Amazon just made it easier to hide bad reviews, and that sucks

Amazon web store with star ratings
(Image credit: Future)

Star ratings on Amazon aren't the most reliable way to judge a product, but they do provide a clear visual indication of how a product is perceived. At least that was the case until a recent change by Amazon. Rather than showing how many stars an item has by actually showing multiple stars, the retailer now has a single star with a number next to it.

Amazon still provides the same general information as before. The number next to the star is based on a weight average. The layout also shows the percentage of reviews of 4+ stars, which is handy. But at a glance, the new system is not as digestible.

When I browse through a list of products, my eye recognizes how many stars are next to them. I think we've all been conditioned to notice graphics quickly. By making a 3-star product and a 5-star product show the same number of stars, Amazon has made it more difficult to pick things at a glance.

Is this the end of the world? No, of course not. I do think it makes it easier to sneak in a poorly rated product though.

Take a look at the search results above for "keyboard." In the two images I've taken, there are keyboards with 3.4, 4.0, 4.7, 4.5, 4.3, and 4.6 stars, but they all look the same at a glance. Obviously, the number values are still there, but I think most eyes would skip right past something with only 3.4 stars. With the new setup, however, you spend more time on each item, even if an item is poorly rated.

I can't speak about Amazon's motives, but it seems the company is looking to prioritize the banners it adds to products rather than reviews. This gives Amazon more of a say in where your eyes go. The second image above has two best sellers and an overall pick! As much as that doesn't make sense, your eyes still go to the text featured above the product photo. 

With deprioritized star ratings, Amazon can now put a banner on an item and get more people to click on it.

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Sean Endicott
News Writer and apps editor

Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He's covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean's journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_. 

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  • fdruid
    Lucky they're not Microsoft, or they would be getting some heat from the regulators.
    At least they should, we all know they're clowns and do their shows just to pursue their political agendas.
    Reply
  • HelloNNNewman
    Amazon keeps encouraging shady businesses more and more every day in the name of profit over value for customers. They've proven long ago that they don't care about customers and - even though I'm not a fan of saying this - the Feds really need to look into pulling them apart.

    So... here's a tool (browser extension or phone app) I've been using for a while when shopping on Amazon. Because Amazon allows fake (bot) reviews of products, this tool (called RealMeta) service sifts through and analyzes all of the reviews of a product in a couple of seconds, and lets you know how trustworthy the reviews are - which relates to how trustworthy the product is. Take a look at the video to see how it works. It has helped me many times when a products just seemed to have way too many positive reviews for the crap it was.
    Reply
  • Laura Knotek
    HelloNNNewman said:
    Amazon keeps encouraging shady businesses more and more every day in the name of profit over value for customers. They've proven long ago that they don't care about customers and - even though I'm not a fan of saying this - the Feds really need to look into pulling them apart.

    So... here's a tool (browser extension or phone app) I've been using for a while when shopping on Amazon. Because Amazon allows fake (bot) reviews of products, this tool (called RealMeta) service sifts through and analyzes all of the reviews of a product in a couple of seconds, and lets you know how trustworthy the reviews are - which relates to how trustworthy the product is. Take a look at the video to see how it works. It has helped me many times when a products just seemed to have way too many positive reviews for the crap it was.
    Thanks for the link. That is very helpful.
    Reply