Trustpilot's review invitation rules
Inviting customers is the most effective legitimate way to raise a TrustScore. It is also where well-meaning teams break the rules: a discount for a review, an email only to happy customers, a line that says 'if you loved us'. This guide sets out what Trustpilot allows. We remove the rule-breaking 1-star reviews, and fair invitations do the rest.
By James Tumbucon. Published · Updated . Reviewed against Trustpilot’s guidelines on
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Short answer
Trustpilot lets any business invite customers for free, on four conditions. Invite only people with a genuine experience. Invite everyone the same way, at the same point, whatever their experience. Use neutral wording. Never offer anything in exchange for writing, editing or removing a review. Breaking these rules leads to review removal, warnings and, if it continues, a Consumer Warning. The FTC's rule adds a federal ban on incentives tied to positive or negative sentiment.
Key facts
Trustpilot requires businesses to invite consistently and fairly: everyone, in the same way, at the same point, whatever their experience.
Source: Best practices for creating review invitations, Trustpilot Help Center
Incentives for writing or editing a review are banned, including discounts, promo codes, prize draws, refunds and freebies.
Wording such as 'If you were happy, review us. If not, contact support' is not allowed.
Source: Best practices for creating review invitations, Trustpilot Help Center
The FTC's Consumer Review Rule separately bans incentives that are conditioned on a review expressing a particular sentiment.
The rules
From Trustpilot's Guidelines for Businesses and its Action We Take policy:
| Rule | What it means |
|---|---|
| Genuine experience only | Invite people who have used your product or service. One invitation per experience |
| Consistent and fair | Invite everyone in the same way, at the same point in the customer journey, whether their experience was good or bad |
| Enough time | Let customers experience the product before asking. Inviting only at an early, happy stage is a problem |
| Neutral language | Do not encourage only positive reviews |
| No incentives | Nothing of value for writing, editing or removing a review |
| No special relationships | Do not invite family, employees, partners or shareholders |
| No in-store collection without permission | And no reviews collected on a business device |
Wording that is banned
Trustpilot gives its own example of wording that is not allowed:
If you were happy with our services, please review us on Trustpilot. If not, please contact our customer support.
This is review gating: steering happy customers to the review site and unhappy ones to a private channel. The guidelines also ban lines such as "If you like us, please leave us a 5-star review."
| Not allowed | Allowed |
|---|---|
| "Loved your results? Tell the world on Trustpilot." | "How was your experience? Leave a review on Trustpilot." |
| "Leave a review and get 15% off your next order." | "Your review helps other customers. It takes two minutes." |
| "Had a problem? Email us before you review." | "If you need help with an order, our support team is at the address below." placed as a normal footer, the same for everyone |
| "No account needed." | Nothing about accounts. Trustpilot says reviewers do need an account |
Cherry-picking, in its less obvious forms
Trustpilot's policy lists picking and choosing who to invite as misuse. Teams often do it without meaning to:
- inviting after a positive support chat, and not after a negative one
- inviting customers on their third refill, a stage only satisfied customers reach
- sending invitations from the account manager to "friendly" clients
- pausing invitations during a bad shipping month
The test is simple. Would a customer who had a bad experience have received the same invitation at the same moment? If not, the process is selective.
Incentives and the FTC rule
Trustpilot's ban on incentives is total. It covers writing, editing and removing reviews. It names discounts, promo codes, prize draw entries, refunds, freebies and loyalty points. Its policy also treats asking a customer to edit or remove a review after you resolved their issue as incentive misuse.
Federal law overlaps. Section 465.4 of the FTC's Consumer Review Rule bans compensation or incentives conditioned on a review expressing a particular sentiment, positive or negative. Section 465.5 requires disclosure when insiders such as officers, managers and employees write reviews. Our guide to the FTC rule covers both.
For supplement brands, free product for a review is the usual trap. It breaks Trustpilot's rule in every case, and the FTC's rule when the incentive depends on a positive review.
Buying reviews outright is the far end of the same line. Our guide on buying Trustpilot reviews covers how they are caught and what follows.
Which method to use
Trustpilot's invitation methods fall into two groups:
- Automated (Automatic Feedback Service, ecommerce and CRM integrations, API invitations). Reviews are labeled Verified, are linked to a transaction, and create an audit trail.
- Manual (file uploads, generated links). Reviews are labeled Invited.
Automation also removes the temptation to choose. If every order triggers the same invitation after the same number of days, the process is fair by design. Our guide to invited and organic reviews explains what each label changes.
One side effect to know: you cannot flag an invited customer's review as not based on a genuine experience.
Health brands
An invitation email reveals that the recipient is your customer. For a brand whose name signals one condition, that matters.
- Trustpilot publishes a HIPAA Business Associate Addendum for covered entities that share protected health information through its invitation services. Ask your privacy counsel whether you need it.
- Keep the invitation generic. No product names, conditions or order details in the subject line or body.
- Link to Trustpilot's Guidelines for Reviewers, which ask reviewers not to include other people's personal information.
What happens when the rules are broken
Trustpilot removes reviews collected in breach of its guidelines and acts against the business. The steps are an educational email, then a warning, a cease-and-desist notice and account restrictions. If the conduct continues, the last step is a Consumer Warning that hides the TrustScore. See our Consumer Warning guide.
Where this fits with removal
Removal takes out reviews that should not be on your profile. Invitations bring in the customers who never thought to post. TrustScore weighs recent reviews most, so fair invitations usually move a score more than removal does. Many supplement profiles carry Trustpilot's notice that the company has not invited customers, and invitations are what change it.
We only do the removal side. The main Trustpilot review removal page explains how, and the free audit tells you which reviews can qualify.
This is the work behind our Trustpilot review removal service. You pay per removal, and the three packs and their prices are public.
Frequently asked questions
Only with a neutral method. Trustpilot encourages inviting all customers. If that is not possible, it says to use an impartial selection, such as every third customer. Inviting only people you expect to be happy is banned. Source: best practices for review invitations.
No. Trustpilot bans incentives for writing or editing a review, including discounts, promo codes, prize draw entries, refunds and freebies. It removes incentivized reviews. Source: Guidelines for Businesses.
After the customer has had time to experience the product or service. Trustpilot says inviting only at an early stage, such as right after a first consultation, can produce unbalanced reviews. Source: Action We Take.
Not without permission. Trustpilot lists asking customers to write a review in-store without advance permission, or collecting reviews on a business device, as misuse. Source: Action We Take.
Possibly. Invitation tools send customer data to Trustpilot. Trustpilot publishes a HIPAA Business Associate Addendum that applies when a covered entity shares protected health information through its invitation services. Ask your privacy counsel. Source: HIPAA Business Associate Addendum.
Primary sources used on this page
- Guidelines for Businesses. TrustpilotLast verified
- Action We Take. TrustpilotLast verified
- Best practices for creating review invitations. Trustpilot Help CenterLast verified
- 16 CFR Part 465: Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials. Electronic Code of Federal RegulationsLast verified
- Trustpilot invitation methods. Trustpilot Help CenterLast verified
- For which reasons can businesses flag service reviews?. Trustpilot Help CenterLast verified
- HIPAA Business Associate Addendum. TrustpilotLast verified
- Guidelines for Reviewers. TrustpilotLast verified
- TrustScore and star rating explained. Trustpilot Help CenterLast verified