Why Restaurant Reviews Still Matter
A Guide to Reading Between the Stars
Prices aren’t the only thing subject to inflation — review inflation is real. Google restaurant ratings climbed from 3.74 stars in 2015 to 4.11 stars by 2022 (SOCi, 2022). Today, 86% of Airbnb listings sit above 4.5 stars (BnB Facts, 2024). On rideshare platforms, anything below 5 stars threatens driver livelihoods. Rating inflation has fundamentally altered the online review landscape.
Yet despite this compression toward the top of the scale, reviews remain critical inputs for understanding brand value and making informed decisions. The key lies in knowing how to interpret them correctly.
The Platform Gap Creates Information
The most valuable insight from recent research is the systematic difference between platforms. Google ratings average 0.7 stars higher than Yelp ratings for the same restaurants (Northwestern University, 2023). This gap widens to 1.1 stars for chain restaurants. The Federal Trade Commission found Google ratings averaged 1.25 stars higher than Better Business Bureau …
