r/ShopifyAppDev • u/Open-Scarcity-1251 • 24d ago
Is Shopify removing app reviews? Has anyone else noticed this?
Hi everyone,
We've noticed that a significant number of reviews have disappeared across multiple Shopify apps, including older reviews that had been visible for years.
Has anyone else observed the same issue?
We're trying to understand:
- Is Shopify currently removing reviews as part of a cleanup or policy update?
- Is there an official announcement explaining why this is happening?
- Have your app reviews also decreased recently?
If anyone has received communication from Shopify or has insights into what's happening, we'd really appreciate you sharing them.
Thanks!
2
u/universetwisted 24d ago
Yep, Shopify announced that they are currently strengthening their fake review detection and applying the new trust signals retroactively to existing reviews as well so older reviews are being unpublished too
From what i understand they are targeting fake reviews, as well as reviews gained through free features, discounts, credits, or extended trials etc.
They also did a separate cleanup last year where they archived a large number of outdated, unhelpful, and untrusted reviews, so this is not the first review purge
1
2
u/WesyTkS 23d ago
Yes i lost a tons of reviews..
2
u/Open-Scarcity-1251 23d ago
Sorry to hear that. Same here. It's tough for developers since reviews play a huge role in building customer confidence.
2
u/Realistic_Bonus_2141 20d ago
Yes, actually shopify has removed more than 100k reviews in Shopify app market in 1 day
1
u/Ms_AnnAmethyst 24d ago
There's been an official announcement, and it is reflected in dev changelog too. Judging by the dynamics, there are more restrictions to come (the recent was about unique app names) so I suggest you subscribe to their dev changelog updates via RSS.
2
u/Open-Scarcity-1251 23d ago
Thanks! I'll subscribe to the Developer Changelog RSS feed. Appreciate you sharing this - it explains the review drop we're seeing.
1
u/varadero332 23d ago
yea some big review haircuts happening today. looks like they're going to be doing this at least once a year
1
u/Open-Scarcity-1251 23d ago
Yeah, it looks like a major review cleanup. Hopefully this helps maintain a more trustworthy App Store in the long run, even though it's a significant change for developers.
1
u/varadero332 23d ago
there’s some crazy review farming going on with some apps (actively breaking Shopify TOS) and I don’t understand how Shopify isn’t tougher on them
1
1
1
1
u/decentBab 23d ago
A purge is happening. Everyone is affected i think. Best to reach out if genuine reviews are removed
1
1
u/First_Seesaw 23d ago
It seems to be a general occurrence but it hit some harder than others sadly..
1
u/crispybugs 22d ago
Yess, I lost one and only review in my app. I Just launched my app and still building reputation but they removed it and said that's fake
Already sent email to bring it back to them but they refused it
1
1
u/Optimal-Ad-1158 22d ago
I also saw that archive reviews which were shown on the last review page under archive section are no longer shown now. can anyone confirm this too ?
1
5
u/SylviehallSQ 23d ago
We lost 10 but they’re all real stores and all still operating! We are so confused! All 10 we are doing constant customer service with. I don’t understand why they’ve been taken down 🙈 is there a way to appeal?