The short answer
A Google review link usually breaks for one of four reasons: it points at the wrong or a duplicate listing, your Business Profile is unverified or suspended, the link uses a retired format such as a custom g.page short name, or the link is fine and the customer simply was not signed into Google. Rebuild it from your listing and test it in a private browser window — a direct link built on your Place ID keeps working as long as your listing exists.
The four usual causes
Wrong or duplicate listing. If your business has ever been re-verified, moved, or merged with a duplicate, an old link can point at a listing that no longer collects reviews — customers land somewhere, but their review never appears on the profile people actually see. Check that the name and address on the page the link opens match your live listing exactly.
Unverified or suspended profile. Reviews only land on a verified, live Business Profile. If your profile is pending verification or was suspended, the review form may not load at all — and any ask you send meanwhile is wasted. Fix the profile first, then resume asking.
A retired link format. Google has retired custom short names, so old g.page links built on your business's chosen name can dead-end. Links built on your listing's Place ID — the format that opens the review dialog directly — are the durable kind.
The customer, not the link. Leaving a Google review requires being signed into a Google account, so "your link didn't work" sometimes means the customer hit a sign-in wall and gave up. On some devices an older link format opens your listing in search instead of the star picker; the customer can still tap Reviews and write one, but every extra tap costs you a chunk of would-be reviewers.
How to test your link like a customer
Open it in a private or incognito window on your phone, not your work computer — that is the closest thing to a customer's first encounter. The right result is your business name above a star picker (or a sign-in prompt that leads straight back to it). If you land on a search page, a map, or a different listing, the link needs rebuilding.
Test the whole path you actually use: if the link travels by text, send yourself the text; if it is printed as a QR code, scan the printed version. Links that work pasted into a browser can still be mangled by a URL shortener, an old QR code, or a template that broke the address mid-copy.
Build a link that keeps working
Generate the direct, Place-ID-based review link with our free tool — it finds your listing, builds the one-tap link, and gives you a QR code for print. Save the link somewhere canonical and reuse it everywhere, and rebuild it if your listing ever moves or merges, because a Place ID can change when Google restructures a listing.
If you send review requests through ReviewNudger, this maintenance disappears: every text and email uses your listing's direct review link automatically, and the same link powers the follow-ups, so a link fixed once is fixed everywhere.
Frequently asked questions
Do Google review links expire?
No — a direct review link has no expiry date. It only stops working if the listing behind it changes: a merge, move, re-verification, or suspension can retire the old Place ID. If your listing has been through one of those, rebuild the link and update it everywhere it lives.
Can customers leave a review without a Google account?
No. Google requires reviewers to be signed into a Google account, which is the most common reason a customer reports that the link "didn't work." Most people have one; the sign-in wall mainly costs you the marginal reviewer, which is why the rest of the path should be one tap.
Why does my link open a search page instead of the review box?
The link is using an indirect format — pointing at your listing rather than the review dialog. A direct link built on your Place ID opens the star picker immediately. Rebuild it with a review-link generator and the extra taps disappear.
Do g.page short links still work?
Google retired custom Business Profile short names, so old g.page links based on your chosen name can dead-end. If your review link is a g.page address, test it in a private window; if it does not open your review dialog, replace it with a direct Place-ID link.