RevuKit

March 1, 2025

How to Embed Google Reviews
on Your Website (2025)

FrankFrank
Complete Guide

You've worked hard to earn 5-star Google reviews. Now it's time to display them on your website where they can actually boost conversions. This guide covers every method available-from Google's free official badge to premium third-party widgets-with honest pros and cons for each.

93% of consumers read online reviews before visiting a business, yet most business websites don't display their Google reviews prominently. The result? Potential customers leave your site to search for reviews elsewhere-and many never return.

This guide will walk you through every option for embedding Google reviews on your website, from completely free DIY solutions to professional widget platforms. By the end, you'll know exactly which method fits your technical skills, budget, and business needs.

Why Display Google Reviews on Your Website?

Before diving into the "how," let's quickly cover the "why." Displaying Google reviews directly on your website provides three critical benefits:

  • Increased Conversions. Websites with visible customer reviews see conversion rate increases up to 270%. Reviews provide the social proof customers need to make a purchase decision.
  • Better SEO Rankings. Google rewards websites with fresh, user-generated content. Reviews add constantly updating content and include natural long-tail keywords your customers actually search for.
  • Reduced Bounce Rate. Only 12% of website visitors will navigate away to check your Google reviews. The other 88% will simply leave if they can't see social proof immediately.

Now that we've established why this matters, let's explore every method available for displaying your Google reviews.

Method 1: Google's Official Review Badge (Free)

Google offers a free, official way to display your business rating through their "Google Customer Reviews" badge. This is the most basic option available.

How to Set It Up:

  1. Visit your Google Business Profile dashboard
  2. Navigate to "Home" → "Get more reviews"
  3. Click "Share review form" to get your review link
  4. Manually create a badge or button linking to this URL

The Reality:

Google's official solution is extremely limited. It doesn't actually display your reviews-it only provides a link where customers can read and write reviews. This means visitors must leave your website, which defeats the purpose of building on-site trust.

Pros:

  • ✓ Completely free
  • ✓ Official Google solution
  • ✓ Setup in 5 minutes

Cons:

  • ✗ Doesn't actually display reviews
  • ✗ Sends visitors away from your site
  • ✗ Very basic appearance
  • ✗ No design customization
  • ✗ Minimal conversion impact

Method 2: Manual Google Places API Integration

For developers or businesses with technical teams, you can build a custom review display using Google's Places API. This gives you complete control over design and functionality.

What You'll Need:

  • Google Cloud Platform account
  • Places API enabled (costs $17 per 1,000 requests after free tier)
  • API key with proper restrictions
  • Developer to write custom code
  • Ongoing maintenance and updates

The Google Places API returns up to 5 reviews per request. You'll need to fetch reviews, store them in your database, implement caching to avoid excessive API costs, and build a frontend display that's mobile-responsive.

The Reality: This approach requires significant technical expertise. You'll spend 10-20 hours on initial development, then ongoing time for maintenance, API updates, and design improvements. For most small businesses, the developer costs far exceed the price of a ready-made solution.

Pros:

  • ✓ Complete design control
  • ✓ Custom functionality
  • ✓ No third-party dependencies

Cons:

  • ✗ Requires developer (expensive)
  • ✗ 10-20 hours initial development
  • ✗ API costs after free tier
  • ✗ Limited to 5 reviews per request
  • ✗ Ongoing maintenance needed
  • ✗ Must handle API changes

Method 3: Screenshot Your Reviews (Not Recommended)

Some businesses take screenshots of their Google reviews and upload them as images to their website. While this technically "displays" reviews, it's a poor solution for multiple reasons.

Why This Is Problematic:

  • ✗ Reviews become outdated immediately
  • ✗ Not mobile-responsive
  • ✗ No SEO value (search engines can't read images)
  • ✗ Looks unprofessional
  • ✗ May violate Google's terms of service
  • ✗ Can't be updated without manual work

Verdict: Skip this method. The time you spend creating and updating screenshot images would be better spent on any of the other solutions in this guide.

Method 4: Third-Party Review Widgets (Recommended)

Third-party review widget platforms solve all the problems of the previous methods. They handle the technical complexity, provide beautiful pre-built designs, and automatically keep your reviews up-to-date.

Here's an honest comparison of the leading Google review widget platforms available in 2025:

PlatformSetup TimeFree PlanDesign Quality
RevuKit60 secondsYes (3 widgets)Premium designs
Elfsight10-15 minutesLimited trialBasic templates
Trustindex5-10 minutesBasic versionDated designs
Podium30+ minutesNoEnterprise focus

Key Differences Between Widget Platforms

Design Quality & Customization: RevuKit is the only platform specifically built for beautiful, design-focused review displays. You get full control over colors, layouts, shadows, borders, and multiple premium themes. Other platforms offer basic templates with limited customization.

Setup Process: RevuKit requires no account creation for free widgets—just search for your business, customize the design, copy the code, and paste it on your site. Most competitors require account registration, email verification, and multi-step configuration before you can even preview a widget.

Review Filtering: RevuKit Pro ($9/month) automatically filters and displays your best reviews rather than just the 5 most recent. This ensures your widget always shows your strongest social proof. Free users get the 5 most recent reviews.

Step-by-Step: Setting Up a Review Widget (Using RevuKit)

Here's the fastest method to get Google reviews on your website. This entire process takes about 60 seconds:

  1. Search for Your Business: Visit RevuKit.com and use the search bar to find your Google Business Profile. The autocomplete feature will help you locate the exact listing.
  2. Select Your Business: Click on your business from the search results. RevuKit automatically connects to your Google reviews—no API keys or technical setup required.
  3. Customize the Design: Choose from premium themes, adjust colors to match your brand, select your preferred layout (badge, card, carousel), and customize borders, shadows, and spacing.
  4. Copy the Code: Click "Copy Code" to get your widget's embed code. It's a single script tag with your unique configuration.
  5. Paste on Your Website: Add the script tag to any page on your website where you want reviews to appear. Works with WordPress, Shopify, Wix, HTML sites, and every major platform.

Technical Note: RevuKit uses Shadow DOM to ensure your widget displays correctly regardless of your website's existing CSS. This prevents style conflicts and ensures consistent appearance across different platforms.

Which Method Should You Choose?

Here's my honest recommendation based on different business scenarios:

If you want it free and fast: RevuKit Free

Get 3 free widgets that display your 5 most recent reviews with beautiful, customizable designs. No account required. Perfect for trying out review widgets before committing to a paid plan.

If you want the best ROI: RevuKit Pro ($9/month)

Unlimited widgets, automatic best-review filtering, no watermark, and ability to collect reviews directly from your website. 14-day free trial included.

If you have a developer: Manual API Integration

Only makes sense if you need extremely custom functionality that no widget platform offers, or if you're building a custom application that needs review data for other purposes.

If you need enterprise features: RevuKit Enterprise ($30/month)

Unlimited page views, white-label options, phone support, and priority feature requests. Best for agencies managing multiple client sites or high-traffic websites.

Common Questions About Embedding Google Reviews

Do review widgets slow down my website?

Modern review widgets load asynchronously, meaning they don't block your page from rendering. RevuKit adds less than 0.2 seconds to page load time while dramatically improving conversion rates.

How often do reviews update?

With RevuKit, paid plans refresh reviews every few days automatically. Free plans show a snapshot of your reviews at the time you created the widget. Google's official badge always links to live reviews but doesn't display them on your site.

Can I display only 5-star reviews?

Technically yes, but I don't recommend it. Reviews with a 4.2-4.8 star average (showing some 4-star reviews mixed with 5-stars) actually convert better than all 5-stars because they appear more authentic.

What if I don't have many reviews yet?

Even 3-5 strong reviews are worth displaying. Focus on getting more reviews first (RevuKit Pro includes a "Write Review" button that sends customers directly to your Google review page).

Will this work on Shopify/WordPress/Wix?

Yes. RevuKit widgets work on every platform that allows custom HTML/JavaScript, which includes Shopify, WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, and custom-coded sites.

Final Recommendations

After helping thousands of businesses display their Google reviews, here's what I've learned works best:

  • Start with a free widget to see the immediate conversion impact before investing in a paid plan.
  • Place widgets above the fold on your homepage, service pages, and checkout process for maximum impact.
  • Choose design over features-a beautiful widget that matches your brand builds more trust than a feature-heavy widget that looks generic.
  • Skip the manual API route unless you have very specific custom requirements. Your developer's time is worth more than the cost of a widget platform.

The businesses that win online aren't necessarily the best-they're the ones customers trust most. Google reviews are your most powerful trust signal, but only if potential customers can actually see them.

Ready to Display Your Google Reviews?

Try RevuKit free-no account required. Search for your business, customize your widget design, and get the embed code in under 60 seconds.

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