Overview

Amazon enforces strict policies against manipulating product reviews, and violations can lead to severe consequences including listing suppression, fund withholding, and permanent account deactivation. Understanding what constitutes an inappropriate review practice is essential for every seller who wants to maintain a healthy account and build genuine customer trust on the platform.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• Review solicitation is allowed, but with limits — Sellers may request reviews from customers who purchased their products, but all standard customer review policies still apply to these solicitations.
• You cannot ask for review changes or removals — Even after resolving a customer's issue, sellers are prohibited from requesting that a buyer modify or delete their review.
• Selective solicitation is prohibited — Asking only satisfied customers for reviews while redirecting unhappy buyers elsewhere violates Amazon's policies.
• Financial incentives for reviews are banned — Offering discounts, refunds, or any form of compensation tied to leaving a review is strictly prohibited.
• Family and employee reviews are not allowed — Reviews posted by anyone with a personal or professional connection to the seller are considered manipulative.
• Variation abuse for rating manipulation is prohibited — Creating false variation relationships between unrelated products to inflate star ratings violates policy.

Prohibited Activities in Detail

Amazon provides a detailed list of review manipulation tactics that sellers must avoid, though the company notes this is not an exhaustive catalog. Posting reviews of your own products — or a competitor's products — whether under your real name or a pseudonym, is a clear violation. Similarly, hiring third-party services that sell reviews, or participating in websites and social media groups where incentives are explicitly or implicitly tied to leaving reviews, will put your account at risk. Offering post-purchase refunds or reimbursements contingent on a customer writing a review, including through non-Amazon payment channels, is equally prohibited.