Stars in Google search results

Those stars under a search result are a rich result. They come from structured data in your page’s HTML, and JustReview can output it for you.

Requires the Pro plan or higher

The setting is called Generate Rich Snippet Data and starts on Pro.

How to switch it on

1. Set your brand name in Settings.

   This is not optional. The structured data carries your brand name, and without it nothing is generated at all. If stars never appear, check this first.

   

2. Open the JustReview Badge widget and enable Generate Rich Snippet Data.

   The structured data is produced by the Badge widget only. No other widget emits it, so a page carrying just Testimonials will not get stars.

   

3. Generate the code again and replace the snippet on your site.

4. Check it with Google’s tester.

   Paste your page address into the Rich Results Test. It should report an AggregateRating with your rating value and review count.

Stars without a visible badge

A common and reasonable request: you want the rating in Google, but not the floating badge in the corner of the page.

That works, and it is one line in the snippet. The visible badge and the structured data are two independent switches.

initBadge("YOUR_USER_ID", {
  enableAggregateRatings: true,   // structured data for Google
  disableBadge: true,             // do not render the visible badge
  // ...the rest of your settings
});

Add disableBadge by hand

There is no toggle for this in the dashboard yet, so the generated code will not contain it. Add disableBadge: true yourself after pasting the snippet, and add it again whenever you regenerate the code.

Do not hide the badge with CSS instead. display: none leaves the element on the page while making it invisible, which is the situation Google’s guidelines warn about. disableBadge never renders it at all, which is the clean way.

What the data contains

An AggregateRating: your average rating, the number of reviews, and a best rating of 5, attached to your brand name. It reflects the sources selected in that Badge widget, so it matches what a visitor sees.

Google shows the stars when it decides to

Correct structured data makes you eligible for a rich result. It does not entitle you to one.

• It takes time. Google has to recrawl the page. Days to weeks is normal.
• It can appear and then disappear. Google decides per page and per query.
• Some queries never show it, whatever your markup says.

So: confirm with the Rich Results Test that the data is correct, then be patient. If the tester is happy, your side of the job is done.

Do not put a rating on a page it does not describe

Google requires the rating to be about the thing on that page. A business rating fits your home page, an about page or a services landing page. Putting it on every product page as if it rated each product is the kind of thing that gets rich results removed across a whole site, and they take a long time to earn back.

This is a business rating, not a product rating

The data describes your business, because that is what the reviews are about. It cannot be attached to individual catalogue items, see reviews per product.

Stars are not showing

1. Brand name empty in Settings. Nothing is generated without it.
2. Setting on but code not regenerated. The snippet on your site still holds the old configuration.
3. No Badge widget on the page. Only Badge emits the data.
4. Plan below Pro. The data is not emitted even with the toggle on.
5. Google has not recrawled yet. If the Rich Results Test sees the rating, wait.
6. Google chose not to show it. Normal, varies by query, nothing to fix.