How to get your Google review link (and shorten it)

Updated 7 September 2026 · 2 min read

A good review link opens the "Rate and review" box directly, with the customer already signed in. A bad link dumps them on your listing to hunt for the button, and you lose a chunk of people at that step.

If you would rather skip the steps, our free review link and QR code generator finds your business and gives you a direct link in seconds.

The quick way from Google Business Profile

Go to business.google.com and sign in as the owner.
Select your business.
Look for Ask for reviews or Get more reviews. Google gives you a ready-made short link there, usually in the form g.page/r/....
Copy it. That is the link to put in your texts and emails.

This is the easiest option and the link is already short.

What is in a Google review link

https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=YOUR_PLACE_ID

The page: Google’s write-a-review page.
The label: Says which business comes next.
Your Place ID: The code that identifies your listing.

Swap in your own Place ID and it opens your review box directly.

The way using your Place ID

If you cannot find the button, or you want to build the link yourself:

Open Google's Place ID Finder.
Search for your business and copy the Place ID (a string starting with ChIJ).
Build the link:

https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=YOUR_PLACE_ID

That URL takes anyone straight to the review form for your listing.

Make it short and memorable

The raw link is long and looks untrustworthy in a text message. Options:

Use the g.page/r/... short link from your profile if you have it.
Put it behind a short link on your own domain, for example yourbusiness.co.nz/review.
Generate a QR code that points at it, for invoices, the counter, or the van.

Avoid public link shorteners for this. A branded or own-domain link gets clicked more.

Test it before you send it

Open the link on a phone that is signed in to a different Google account than your business. You should land on the review box with stars ready to tap. If you land on a map or a search result, the link is wrong.

Do not gate the link

It can be tempting to only send the link to customers you are sure are happy, or to put a "how did we do?" question first and only show the link to people who pick the smiley face. That is review gating, and it is unlawful in New Zealand and Australia. Send the same link to everyone. If you want to hear about problems early, offer every customer a private feedback option next to the review link, not instead of it.

Common questions

What is a Google Place ID?+

A unique identifier Google assigns to your business listing. It never changes, and you can use it to build a direct review link or to connect your listing to other tools.

Why does my review link open a map instead of the review box?+

The link is pointing at your listing rather than the write-review action. Use the g.page short link from your profile, or build the writereview URL with your Place ID.

Can customers leave a review without a Google account?+

No. Google requires the reviewer to be signed in. This is deliberate and it is why review-posting cannot be automated on someone's behalf.

Let Goodshout do the asking.

After every job, your customer gets one screen: leave a Google review, or tell you privately what went wrong. Free for up to 25 customers a month. Just need your link first?