Google review calculator

See how many 5-star reviews you need to reach your target Google rating. Add your monthly review rate and we will estimate how long it could take. Your result is instant, with no email required.

  1. Your numbersSet the goal

  2. Your planSee the path

How far does your rating need to move?

Use the rating and review count showing on Google today.

Instant result. No email required.

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How a star rating calculator gets to its number

Here is the maths, along with what it means for your target.

A star rating calculator starts with your current rating and review count. Every new five-star review nudges the average up, but the effect gets smaller as your total grows.

five-star reviews needed = review count x (target - current) / (5 - target)

Say you have 90 reviews, a 4.2 rating, and want to reach 4.5. The calculation is 90 x 0.3 / 0.5, so you need 54 five-star reviews. That would give you 648 stars across 144 reviews, which is exactly 4.5.

Going from 4.5 to 4.7 then takes another 96 five-star reviews. Each tenth gets harder because your target is closer to five, leaving each new review less room to lift the average.

Your existing review count matters too. Double the count and you double the number of five-star reviews needed for the same change. A profile with 800 reviews moves much more slowly than one with 80, in either direction.

What the basic calculation leaves out

The headline number assumes every new review is five stars. Use your monthly rate and average to set a more realistic timeframe.

  1. Not every review you get is a five

    In practice, some customers will leave fewer than five stars. If your new reviews average 4.7, moving from 4.2 to 4.5 with 90 reviews takes 135 new reviews rather than 54. Use that figure when you set a timeframe.

  2. Your monthly rate sets the timeframe

    Fifty-four reviews could take three months or eleven. It depends on how many you collect each month. At five a month, allow eleven months. At twenty a month, it is about three. Improving your collection rate will often get you there sooner than lowering the target.

  3. Plan for the occasional one-star review

    At a 4.7 rating, a new one-star review takes thirteen five-star reviews to offset. Your total review count does not change that number. A steady flow of new reviews helps you recover sooner. If new reviews have dried up, the lower rating stays visible for longer.

For a multi-location business, run the calculator for each location rather than using the overall average. Customers see the Google profile for the location near them, including its rating and recent reviews. Cloutly puts every location in one table, ranked by rating and recent review volume, so you can see which ones need attention.

Google review calculator FAQs

That depends on the rating you want to get back to. You need three new five-star reviews to return to 4.0, seven to return to 4.5, thirteen to return to 4.7, and nineteen to return to 4.8. The answer is the same whether your profile has 40 reviews or 4,000, although collecting them may take longer.

Add the star values from every review, then divide by the number of reviews. For example, thirty five-star, eight four-star and two three-star reviews add up to 188 stars. Divide 188 by 40 and the average is 4.7. Google displays one decimal place, but the unrounded average still affects when your visible rating changes.

Multiply your review count by the difference between your current rating and your target. Then divide by the difference between five and your target. If you have 90 reviews at 4.2 and want to reach 4.5, the calculation is 90 x 0.3 / 0.5. You need 54 new five-star reviews.

Yes. The calculator runs in your browser and shows the result without asking for an email. You can use it as often as you like. We only receive your numbers if you complete the form after the result.

For a closer look at review count, recency, and whether 5.0 is the right target, read how many Google reviews do you need. If you ask for reviews in person or on printed material, use our free Google review QR code generator.

Keep new reviews coming in

Cloutly asks each customer once, follows up on the schedule you choose, and stops when they leave a review. The process keeps running next month, too.

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