What Google Maps shows a stranger who isn't signed in
By Tyler Helton · · 3 min read
On 30 September, Search Engine Roundtable reported that Google Maps had started asking people to sign in before it would show all of a business's reviews. Google hasn't said anything about it, and it may be a test. Someone I talk to on X asked the obvious next question: if you're not signed in, which reviews do you actually get?
So on the morning of 2 October I opened a private window and looked up a plumber in Naperville, Illinois. 411 reviews, 4.9 stars.
What a signed-out visitor saw
The listing had two tabs, Overview and About. There was no Reviews tab. Scrolling down the overview, I found three reviews, then a button for the other 408 that asked me to sign in.
Two of the three were five stars. The third was a one-star from two months earlier, with the owner's reply underneath. I did not expect the one-star to be sitting there in the first three.
What a signed-in visitor saw
Then I signed in and opened the full list. It sorts by Most relevant by default, and the same three reviews sat at the top in the same order. Switching to Newest put reviews from three days and a week earlier at the top. None of those had shown up signed out.
What I make of it
That's one listing, checked once, so I don't want to make too much of it. But for this plumber, anyone who isn't signed in reads three reviews that Google picked, not the owner and not the calendar. A one-star from two months ago is one of them, and the owner's reply under it is the only answer that visitor will see.
I don't know yet whether this sticks. I'll check the same listing again in a week and add what I find to the bottom of this page.
Checking your own listing
It takes about a minute:
- Open a private or incognito window, so you're signed out.
- Search Google Maps for your business by name and town.
- Scroll the overview and note which reviews show before the sign-in button.
- Sign in, open your reviews, and compare them with Most relevant and Newest.
If one of the reviews a stranger sees is a bad one, your reply under it is part of what they read before they call. And if you want a direct link that opens your review box for the next customer, the free review link tool makes one from your listing.