How Google star ratings are calculated
Google says your review score is the average of all ratings published on Google for your business, on a 1-to-5 scale, and that it can take up to two weeks to update after a new review. Because it is an average, every review moves it less as your review count grows.
Sources checked 17 October 2026. Written by Firstcliq, which sells automatic review replies — so every claim about Google links to Google or to the article it comes from.
Skip the maths
Enter your rating, review count and target. The free calculator tells you how many 5★ reviews you need — and how many 1★ reviews would drop you below it.
Open the Google review calculatorWhat Google says about how the rating is calculated
- “The review score is the average of all ratings published on Google for that place or business.”
- All scores are on a scale of 1 to 5 stars, with 5 as the highest.
- After someone leaves a new review, it may take up to 2 weeks to get an updated review score.
That is the whole of what Google publishes. It does not say how the score shown on your profile is rounded, and it does not describe any weighting by reviewer, by date or by review length. Be wary of anyone who claims to know a secret formula: Google's own help page describes an average and nothing more.
Two practical consequences follow. Only published ratings count, so a review Google removes under its policies no longer forms part of the average by that definition. And the number you see is a summary of the true average, so a profile showing 4.3 might really be a little above or below it.
Source: Google Business Profile Help — Understand review scores for local places & businesses
Why more reviews make your rating stable
An average treats every rating equally, so each one carries a share of 1 divided by your review count. With 10 reviews, a single new one is a tenth of your score's inputs; with 600, it is a six-hundredth. Here is the same 4.3 rating at three sizes, and what one new review does to the true average:
| Reviews | Now | After one 1★ | After one 5★ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 4.30 | 4.00 | 4.36 |
| 60 | 4.30 | 4.25 | 4.31 |
| 600 | 4.30 | 4.29 | 4.30 |
At 10 reviews, one bad review takes a 4.3 business to 4.0. At 600, the same review barely registers. This is why a new business feels every review, and why a steady flow of genuine reviews is the best protection against the occasional bad one.
The maths of moving your rating
Your total stars are your rating multiplied by your number of reviews. Each new 5★ review adds 5 stars and one review; each new 1★ adds 1 star and one review. From that:
- 5★ reviews needed to reach a target = reviews × (target − current) ÷ (5 − target), rounded up.
- 1★ reviews that would drop you below a level = reviews × (current − level) ÷ (level − 1); the next whole number above that takes you under.
Worked example. A business has 60 reviews and a 4.3 rating, so it holds about 258 stars. To reach a true average of 4.5: 60 × (4.5 − 4.3) ÷ (5 − 4.5) = 60 × 0.2 ÷ 0.5 = 24 five-star reviews. Check: 258 + 120 = 378 stars over 84 reviews, which is 4.50. And that assumes every one of those new reviews is a 5★ — any lower rating along the way means you need more.
Two limits are worth knowing. Once you have any review below 5★, an average of exactly 5.0 is out of reach. And because the rating you start from is already a rounded number, the result is a close guide rather than an exact count. The Google review calculator runs these sums for any rating and target.
What Google says about ratings and local ranking
Google names three main factors for local results: relevance, distance and prominence. On prominence, it says the factor is based on information such as how many websites link to your business and how many reviews you have, and that more reviews and positive ratings can help your business's local ranking. It also says there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking.
Google does not say how much weight reviews carry against the other factors. For what replying adds, see does replying to Google reviews help your ranking?
Source: Google Business Profile Help — Tips to improve your local ranking on Google
How to raise a rating the right way
- Ask every customer for a review, not only the ones you expect to be happy — Google prohibits selectively asking for positive reviews.
- Make it easy: Google suggests sharing a review link or QR code.
- Never offer payment, discounts or free goods for a review — Google's policy prohibits incentives.
- Fix what bad reviews keep mentioning, and reply to them so the next reader sees how you handle problems.
Make a free review QR code page →
Sources: Google — Maps user-contributed content policy · Google Business Profile Help — Manage customer reviews
Where Firstcliq fits
Firstcliq replies to your Google reviews automatically in your tone and the reviewer's language, holds every 1–2★ review for you instead of answering it, and on paid plans tracks your rating and review count against the competitors you choose — so you can watch the average move rather than guess at it.
How competitor tracking works →
Questions
How does Google calculate my star rating?
Google's help page says the review score is the average of all ratings published on Google for that place or business, on a scale of 1 to 5 stars. Google does not publish any further formula.
Why hasn't my rating changed after a new review?
Google says that after someone leaves a new review, it may take up to 2 weeks for the review score to update. With many reviews, a single new one may also move the average too little to change what is shown.
How many 5-star reviews do I need to raise my rating?
Multiply your review count by the gap between your target and your current rating, then divide by the gap between 5 and your target. For 60 reviews at 4.3 aiming for 4.5, that is 60 × 0.2 ÷ 0.5 = 24 five-star reviews. The free Firstcliq Google review calculator does this for you.
Does a higher rating help my Google Maps ranking?
Google says prominence is one of its three local ranking factors, based partly on how many reviews a business has, and that more reviews and positive ratings can help a business's local ranking.
Can I pay to have bad reviews removed or to get more 5-star reviews?
No. Google's content policy prohibits paid and incentivised reviews and asking only happy customers for reviews. Google only removes reviews that break its policies.
Sources
- Google Business Profile Help — Understand review scores for local places & businesses
- Google Business Profile Help — Tips to improve your local ranking on Google
- Google — Maps user-contributed content policy
- Google Business Profile Help — Manage customer reviews
More guides
- Does Google allow AI replies to reviews?Yes — Google's guidance does not prohibit them, and Google has been testing its own AI reply button. What it checks is what a reply says.
- How to reply to a negative Google reviewReply promptly, address the reviewer and their specific complaint, own what went wrong without taking blame for what didn't, and never share private details.
- Does replying to Google reviews help your ranking?Google does not list replies as a ranking factor. It says review count and ratings help prominence — and that replies help you stand out.
- How to spot and report fake Google reviewsReport it to Google from your Business Profile or the Reviews Management Tool, reply calmly in the meantime, and never buy reviews of your own.
- What is local SEO, and how is it different?Local SEO is getting found by nearby customers on Google Maps and local results. Google ranks those on relevance, distance and prominence.
- How automatic Google review replies save you timeAutomate the routine replies, keep a person on the 1–2★ ones, and add a delay so replies read like a manager who saw the review.
- Buying Google reviews: what happens when Google catches itDon't. Google removes paid reviews, can block new reviews on your profile and warn customers that fake reviews were removed, and in the US and UK buying them breaks the law.
- Buying negative reviews for competitors: is it illegal?Don't. Fake reviews on a competitor break Google's policy, can be traced back to you through the platform, and can mean defamation, unfair-competition or criminal liability depending on the country.
- How local SEO works: the complete step-by-step guideGoogle ranks local results on relevance, distance and prominence, then the searcher picks one by what your profile shows. This guide covers each lever in order — profile, consistency, reviews, website, posts, tracking — with a 90-day checklist.