How to Get Your Google Review Link and QR Code (UAE Guide)

To get your Google review link and QR code, sign in to the Google account that manages your Business Profile on a computer, open Read reviews, choose Get more reviews, then copy the link or save the QR code image. That takes about two minutes. If you cannot access the profile, you can still build a working review link from your Place ID. This guide covers both routes, how to test the link before you print anything, and the mistakes we see UAE businesses make with review links and QR codes.

Method 1: the official way (Business Profile, on a computer)

Google's own help page for this gives the steps (Google Business Profile Help):

1. Go to your Business Profile (business.google.com) while signed in as the owner or manager.
2. Select Read reviews, then Get more reviews.
3. To get the link, select Copy. To save the QR code, right-click it and choose Save image as.

One detail that catches people out: Google states that review QR codes can only be generated in a computer browser, not on a mobile device. If you are on your phone and cannot see the QR option, that is why. Open the same page on a laptop.

Google's suggested uses for the link are exactly what you would expect: receipts, thank-you emails, in-store display, and sending by email, WhatsApp or Facebook. For a UAE business, WhatsApp is usually the most effective channel for service work (a technician, a cleaner, a clinic follow-up), because customers are already chatting with you there.

If you manage several branches, make sure you are on the correct location in the profile list before copying. A review link for the Business Bay branch printed on the Deira branch's cards sends all those reviews to the wrong place.

Method 2: build the link from your Place ID

If you do not have manager access (for example, an agency set up the profile, or a franchise head office controls it), you can still build the same kind of link from your Place ID. A Place ID is Google's unique text identifier for a place in its database; the Google Maps Platform documentation describes it as "a textual identifier that uniquely identifies a place" (Google Maps Platform docs).

1. Open Google's Place ID Finder (linked from the Place ID documentation page above).
2. Type your business name and area, for example the business name plus "Al Quoz, Dubai", and pick the right result on the map.
3. Copy the Place ID shown under the business name. It is a long string of letters and numbers.
4. Add it to the standard review URL pattern: https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=YOUR_PLACE_ID

That URL pattern is widely documented by review-software vendors rather than in a single Google help page (see, for example, Vendasta and Synup), so treat it as a practical method and always test the result. When it works, it opens the review window for that business directly.

Place IDs can change

Google's documentation warns that "Place IDs may change over time" and recommends refreshing stored Place IDs that are more than 12 months old. It also notes that an ID returns a NOT_FOUND error when it is obsolete, for example after a business closes, relocates, or the database is updated. The practical lesson for a printed QR code: if you built the link from a Place ID years ago, test it again now. If you used the link from Get more reviews in your profile, you are less likely to hit this, but you should still test it every few months.

Method 3: search for your own business and use Write a review

The simplest fallback is to search for your business name on Google, open your profile in Search or Maps, and tap Write a review. Copy the address from the browser. This is fine for a quick WhatsApp message to one customer, but it is not a clean permanent link, so do not print it on 500 cards. Use Method 1 or 2 for anything physical.

A word on "free Google review link generators"

If you search for a Google review link generator, you will find many free tools. Most do the same thing as Method 2: they take your Place ID and wrap it in the review URL. Some are fine. A few are worth avoiding:

• Tools that route the link through their own short domain and then charge you to keep it working. If the tool shuts down or the subscription lapses, every printed code breaks.
• Tools that ask you to sign in with your Google account to "connect" your profile when you only needed a link. You do not need to hand over access for this.
• Tools that add tracking, a pre-review "How was your experience?" page, or sorting of happy and unhappy customers. That last one is review gating, which Google's policy forbids (more below).

Our advice: use Google's own Get more reviews link whenever you can. It is the one least likely to break, costs nothing, and has no third party in the middle.

Test the link before you print anything

This is the step people skip, and it is the one that matters. A broken link on printed cards or a countertop stand costs real money and, worse, wastes the moment when a happy customer is willing to help. Run this checklist:

1. Open the link on an iPhone and an Android phone. The review form should appear with your business name at the top.
2. Check the business name and the area shown. If you have two similarly named branches, make sure it is the right one.
3. Open it while signed out (a private window). Google should ask the visitor to sign in, then take them to the review form. Remember that customers must be signed in to a Google account to leave a review.
4. Scan the QR code with the normal camera app on both phones, in the lighting conditions of your shop, not just on your screen.
5. Test from the distance a customer will use. If your QR code is on a wall poster, try scanning from a metre away.
6. Have someone outside the business try it without instructions. If they hesitate, your call to action is unclear.

Do not post a test review on your own profile. Opening the form and closing it is enough. Google's policy also bars conflict-of-interest reviews, so staff and relatives posting "tests" can cause trouble later.

Printing the QR code so it scans first time

These are practical rules of thumb rather than Google requirements:

• Size: keep it large enough to scan comfortably at the distance people will stand. A table stand can be small; a shop-window sign must be much larger.
• Contrast: dark code on a light background. Avoid printing it over a busy photo or in pale brand colours.
• Quiet zone: leave a blank margin around the code. Cropping it tight is a common reason for failed scans.
• Surface: glossy laminate under bright showroom lights can cause glare. Matte is safer.
• Words beside it: a short instruction such as "Scan to review us on Google". Do not mention rewards.

A QR code you print can also be copied or covered. Fake codes can be stuck over real ones in public places, so check your own periodically. We wrote about this in check your QR code before a customer scans a fake one.

Link, QR or NFC: which should the customer see?

A review link can travel three ways, and they suit different moments:

• Plain link by WhatsApp or email: best after the customer has left, for services and deliveries.
• QR code: best for printed material and signs. Anyone with a modern phone camera can scan it.
• NFC tap: best at the counter or reception, where the customer is standing next to a stand and holding their phone. It is one fewer step than opening the camera.

Google's own QR code works well, and for many small shops a printed sign is all you need. We compare it with a tap-based card in Google's built-in Ask for reviews QR code vs an NFC review card. The advantage of an NFC review card or stand is that you can change where it points without reprinting. Smaacaad's Google Review NFC Card with QR (AED 29) includes a free management dashboard, so if your link changes, you update the destination instead of replacing the cards. For a counter, the Google Review NFC Stand with QR (AED 59) does the same job at the till.

What you must not do with your review link

Google's Maps user-contributed content policy is clear on the points that matter for anyone sharing a review link (Google policy):

• No incentives. Merchants cannot offer payment, discounts, free goods or services in exchange for posting a review, or for revising or removing a negative one.
• No review gating. You cannot discourage or prohibit negative reviews, or selectively solicit positive reviews. In practice, that means do not build a flow that asks "Were you happy?" and sends only happy people to Google.
• No fake engagement. Reviews posted from multiple accounts by or at the request of one person violate the policy.

What is allowed is simple: Google's policy states merchants may "solicit or encourage the posting of content that does represent a genuine experience, without offering incentives to do so". Send the same link to everyone, with the same neutral request. For wording ideas, see our guide to collecting reviews the compliant way.

Common problems and quick fixes

• "I cannot see Get more reviews." You are probably not signed in as an owner or manager of that profile, or you are looking at the wrong listing. Check the account in the top corner.
• "The QR option is missing on my phone." It only generates on a computer browser.
• "The link opens the wrong branch." Re-copy it from the correct location in your profile list, or re-run the Place ID Finder with the full address.
• "The review form says the business cannot be found." The Place ID may be obsolete. Refresh it with the Place ID Finder.
• "Customers say they cannot post." They need to be signed in to a Google account, which they can create with a non-Gmail email.

Frequently asked questions

Is a Google review link free?

Yes. The link and QR code from Get more reviews in your Business Profile are free. You only pay if you choose to put them on a product such as an NFC card, stand or printed sign.

What is the difference between a Place ID and a review link?

The Place ID is Google's identifier for your business. A review link is a web address that uses that identifier (or Google's own equivalent) to open the review form directly.

Can I make a Google review link without owning the profile?

Yes, using the Place ID Finder and the writereview URL pattern. You will not be able to use the Get more reviews tool, because that requires access to the profile.

Does the link expire?

Google does not publish an expiry date for the Business Profile link, but it does warn that Place IDs can change and recommends refreshing those older than 12 months. Test your link every few months and after any move, rename or merge of your listing.

Can I put the link on an NFC card?

Yes. An NFC chip simply stores the web address. Smaacaad cards open your review form on tap and carry a QR code as a fallback; you can update the destination in the dashboard later.

Next step

Get your link from Business Profile on a computer, test it on two phones, and decide how customers will meet it: a printed code, a WhatsApp message, or a tap. If you want the tap version, choose the Google Review NFC Card with QR and send us your business name on WhatsApp from the product page.

Photo: Tamas Tuzes-Katai on Unsplash