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How To Change A Google Review

Why Changing a Google Review Matters for Local Businesses

Google reviews are one of the most visible trust signals a local business has. When a customer updates a one-star review to a five-star review after a problem gets resolved, that single edit can shift how hundreds of future customers perceive your business. According to the BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey, most consumers read online reviews before choosing a local business, and the recency and rating of those reviews carry significant weight.

The good news: Google does allow reviewers to edit or delete reviews they have written. The process is straightforward, but it trips people up because the steps differ slightly depending on the device and whether you are working through Google Maps or Google Search. This guide walks through every path, clearly, so you or your customers never get stuck.

Before you dive in, if you want to see how your Google Business Profile is performing right now, run a free Google Maps rank scan of your business and find out where you stand in the local map pack today.

How to Change a Google Review on Mobile (Google Maps App)

The majority of reviews are written and edited on mobile, so this is the most important path to understand.

Step-by-step on Android or iPhone

  1. Open the Google Maps app on your phone.
  2. Tap your profile picture or initial in the top-right corner.
  3. Select "Your contributions".
  4. Tap "Reviews" from the list of tabs.
  5. Find the review you want to change and tap the three-dot menu (vertical ellipsis) next to it.
  6. Select "Edit review" to update your star rating or text, or "Delete review" to remove it entirely.
  7. Make your changes and tap "Post" to save.

The edit goes live immediately. Google does not re-verify or hold edited reviews for a manual approval queue under normal circumstances, though content that appears to violate Google's review policies may still be flagged by automated systems.

How to Change a Google Review on Desktop (Google Maps Website)

Some customers prefer to write and edit reviews on a computer, especially for longer, more detailed feedback.

Step-by-step on a browser

  1. Go to maps.google.com and make sure you are signed in to the correct Google account.
  2. Click the menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner.
  3. Select "Your contributions".
  4. Click "Reviews".
  5. Locate the review you want to update, then click the three-dot menu beside it.
  6. Choose "Edit review" or "Delete review".
  7. Update the star rating, change the written text, or clear it entirely, then click "Post".

That is the full desktop flow. If you do not see the review you are looking for, double-check that you are logged into the Google account you used when you originally posted it.

How to Edit a Google Review Without Opening Google Maps

You can also edit a review directly from Google Search, which is sometimes faster.

  1. Search for the business by name in Google.
  2. Find your own review in the review panel on the right side (or scroll to the reviews section on mobile).
  3. Click or tap the three-dot menu on your review.
  4. Select "Edit review" and make your changes.

This route works well when a customer contacts you after reading your response to their review. Your response as a business owner is visible beneath their review, and a thoughtful reply often motivates customers to update a negative review on their own.

Why Customers Edit Reviews (and How Businesses Can Encourage It)

Reviews get edited for several reasons:

  • A complaint was resolved and the customer wants to reflect that.
  • The customer made a factual error in the original review.
  • The business followed up and demonstrated they genuinely care.
  • The customer's experience improved on a return visit.

Business owners cannot edit a customer's review themselves. What you can do is respond professionally and invite the customer to reconsider. A well-crafted response to a negative review demonstrates accountability to every future reader. That is why AI review replies, one of the core features Local SEO Bot handles for you, matter so much. Rather than scrambling to draft a response at 11 p.m., you get thoughtful, on-brand replies published automatically, so every reviewer feels heard.

If you are managing this manually right now, it is worth understanding the full picture of your local presence first. Get my free scan to see your current Google Maps rankings and profile health at no cost.

What Business Owners Can and Cannot Do With Reviews

It is a common misconception that business owners can remove negative reviews with a single click. Here is the reality:

What you CAN do

  • Respond to any review, positive or negative, through your Google Business Profile.
  • Flag a review for removal if it violates Google's content policies, such as spam, fake reviews, or offensive language.
  • Request removal through Google's formal review removal request process if a review clearly breaks the rules.

What you CANNOT do

  • Edit the text or star rating of a review someone else left.
  • Remove a negative review simply because you disagree with it.
  • Pay or pressure customers to delete reviews without disclosing the incentive (this violates Google's review policies).

Understanding this distinction saves a lot of frustration. The most effective long-term strategy is generating a consistent stream of genuine positive reviews, so that any negative ones are outnumbered and outweighed.

How Your Review Profile Affects Local Rankings

Google uses reviews as a ranking signal in the local map pack, alongside relevance, distance, and prominence. More reviews, higher ratings, and timely responses all contribute to where your business appears. According to Google's own local ranking guidance, responses to reviews are explicitly mentioned as a way to show that your business values customer feedback.

This is where Local SEO Bot goes beyond just helping you manage reviews. It is a done-for-you AI local SEO system that handles the full stack: Free Google Business Profile audit, hand-placed citations across 40+ platforms for NAP consistency, AI review replies, weekly Google Business Profile posts, and daily rank tracking with alerts when a competitor climbs. You do not need to log in to a DIY dashboard or hire a separate agency. Local SEO Bot runs in the background while you run your business.

For readers who want to see what is included, compare plans on the pricing page. Getting started is $0 today, $99/mo after your 3-day free trial, and you can cancel anytime.

You can also explore free local SEO tools to audit specific parts of your presence on your own schedule.

For context on best practices, Moz's Local SEO guide is a reliable reference for understanding how citations, reviews, and profile completeness interact with rankings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a business owner change a Google review that a customer left? No. Business owners cannot edit or delete reviews written by customers. Only the person who wrote the review can change it. Business owners can respond to reviews through their Google Business Profile, and they can flag reviews that violate Google's content policies for potential removal.

How long does it take for an edited Google review to go live? In most cases, an edited review updates immediately or within a few minutes. Google does not typically hold edited reviews for manual review unless the content triggers a policy flag. The updated star rating and text will appear on your business listing shortly after the reviewer saves their changes.

Will editing a review remove the original date or reset its ranking in the list? When a reviewer edits their review, Google typically shows the most recent edit date alongside or in place of the original posting date. The review itself stays associated with the same reviewer account, and its position in the review list may shift based on Google's sorting logic, which often surfaces the most recent activity.

Key Takeaways

  • Any reviewer can edit or delete their own Google review through the Google Maps app, the Maps website, or directly in Google Search, as long as they are signed into the correct account.
  • Business owners cannot edit customer reviews, but they can and should respond to every review, positive or negative.
  • A thoughtful response to a negative review often motivates the customer to update their rating without any additional pressure.
  • Reviews directly influence local map pack rankings alongside citations and profile completeness, per Google's local ranking documentation.
  • Managing review responses manually is time-consuming; tools like Local SEO Bot handle AI review replies automatically as part of a done-for-you local SEO service.
  • Local SEO Bot offers a 30-day money-back ranking guarantee: if you are not ranking higher within 30 days, every dollar back, no questions asked.
  • The fastest way to know where you stand today is to run a free Google Maps rank scan of your business and see your live ranking grid across your service area.

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