Can businesses delete Trustpilot reviews?

No, businesses can't delete reviews on Trustpilot. Not directly, not through a paid plan, and not by contacting Trustpilot support with a polite request. Once a review is published, only Trustpilot's moderation team or the original reviewer can remove it.

That said, there are legitimate steps you can take when a review is fake, defamatory, or violates Trustpilot's guidelines. Here's exactly how it works.

What businesses can actually do

While you can't hit a delete button, Trustpilot gives you several tools for dealing with problematic reviews.

Flag the review. Every review on Trustpilot has a reporting option. You can flag a review for violating Trustpilot's guidelines, which include rules against fake reviews, conflicts of interest, hate speech, and reviews that describe a different company's experience. When you flag a review, Trustpilot's content integrity team investigates. If they determine the review violates their guidelines, they'll remove it.

Report with evidence. For more serious cases, you can submit a detailed report through your Trustpilot business dashboard. Include any evidence you have: order records showing the reviewer was never a customer, screenshots of suspicious patterns, or documentation of harassment. The more evidence you provide, the faster the process moves.

Respond publicly. Even if a review stays up, you can always post a public response. This is often more valuable than removal anyway. A thoughtful, professional response to a negative review shows potential customers that you take feedback seriously. It transforms a one-sided complaint into a conversation.

Request proof of purchase. Trustpilot allows businesses to ask reviewers to verify their experience. If the reviewer can't or won't provide evidence they were a real customer, that weighs against the review in Trustpilot's moderation process.

How Trustpilot's moderation process works

When you flag a review, here's what happens behind the scenes.

Trustpilot's automated systems run an initial scan, checking for common fraud signals like suspicious account activity, duplicate content, and unusual review patterns. Reviews that trigger these filters get escalated to human moderators.

The content integrity team then reviews the flagged content against Trustpilot's guidelines. This process can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on complexity and volume. During the review period, the flagged review typically remains visible with a notice that it's under investigation.

If the review is found to violate guidelines, it gets removed. If it doesn't, it stays up, and you're notified of the decision. You can appeal, but overturning a moderation decision is uncommon.

What Trustpilot won't remove

Some reviews are frustrating but perfectly legitimate. Trustpilot won't remove a review simply because:

• You disagree with the customer's opinion
• The rating feels unfair
• The reviewer was unhappy with your product or service
• The review hurts your overall score
• You've resolved the issue with the customer

Negative reviews that reflect genuine customer experiences are protected, even if the experience was a one-off or a misunderstanding. That's how it should be. A platform that removed reviews whenever businesses asked would be worthless to consumers.

OtterHonest's approach to review management

At OtterHonest, we take a similar stance: businesses can't delete reviews. That principle is fundamental to maintaining consumer trust in any review platform.

What we do differently is focus on prevention rather than cleanup. Every review on OtterHonest requires email verification before it goes live. This doesn't eliminate every problematic review, but it dramatically reduces fake reviews, bot submissions, and throwaway-account attacks.

When a review does need attention, businesses can flag it for our moderation team and respond publicly. The process is transparent, and both the review and the business response are visible to consumers. You can learn more about how we handle reviews on our for business page.

For practical advice on handling negative reviews constructively, check out our guide on how to respond to negative reviews.

The better strategy: respond, don't remove

Trying to remove every negative review is a losing game. The removal process is slow and uncertain, and potential customers are reading that review right now.

Your time is better spent crafting thoughtful responses. Research consistently shows that businesses who respond to negative reviews are viewed more favorably than businesses with spotless ratings and no engagement. Keep it professional, acknowledge the customer's experience, and offer to make things right.

If you suspect a review is genuinely fake, flag it and move on. Let the moderation process run in the background while you focus on delivering a great experience.

Frequently asked questions

Can I pay Trustpilot to remove a negative review?

No. Trustpilot does not remove reviews in exchange for payment, and paying for a higher-tier plan doesn't give you the ability to delete reviews. Paid plans offer better reporting tools and faster access to support, but the moderation standards are the same for all businesses. Any service claiming they can pay to remove Trustpilot reviews on your behalf is likely a scam.

How do I report a fake review on Trustpilot?

Log into your Trustpilot business dashboard, find the review in question, and click the flag or report option. Select the reason for your report (fake review, conflict of interest, wrong company, etc.) and include any supporting evidence. Trustpilot's content integrity team will review the report and notify you of their decision, usually within one to three weeks.

Can the reviewer delete their own review?

Yes. The person who wrote the review can edit or delete it at any time through their Trustpilot account. Some businesses successfully reach out to unhappy customers, resolve their issue, and the customer voluntarily updates or removes their review. This only works if the resolution is genuine, and you should never pressure or incentivize someone to remove a review.

What if a review is defamatory?

If a review contains false statements of fact that damage your business, you can report it to Trustpilot as a guideline violation. For serious defamation, you may also want to consult a lawyer. Trustpilot will comply with valid court orders requiring review removal. Keep in mind that opinions, even strongly negative ones, are generally protected. A review saying "this was the worst experience of my life" is an opinion. A review falsely claiming your business committed fraud could be defamation.

Do review removal services work?

Most "review removal" companies that promise to get negative reviews taken down are either using the same flagging process you can do yourself or engaging in questionable tactics. Some charge hundreds of dollars per review for a service that has no guaranteed outcome. Save your money and file reports directly through Trustpilot's official process. It's free and it's the same process everyone uses, including businesses on paid plans. For reviews on OtterHonest, the flagging process is straightforward and transparent.