nice touch, but quality beats quantity. Ten copy-and-paste replies that all say "Thanks for the 5 stars!" do less for you than a few that mention the actual dish. Google itself says you don't need to thank every reviewer publicly.

Reviews with no text

Star-only ratings don't need much. A one-line thank-you is fine, or you can leave them if time is tight.

How quickly should you reply?

Google's tips say to respond in a timely manner, because it shows you value the customer's feedback (source). In practice, try to answer within a day or two, and sooner for anything negative, so the reply sits under the review while people are still reading it.

Things to avoid

• Asking for, writing or paying for reviews that aren't genuine. Google prohibits offering incentives for reviews (source), and in the UK, fake reviews and reviews that hide that they were incentivised are banned under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (source).
• Offering discounts or freebies in replies.
• Arguing, blaming staff or accusing anyone of lying.
• Discussing allergies, illness or legal matters in public. Take those offline.

Making it manageable

Set aside ten minutes at the same time each day, keep a few reply templates to hand, and use our free review reply generator when you're stuck. For the hard ones, read how to reply to a 1-star review without making it worse. Or let us do it for you: see how Review Rota works.