Booking.com wants to make sure you get the best possible information about accommodation options. We do this by carefully evaluating all the reviews we receive. Each review is scored on a scale of 1 to 10, and we use those scores to calculate the overall rating for a property.
We’re always working to make our review system better, and we’re currently testing a weighted review system in Malta and Iceland (excluding hotel and vacation rental chains). In this system, more recent reviews have a bigger impact on the overall score to reflect the most up-to-date experiences.
It’s not just about the overall score! Guests can also provide detailed “subscores” for specific aspects of their stay, like location, cleanliness, staff, comfort, amenities, value for money, and free Wi-Fi. These subscores are independent of the overall rating, allowing for a more nuanced understanding of what to expect.
How We Make Sure Reviews Are Fair and Accurate
We take review integrity seriously. We have both human reviewers and automated systems that carefully scan for fake reviews. If we find any, we delete them and take appropriate action against those responsible. We also encourage you to report any suspicious activity to our Customer Service team, so we can investigate further.
We want to showcase every review, positive or negative. However, we won’t publish reviews that:
- Impersonate another person.
- Violate our review guidelines.
How We Manage and Display Reviews
To ensure the reviews are relevant, we only accept reviews submitted within 3 months of checking out and may stop displaying reviews after 36 months – or if there’s a change in the property ownership.
Properties have the opportunity to respond to reviews, giving them a chance to address concerns and showcase their commitment to guest satisfaction.
When you see multiple reviews, the most recent ones will be at the top, taking into account factors like language, review type (just a rating or with comments), and anonymity. You can also sort and filter reviews by time of year, review score, and other criteria.
We sometimes show external review scores from other travel websites, and we’ll always make it clear when we’ve included them.
Our Review Guidelines: Keep It Real, Keep It Respectful
These guidelines aim to keep Booking.com’s content relevant and family-friendly without limiting honest opinions. They apply to all reviews, regardless of sentiment.
- Keep it travel-related: Focus on your experience at the property and how it impacts your trip. We encourage detailed reviews that help others make informed decisions.
- Avoid personal opinions: Leave out personal, political, ethical, or religious commentary.
- No promotional content: Promotional content will be removed, and issues related to Booking.com’s services should be directed to our Customer Service or Accommodation Service teams.
- Be respectful: Be considerate of a global audience. Avoid profanity or attempts to use creative spelling for offensive language. Comments and media containing hate speech, discrimination, threats, sexually explicit content, violence, and promotion of illegal activity are prohibited.
- Stay authentic: Ensure your contribution is genuine and unique. We want to hear your honest experience, not anything written on behalf of someone else or influenced by incentives.
- Respect privacy: We work to protect the privacy of all individuals by obscuring personal information like email addresses, phone numbers, website addresses, social media accounts, and similar details.
Disclaimer
Remember, the opinions expressed in reviews belong to Booking.com customers and properties, not Booking.com. We are a distributor of reviews, not a publisher, and therefore cannot be held responsible for their content.
Review Sorting and Translation
By default, reviews are sorted by date and additional factors to display the most relevant ones, including your language preference, reviews with text, and non-anonymous reviews. You can also sort by traveler type, review score, and more.
Some reviews may be translated using Google Translate. Google disclaims any warranties related to these translations, including any warranties of accuracy or reliability.
We hope these guidelines and practices ensure that our review system provides you with a comprehensive and trustworthy overview of your potential accommodation options.
