Can I delete a bad or fake Google review of my shop?

The short answer. No. Only the person who wrote a review, or Google, can delete it. You can report a review that breaks Google's rules, such as a fake one, one from a competitor or one with abuse or personal details, and appeal once if Google keeps it. A review that is only negative stays, and the best answer to it is a calm public reply and more honest reviews from your other customers.

Can I delete a Google review of my business?

No. A Business Profile has no delete button for reviews. Only the person who wrote a review can delete or edit it, and only Google can take it down. What the owner can do is report a review that breaks Google’s rules, and reply to any review in public.

If you sort out a complaint with a customer, they may decide to edit their review themselves. Never offer a refund, a discount or a gift in return for changing or removing it. That is a reward for a review, which Google’s rules forbid, and it can cost you more reviews than the one you wanted gone.

Which reviews will Google remove?

Only reviews that break its rules. The ones shop owners most often meet:

Fake. Not based on a real visit, or posted from several accounts by one person.
Conflict of interest. Written by a competitor, or by a current or former employee, about your business.
Off topic. About a different shop, politics, or something that did not happen at your business.
Abusive. Threats, hate, harassment of a named person, or swearing used to insult.
Personal information. A staff member’s phone number, home address or other private details.
Spam. Adverts, links, or the same words posted again and again.

Google does not remove a review because it is negative, because you disagree with it, or because you and the customer remember the visit differently. It does not settle disputes between a shop and a customer.

How do I report a review to Google?

Sign in to the Google account that manages your Business Profile.
Search for your business on Google or open it in Google Maps, and open your reviews (“Read reviews” in the profile).
Next to the review, choose the report option (a flag, or the three dots).
Pick the reason that matches the rule it breaks, and send the report.

Google’s Reviews Management Tool does the same from one page, and it is where you see what happened to a report. Search for “Google reviews management tool” to find it. Pick the real reason: a fake review reported as abuse is weaker than the same review reported as fake.

How long does it take, and how do I know the result?

Google says it usually takes several days. In the Reviews Management Tool each report shows one of three things: “Decision pending”, “Report reviewed, no policy violation”, or “Escalated”, which means an appeal is being looked at and the answer will come by email. A review Google removes stops showing on Maps and Search.

What if Google says the review can stay?

You can appeal once. In the Reviews Management Tool, choose to check a review you reported before, then appeal, and you can include up to 10 reviews. Google emails the decision. After that, a review it has kept stays. If you believe a review is unlawful, for example a false accusation that harms your business, Google also takes legal removal requests, and that is a question for a lawyer rather than for the reviews tool.

Someone is asking for money to remove bad reviews. What do I do?

Do not pay and do not bargain. Google has a separate form for exactly this, the merchant extortion report, and says paying encourages more attempts and does not guarantee the reviews go. Before you do anything else, save screenshots of every message with its date and time, the sender’s number or account, and links to the reviews. Search for “Google negative review extortion report” to find the form, and report the reviews themselves as well.

Should I pay a review removal service?

No. Nobody outside Google can delete a Google review. A removal service can only send the same report you can send free, and one that promises guaranteed removal is promising something it does not control. Some bury a bad review under bought five star ones instead, which is exactly what gets a listing’s reviews hidden and a warning shown to customers (see why reviews disappear).

How should I reply to a bad review?

Calmly, briefly and in public, because the reply is read by every future customer as much as by the reviewer. Thank them, answer the actual complaint, say what you will do, and invite them to speak to you at the shop. Do not argue, do not share their details, and do not offer anything in the reply. If you believe the review is fake, say once, politely, that you have no record of the visit and would like to hear from them, then report it.

To reply, open your reviews in the Business Profile and choose Reply. Google checks replies before they appear, usually within minutes, and the reviewer is told you replied. You can edit or delete your reply later. The free review reply helper drafts one for you to edit and flags wording that could cause trouble. On Pro, the reply writer answers what the review actually says.

How do I stop one bad review hurting my rating?

By having more honest reviews around it. One bad review among five reviews is a fifth of what a customer reads. Among a hundred, it is one opinion, and a polite reply under it shows how you handle a problem. Ask every customer, the happy and the unhappy alike, with nothing in return. The free review calculator works out how many five star reviews it takes to reach the rating you want.

The simplest way to ask everyone is a plate on the counter that the customer taps or scans while they pay. The Epoxy Plate is the one most shops add: an NFC chip and a printed QR code that open your Google review page on the customer’s own phone. More on asking well is in how to get more Google reviews.

Who wrote this guide?

Tap2Review, which makes NFC and QR review plates for Indian shops, cafés, salons and clinics. Each plate has an NFC chip inside and a printed QR code on the face, and both open the shop’s Google review page. Plates start at ₹699, paid once, or come free with the Pro plan at ₹99 a month. Made and tested by hand in Pune. Shipped free across India. See the plans, answer three questions to see what your shop needs, or see what a customer sees.

Updated 3 November 2026.