Your reviews plugin updated and the stars disappeared from search results? Familiar.

The WordPress ecosystem digested the closure of WP Review from MyThemeShop and the departure of several niche solutions. New tools came in their place: some focused on user-generated content, others on editorial reviews with affiliate monetization. Blind selection here costs traffic and conversions.

We tested 9 actively maintained review and rating plugins on WordPress 7.0 and the latest PHP 8.3 branch. Three plugins from the previous version of this roundup are excluded: WP Review from MyThemeShop was shut down in May 2025 for security reasons, Recencio Book Reviews and Wiremo are abandoned. One, Reviewer from CodeCanyon, was delisted and replaced with a more modern alternative. Only actively maintained solutions we personally verified made it into this roundup.

💡 Quick overview:

• Decide on review type: user-generated (UGC) or editorial review boxes
• For user reviews with Schema.org, install Site Reviews
• For Google reviews in widgets, connect Google Reviews Widget
• For WooCommerce with photo reviews and coupons, use Photo Reviews for WooCommerce
• For editorial reviews with criteria and comparison, choose between Taqyeem and Editorial Rating

Comparison table

1. Starfish Reviews

Starfish Reviews solves a specific task: generating positive reviews through a funnel. A user follows a link, rates a product, and if the rating is high, they're redirected to a public platform: Google, Facebook, Trustpilot. If low, the feedback form goes to you, not to the public.

In practice, this creates a controlled flow of 4- and 5-star reviews without the risk of a dissatisfied customer damaging your rating. The plugin is lightweight, open-source, with a GPL license. The latest update 3.1.20 came out in February 2026, the project is alive and tested on WordPress 7.0.

Pros:

• Funnel filters out negativity before publication
• Import reviews from Facebook, Google, Trustpilot in Premium
• Widgets, blocks and shortcodes for display
• Spam protection through Akismet

Cons:

• Free version limited to one funnel
• Requires manual link sending to customers
• Doesn't replace a full-featured on-site UGC engine

Price: Lite free, Pro paid subscription with funnel analytics and import.

🔗 Starfish Reviews on WordPress.org🔗 Starfish Reviews website

2. Site Reviews

Site Reviews from Gemini Labs, the most feature-rich free review plugin for WordPress. User review collection, Schema.org JSON-LD, WooCommerce integration, Bayesian ranking, 5 layers of spam protection and 200+ hooks for developers, all in one package.

The author actively develops the project: native support for Elementor, Bricks, Breakdance, Divi 5, WPBakery. Import third-party reviews via CSV. Multisite, WPML and Polylang out of the box. Minimum requirements: PHP 8.1.2 and WordPress 6.7.

Pros:

• 5 layers of anti-spam: Honeypot, reCAPTCHA/hCaptcha/Turnstile, Akismet, Blacklist, limits
• WooCommerce and SureCart integration
• Bayesian ranking for page sorting
• 200+ hooks, developer-friendly

Cons:

• Premium add-ons needed for custom forms, filters and images in reviews
• Schema setup requires attention on first launch

Price: Lite free, Premium annual license with full add-on set.

🔗 Site Reviews on WordPress.org🔗 Premium version

3. WP Customer Reviews

WP Customer Reviews, a veteran among free review plugins: 20,000+ active installations, version 3.8.1 from June 17, 2026, tested on WordPress 7.0. Author Aaron Queen has maintained the project for over ten years, and the plugin still receives updates every few weeks.

Lightweight, without bells and whistles, does exactly what's stated: collects and displays user reviews with Schema.org microdata. Supports two review types: Business and Product. Has moderation, admin responses, custom fields, shortcodes for any page or widget. Works great with caching plugins and custom themes.

Pros:

• Extremely lightweight, doesn't slow down the site
• Schema.org microformat for search engines
• Moderation and admin responses
• Multisite (WPMU) compatible

Cons:

• Minimalist design out of the box
• No built-in WooCommerce integration
• Requires CSS customization for theme matching

Price: Free.

🔗 WP Customer Reviews on WordPress.org

4. Schema, all in one schema rich snippets

Schema from Brainstorm Force solves a narrow but critical task: adds structured data (Review, Product, Recipe, Article, Event, Video and others) without programming. This is not a review collection plugin, it displays markup in search results.

Works in tandem with any other review plugin: that one collects reviews, while Schema adds JSON-LD for snippets with stars in Google. The free version covers 8 schema types. Schema Pro ($249) adds Local Business, Job Posting, Book, Movie, How-To. Latest update 1.7.7, focus on security and PHP 8.3.

Pros:

• Free version with 8 schema types
• Requires no programming
• From Brainstorm Force (team behind Astra Theme and Spectra)

Cons:

• Doesn't collect reviews, only markup
• Schema Pro needed for advanced types (Local Business, Job Posting, Book)
• Interface hasn't been visually updated

Price: Free, Schema Pro premium Brainstorm Force license.

🔗 Schema on WordPress.org

5. Taqyeem

Taqyeem, a premium CodeCanyon plugin for editorial review boxes: stars, percentages, points. Unlike UGC plugins, here the author writes the review and assigns ratings by criteria. Suitable for affiliate sites where editorial reviews products, not collecting user reviews.

Over 500 Google Web Fonts, unlimited colors and rating criteria, built-in Schema.org markup and RTL language support. Compatible with posts, pages and custom post types. One-time purchase, not a subscription, for many this is the deciding factor.

Pros:

• 3 rating styles: stars, percentages, points
• Google Rich Snippets out of the box
• 500+ web fonts for customization
• One-time purchase, not subscription

Cons:

• Editorial reviews only, no UGC
• Paid, no free version
• Updates depend on CodeCanyon author

Price: One-time purchase $29 (includes 12 months support).

🔗 Taqyeem on CodeCanyon

6. Photo Reviews for WooCommerce

Photo Reviews from VillaTheme adds to WooCommerce what standard reviews lack: customer photos, email reminders to leave a review and coupons for reviews. The buyer receives an email asking to rate the product, attaches a photo and gets a discount coupon, classic social proof mechanics.

In Premium: import reviews from AliExpress, AJAX pagination and filters, custom review fields (size, color), CSV export and import. GDPR compliance with consent checkbox.

Pros:

• Photos in reviews work as social proof
• Automatic coupons for reviews
• AliExpress review import in Premium
• GDPR compliant

Cons:

• WooCommerce only, doesn't work without Woo
• AJAX filters only in Premium
• AliExpress import may violate store policy

Price: Lite free, Premium paid CodeCanyon license.

🔗 Photo Reviews on WordPress.org🔗 Premium version

7. Ultimate Reviews

Ultimate Reviews, a mature plugin for collecting user reviews of products, services and events. Supports stars, percentages and points. Filtering by product, author and rating. Upload images and videos to reviews. Moderation and reporting inappropriate reviews.

Premium version deeply integrates with WooCommerce: replacement of standard "Reviews" tabs, verified buyers, rich snippets, email reminders, infinite scroll and review karma, voting for review helpfulness. There's a 7-day Premium trial.

Pros:

• Upload photos and videos to reviews
• WooCommerce integration in Premium
• Multiple rating systems: stars, percentages, points
• Filtering and search, AJAX in Premium

Cons:

• Rich snippets only in Premium
• Basic design requires customization
• Free version more modest than Site Reviews

Price: Free, Premium with 7-day trial.

🔗 Ultimate Reviews on WordPress.org

8. Google Reviews Widget

Google Reviews Widget from richplugins, the best free plugin for displaying Google Business Reviews on a WordPress site. 1,597 reviews on WordPress.org, 4.9/5 rating, updated for WordPress 7.0.

Connects multiple Google Business locations, caches reviews in WordPress database, updates automatically when using your own API key. Slider, grid and list, three display modes. Native Gutenberg blocks, shortcodes and widgets for classic themes. Schema.org support for Google snippets with stars.

Pros:

• Free display of up to 10 Google reviews
• Multiple Google Business locations
• Database caching, doesn't depend on Google availability
• Shortcodes, widgets, Gutenberg, Elementor

Cons:

• Own Google API key for auto-updates
• Google Reviews only, not Yelp or Trustpilot
• Free up to 10 reviews per location

Price: Free.

🔗 Google Reviews Widget on WordPress.org

9. Editorial Rating

Editorial Rating from Pluginic, a modern editorial review plugin that came to replace the delisted Reviewer. Free core with multi-criteria ratings, final score calculation and Schema.org markup. Pro version adds comparison tables, WooCommerce integration and user rating acceptance within editorial boxes.

Functionally this is a direct successor to Reviewer: same review boxes with criteria, scores and affiliate links, but with active development. Version 4.0.6 came out June 28, 2026, the project is alive and receiving updates. 9+ display layouts in Pro, 5+ chart types, sticky sidebar with rating and product comparison, a set sufficient for a full-fledged affiliate site.

Pros:

• Free version with multi-criteria rating and Schema
• Comparison tables and charts in Pro
• WooCommerce integration and visitor rating acceptance (Pro)
• Active development, updates every few weeks

Cons:

• Free version only 1 display layout
• Pro version annual subscription, not one-time purchase
• Younger than competitors, fewer repository reviews

Price: Free, Pro from $49 per year.

🔗 Editorial Rating on WordPress.org🔗 Editorial Rating website

⁉️🤔 Frequently asked questions

Do I need a separate Schema plugin if I already have Site Reviews?

Site Reviews generates JSON-LD Schema automatically. A separate Schema plugin is needed if you're marking up content unrelated to Site Reviews: recipes, events, products without WooCommerce. In other cases, built-in markup is sufficient.

Which plugin is suitable for an affiliate site with reviews?

For editorial reviews with criteria and scores, get Taqyeem or Editorial Rating. Taqyeem, one-time purchase and maximum design. Editorial Rating, free core and product comparison in Pro. For user reviews in addition, Site Reviews. If you earn from affiliate links, product comparison through tables gives more conversions than a simple list.

What replaces WP Review after its closure?

WP Review from MyThemeShop closed in May 2025 due to security issues. Direct replacement depends on the scenario: for editorial review boxes Taqyeem or Editorial Rating are suitable, for user reviews install Site Reviews, for product comparison choose Editorial Rating with its Pro tables.

Can I use two review plugins simultaneously?

Technically yes. In practice: one for user reviews (Site Reviews) plus one for Schema markup (Schema) or for Google widgets (Google Reviews Widget). Two plugins of the same type will conflict over hooks and Schema output. Check in Google Rich Results Test that JSON-LD markup isn't duplicated on the page: search engines may ignore two stars in a snippet.

Do these plugins work with Gutenberg and FSE themes?

All plugins in the roundup are Gutenberg compatible. Site Reviews, Google Reviews Widget and Ultimate Reviews provide native blocks. Photo Reviews and WP Customer Reviews, through shortcodes. Editorial Rating comes with its own Gutenberg block for inserting review boxes.

Which review plugin to install in 2026

If you need user reviews with minimum fuss, Site Reviews is unmatched. For WooCommerce with photo reviews and coupons, Photo Reviews for WooCommerce. Google reviews in widgets, Google Reviews Widget.

Editorial reviews with affiliate monetization: get Editorial Rating for a free start and Pro comparison tables or Taqyeem for design and one-time purchase. Schema markup to any option will be added by Schema from Brainstorm Force. And if the task is to drive positive reviews to external platforms, Starfish Reviews with its funnel mechanics will close this need better than all.

Choose for your business task, not someone else's rating. Try free versions, check Schema in Google Rich Results Test and make sure the plugin doesn't add extra milliseconds to page load.