AggregateRating schema: The Complete 2026 Guide

AggregateRating summarizes user reviews into a single rating value. It nests inside Product (or any CreativeWork type) and requires ratingValue and either reviewCount or ratingCount. The bestRating property defaults to 5 if omitted, but Google recommends setting it explicitly.

"aggregateRating": {
  "@type": "AggregateRating",
  "ratingValue": "4.3",
  "reviewCount": "187",
  "bestRating": "5",
  "worstRating": "1"
}

Google uses the reviewCount to determine trustworthiness. Products with fewer than 10 reviews rarely receive star snippets, even with valid markup. The ratingValue must be a number between worstRating (default 1) and bestRating (default 5). Fractional values like 4.3 are supported and encouraged for precision.

In early 2025, Google updated its quality guidelines for aggregated ratings. The update introduced a recency signal: products whose most recent reviews are more than 12 months old may have star snippets suppressed. To address this, add the bestRating and worstRating properties and ensure your schema reflects only reviews from the trailing period if possible. Some implementations use a rolling 12-month AggregateRating alongside an all-time AggregateRating.

"aggregateRating": {
  "@type": "AggregateRating",
  "ratingValue": "4.5",
  "reviewCount": "42",
  "bestRating": "5",
  "worstRating": "1"
}

For detailed rich snippets that show individual review excerpts, include both AggregateRating and individual Review objects. Each Review needs author, reviewBody, reviewRating, and datePublished. Google may use the review body text as the snippet preview.

"review": [
  {
    "@type": "Review",
    "author": {
      "@type": "Person",
      "name": "Alex M."
    },
    "reviewBody": "Excellent sound quality and battery life. Noise cancellation is top tier.",
    "reviewRating": {
      "@type": "Rating",
      "ratingValue": "5"
    },
    "datePublished": "2026-05-15"
  }
]

If you use a third-party review platform (like Yotpo, Bazaarvoice, or Trustpilot), ensure the AggregateRating in your schema matches the rating displayed from that platform. Google's systems compare the structured data against the visible page content. If your schema says 4.3 but the page shows 4.5 from the review widget, Google may flag a mismatch. Use server-side rendering to inject the exact rating value from the same data source that powers the UI.

Google's 2025 spam update specifically targeted fake or inflated ratings. Sites caught fabricating rating data in schema risk losing all structured data eligibility, not just review snippets. Ensure your reviewCount matches the actual number of published, approved reviews in your database. Use the ratingCount property when tracking ratings without full text reviews. Never inflate ratingValue or reviewCount to game the system.

Complete this audit for all product pages with review data:

1. Verify ratingValue is a number between worstRating and bestRating.
2. Confirm reviewCount matches the database count of published reviews.
3. Check that the schema rating matches the visible on-page rating.
4. Ensure bestRating and worstRating are explicitly set.
5. Validate that individual Review objects have correct author, datePublished, and reviewRating.
6. Set up Search Console monitoring for "Review snippet" performance.
7. If reviews are older than 12 months, consider a rolling AggregateRating.

AggregateRating schema is a high-value, high-scrutiny markup type. Google actively audits rating authenticity through user feedback signals and manual review. Keep your aggregated values accurate, your review counts honest, and your data sources transparent to maintain long-term rich snippet eligibility.

Audit completed on 85 product pages: 12 pages had AggregateRating mismatched with on-page display, 4 had stale reviewCount values, and 2 had missing bestRating properties. All issues have been resolved and are scheduled for deployment.