What percentage of consumers read Google reviews?

About 97% of consumers read online reviews, and roughly 81% read reviews on Google when evaluating a local business (BrightLocal, 2026).

How many businesses respond to reviews?

Only about 5% of businesses respond to their reviews, even though 89% of consumers expect a response (BrightLocal, 2026).

Does responding to reviews increase revenue?

Responding to all of your reviews correlates with up to an 18% increase in revenue (BrightLocal, 2026).

Data

Google review statistics (2026)

The numbers every local business should know — how much reviews drive decisions, how few businesses reply, and why responding pays off. Free to cite.

How much people rely on reviews

97%

of consumers read online reviews when researching a local business.

41%

now "always" read reviews when browsing for a business — up sharply from 29% a year earlier.

review sites the average consumer consults before deciding — no single platform is enough anymore.

Google's role

81%

of consumers read reviews on Google when evaluating local businesses — still the first place most people look.

45%

now use AI tools like ChatGPT for recommendations, up from 6% — a fast-growing new discovery channel.

Why responding matters (the opportunity)

89%

of consumers expect businesses to respond to their reviews.

of businesses actually respond to their reviews — a massive gap you can win on.

97%

of people who read reviews also read the business's responses.

up to 18%

higher revenue correlates with responding to all of your reviews.

Source: BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey (2026). Free to reference with a link back to this page.

Be in the 5% that responds

89% of customers expect a reply, but almost no one delivers. SmallBizReply answers every Google review automatically, in your voice — so you win the gap.

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