Business

Guests become regulars.

Can I offer a free coffee for a Google review?

No, skip it. Google bans it outright and removes those reviews. You can still ask, as long as nothing is offered in return.

Google and AI2 min readUpdated 2 November 2026NFCeez editorial team

What exactly does Google ban?

The policy names payment, discounts, free goods and services in exchange for reviews, and also for changing or removing them. Content posted because of such an incentive gets removed. It makes no difference that you don't ask for five stars. A free drink for any honest review is still an incentive.

The opposite is banned too: discouraging or preventing negative reviews. Asking whether the meal was good and then giving the link only to happy guests falls into territory Google doesn't want.

Is it also against the law?

That depends on the case, but there's real risk, at least in Germany. Annex number 23c of the German Unfair Competition Act (UWG) bans submitting or commissioning fake reviews. Bought five-star reviews fall under that plainly.

A free drink is less clear-cut. In 2024, a Frankfurt court ruled on a shop advertising with reviews collected through a prize draw, as reported by IT-Recht Kanzlei. The court found it misleading because the note about the draw was too hidden, and said even an indirect benefit can skew a review. That case was about a shop's own advertising, not Google and not a café. We found no ruling on a free coffee as such. For your case, ask your local chamber of commerce (IHK).

How do you get reviews without a reward?

Ask at the right moment and make it easy. That's often enough, because most guests simply don't think of it.

What to say at the till"If you feel like it, leave us a few honest lines on Google. It really helps, because that's how new guests find us." Then show the link and leave it there.
  • Ask everyone, including the people who didn't smile.
  • Keep the link handy, for example as a QR code at the till or on an NFC sticker.
  • Reply to new reviews, including the bad ones.

More ideas are in how to get more Google reviews.

How do you keep the link ready at the till?

With NFCeez you add the link to your Google review in the app, and it sits at the very top of your Smart Page. You put an NFC sticker with a QR code by the till and connect it by holding your phone to it. After the line above, the guest taps it, lands on your page with no app, and is one more tap away from Google. The limit: the asking is still up to you, and nobody gets rewarded for it. More on the Smart Page.

Your next step: take down any sign or post that promises a reward for reviews, and have your team practise the line above for a week.

How NFCeez does thisYour review link, ready at the till.An NFC sticker with a QR code opens your Smart Page, and the link to your Google review comes first. No app, and nothing in return.See how it works
Sources
  1. Google: Richtlinie zu verbotenen Inhalten
  2. UWG, Anhang Nummer 23c
  3. IT-Recht Kanzlei zu OLG Frankfurt am Main, 6 U 128/23

Questions about rewarding reviews

  1. It changes nothing. Google bans the incentive itself, whatever the rating.

  2. Better not. That's an incentive too, and a Frankfurt court found advertising with prize-draw reviews misleading without a clear note.

  3. No. Google's policy names conflicts of interest, which it says can include current or former employment.

  4. Yes. Asking with nothing in return is fine, as long as you don't discourage criticism.

Keep reading.

All articles