What are the rules for asking patients for Google reviews?

Google’s contributor policy asks for reviews that reflect a real experience. In plain terms:

• No incentives. Reviews prompted by a discount, a gift or a complimentary service are not allowed.
• No review gating. You can’t selectively ask only people likely to leave a positive review, or discourage negative ones.
• No pressure. Don’t set up a review station or kiosk at the clinic, and don’t pressure patients to post while they are there.
• No fake or conflicted reviews. Reviews from staff, family or people with a tie to the clinic are not appropriate, and one person using several accounts is prohibited.
• Asking is fine. You may ask real patients for reviews of genuine experiences without influencing the rating or wording.

Read the current policy before building a process, as Google updates it.

Health professionals are often subject to advertising and testimonial rules from their college or board. Some places restrict or limit the use of patient testimonials in advertising, and how that applies to Google reviews varies. We can’t give legal advice and we don’t know your regulator’s current position, so check with your college, board or association. See health advertising rules for clinics.

A cautious habit regardless of rules: do not edit or curate reviews, do not reply with any patient’s health details, and keep your replies generic. Even a thank-you can reveal that someone is a patient, so keep it short.

1. Ask everyone. After a visit, send the same simple request to every patient or place a card at checkout.
2. Make it easy. Use your profile’s review link so it takes one tap.
3. Use neutral wording. “If you have a moment, we’d value your honest feedback on Google.”
4. Don’t offer anything in return, not a draw, a discount or a complimentary stretch.
5. Give a private route too, such as an email for complaints, but don’t steer people away from posting publicly.

If you send the request by email or text, the rules on commercial messages apply as well. See email consent.

Reply to reviews when you can, positive and negative. Be calm and brief, and do not confirm that someone was a patient or discuss their care. Invite them to contact the clinic by phone. Our guide on responding to negative reviews goes through it.

Showing reviews on your website is a separate step with its own rules. See showing Google reviews on your website. In our November 2026 scan, 66% of physio and 70% of chiro homepages showed no review feed or star rating.