Review gating: what is and isn't allowed
The short answer
Review gating means choosing which customers you ask for a public review based on how happy they seem. Google's policy says merchants may not selectively solicit positive reviews. In the US, FTC staff say the same practice could violate the FTC Act. Our suggestion is to ask every customer the same way.
By Reputant · Updated October 31, 2026 · 6 min read
What is review gating?
Review gating is a way of deciding who gets asked for a public review. A business screens customers first, for example with a private question such as "How was your visit?", and only sends the happy ones to its Google review page. Unhappy customers are sent somewhere private, or nowhere.
That is our own description of the practice, not a quote from any rule. The sections below show what Google and the US regulator actually say about it. This guide is general information and not legal advice.
Example of a gated flow (do not copy this)
Step 1: text every customer "How would you rate your visit, 1 to 5?" Step 2: if the answer is 4 or 5, send the Google review link. Step 3: if the answer is 1 to 3, send a private feedback form instead.
What does Google's policy say about review gating?
Google's Maps user-generated content policy has a list of things merchants are not allowed to do. Two lines on it matter here: merchants may not "discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews from customers", and may not offer incentives such as payment, discounts, free goods or services in exchange for posting a review.
The same policy says merchants should not require or pressure users to leave ratings or write reviews while on the premises. It lists what is allowed too: soliciting or encouraging content that represents a genuine experience, without offering incentives or trying to influence the rating or the contents of the review.
The three-step flow above sorts customers by their answer before asking for a public review. That is selectively soliciting, so it falls under the line quoted above.
What does the US FTC rule on consumer reviews say?
In the US, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has a rule on consumer reviews and testimonials, codified at 16 CFR Part 465. The FTC's questions and answers page says it went into effect on October 21, 2024, and that it lets courts impose civil penalties for knowing violations. Other countries have their own rules, and this section covers the US only.
The rule does not use the words "review gating". Here is what its text does say on points close to the topic.
- Section 465.4: it is unlawful for a business to provide compensation or other incentives in exchange for, or conditioned expressly or by implication on, writing consumer reviews expressing a particular sentiment, positive or negative.
- Section 465.7(a): it is unlawful to use an unfounded or groundless legal threat, a physical threat, intimidation or a public false accusation in response to a consumer review, knowing it is false or with reckless disregard for whether it is, to prevent a review being written or to have it removed.
- Section 465.7(b): a business may not misrepresent that the reviews displayed in the review section of its own website or platform represent most or all of the reviews submitted, when reviews are being suppressed because of their ratings or negative sentiment. Withholding reviews by criteria applied equally to all reviews, such as ones containing defamatory content or ones the seller reasonably believes are fake, does not count as suppression based on rating.
The FTC staff answer to the question "Can my business ask for reviews only from customers whom we think are happy with our services?" is that the rule does not contain a specific prohibition against such conduct, but the practice could violate the FTC Act. The same page says its staff guidance is not definitive and gives no safe harbor.
eCFR: 16 CFR Part 465 · FTC: Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule Q&A
How should I ask for reviews instead?
Our suggestion is simple: send the same request, with the same link, to every customer who qualifies, and decide who qualifies by something that has nothing to do with how they feel, such as "a job was completed".
- Do not ask a rating question first and send only high scorers to Google.
- Do not offer a discount, gift or prize for a review, whatever the rating.
- Do not tell people what to write.
- If you show reviews on your own website, choose what to hide by rules that apply to every review, not by star rating.
- Reply to the critical ones, in public. See our guide on how to respond to negative reviews.
What does an ask-everyone message look like?
These are examples of wording, not legal wording, and they do not show that a message meets any rule. More are in our review request templates.
Example text, sent to every customer
Hi {name}, thanks for choosing {business}. If you have a minute, you can share your experience in a Google review: {link}
Example email, sent to every customer
Subject: How was your visit, {name}? Hi {name}, Thank you for visiting {business}. Whatever your experience was, we would like to hear about it. You can leave a Google review here: {link} Thank you, {business}
How does this work in Reputant?
Reputant's review requests do not sort customers by rating. A campaign sends its text or email to the customers its trigger or its uploaded list produces: a QuickBooks event, a Clio event, a CSV upload or a manual send.
Who goes on that list is your decision. For more on the other rules around asking, read our guides on review incentives and the Google review policy, and the wider routine in how to get more Google reviews.