Collecting Reviews in Magento 2: Reminders, Incentives and Legal Limits

1. Why reviews carry so much weight in a store

Anyone who cannot touch a product relies on the experience of others. Reviews answer questions that no product description settles: does the size run as expected, does the build quality hold up in daily use, did the parcel arrive on time? That is why many prospects read the critical voices first and the description afterwards.

For the store, reviews work on two levels. They reduce uncertainty before purchase, and they deliver unfiltered hints about what is wrong with the range, the description or the shipping. A store that treats reviews only as an advertising surface wastes the second benefit. The aim of this article is therefore not as many stars as possible but as many honest responses as possible.

2. Setting up reviews in Magento 2: standard features

Magento ships with a review function for products. In the catalog configuration you can decide whether guests without a customer account may review as well. New reviews land in the status pending by default and appear in the store only after they are approved under marketing, user content. This moderation step is sensible and should not be switched off.

An automatic reminder to buyers is, to our knowledge, not part of the standard, however. It can be built with an extension or with a separate service that triggers an email after an order event. You will find suitable tools among our marketing extensions, and a general overview of the offering under Magento 2 extensions. Before choosing, ask whether the solution only collects reviews in your store or also transfers data to a third party, because that affects your privacy policy.

3. The right timing: remind after delivery, not after the order

The most common mistake is a reminder counted from the order date. A customer whose parcel is still on the way cannot judge the product and feels pushed. It is better to refer to the actual delivery. If your carrier provides the status through an interface, you can tie the reminder to it. Without that status, a flat delay based on the average transit time is the second best solution.

How long to wait after delivery depends on the product. A garment can be judged after a few days, garden furniture only after a season, a consumable only once it is used up. We cannot cite a fixed number here, so choose a gap per product group that matches the use, and adjust it based on your return rate. A second polite reminder is acceptable, more than two feel pushy.

4. Content and legal frame of the reminder email

A good reminder is short: a subject line that refers to the purchased product, a single button to the review page and one sentence on why the opinion matters. Skip pressure and any wording that suggests a positive review. Linking directly to the review form of the purchased item saves the customer clicks and raises the chance of a response.

Legally, note that courts have in part classified review requests by email as advertising. In that case the requirements for advertising emails apply, and it matters whether consent exists or a statutory exception for existing customers applies. How this is assessed in your case should be clarified with your legal advisor. Regardless of that, every message needs a clear way to unsubscribe.

5. Incentives for reviews: what is acceptable and what is not

An incentive can raise the response rate but risks damaging credibility. Two principles apply largely regardless of the individual case. First, a reward must not depend on a positive review. Anyone who rewards only five stars creates a falsified picture of opinion. A reward for submitting a review, whatever its content, is considerably less problematic.

Second, reviews for which the author received something in return should be clearly marked, for example with a note such as this review was rewarded with a thank you gift. Also avoid payment arrangements that make reviews look like independent consumer opinions when they are not. Whether and how an incentive is permitted in your case depends on the concrete design. Please seek legal advice, this article is not legal advice.

6. Omnibus Directive and section 5b UWG: what changed for reviews

With the transposition of the European Omnibus Directive, the German Act against Unfair Competition was extended with rules on consumer reviews. As we generally understand it, anyone who makes reviews accessible must state whether and how it is ensured that they come from consumers who actually used or bought the product. Section 5b UWG is particularly relevant here. Fake reviews and commissioning them are considered unfair.

In practice, describe in a short note near the review summary how you check reviews, for instance whether only buyers may review and whether a moderator reads every opinion. Please note that we only outline the frame here. The exact wording and scope of the duties are for your legal advisor to clarify, because laws and case law change.

7. Handling negative reviews

A negative review is no harm as long as the store responds appropriately. A mix of praise and criticism looks more credible than a flawless average that visitors quickly suspect to be manipulated. So do not simply delete uncomfortable but factual opinions. That would not only be dishonest, it can also conflict with the duty to keep reviews genuine.

Respond publicly instead, in a friendly and specific way: name the problem, offer a solution, give a contact route. Many visitors read the reply more closely than the criticism itself. Collect recurring complaints systematically, because they often show whether a description creates wrong expectations or whether a supplier has to improve. You may and should remove posts containing insults, advertising, spam or an obvious reference to another product.

8. Moderation: protecting quality without filtering opinions

Define in writing what is approved and what is not. The rule should not concern the tendency of a review but its form: no insults, no personal data of third parties, no links, no reference to another product. Applied consistently, it lets you explain to customers and authorities why a post does not appear.

Avoid editing reviews afterwards. Shortening or fixing spelling errors should happen only with the author's consent, otherwise the statement changes. Document who approved or rejected which review and when, so the review practice can be demonstrated in a dispute.

9. Structured data: Review and AggregateRating

With structured data a search engine can read the stars of a product and may show them in results. schema.org offers the types Review and AggregateRating for that, embedded in the Product markup. It is important that the marked up values match the reviews visible on the page. Google also excludes reviews that a business publishes about itself. Whether and when stars appear in search is the search engine's decision, there is no entitlement.

Before adding it, check whether your theme or your SEO extension already outputs markup, so it does not appear twice. For more background, see our overview of Magento SEO. The following example shows Product markup with an average value and a single review. The numbers are placeholders.

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Product",
  "name": "Example product",
  "aggregateRating": {
    "@type": "AggregateRating",
    "ratingValue": "4.5",
    "reviewCount": "12"
  },
  "review": [{
    "@type": "Review",
    "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Max M." },
    "datePublished": "2026-09-30",
    "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": "5", "bestRating": "5" },
    "reviewBody": "Placeholder text of a genuine, approved review."
  }]
}
</script>

10. Summary

11. FAQ: Collecting Reviews: The Essentials at a Glance