--- title: "July 2022 product reviews update: dates and what to do" url: https://seomadman.com/updates/july-2022-product-reviews-update section: updates language: en published: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z modified: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z author: Adam Hafez topics: ["Ecommerce SEO", "Content strategy"] --- # July 2022 product reviews update: dates and what to do ## The short answer Google's July 2022 product reviews update started on 27 July 2022 and finished on 2 August 2022, a 6-day rollout for English-language product reviews. Google published no separate explanation and no impact figures. Its review guidance from December 2021 and March 2022 still sets the standard: first-hand evidence, original research and real comparison. ## Key takeaways - The Search Status Dashboard dates the rollout from 27 July 2022 to 2 August 2022. - Google said the update applied to English-language product reviews. - Google published no separate post explaining what this update changed. - Its review guidance favors first-hand evidence and original research over length. - It finished 23 days before the August 2022 helpful content update began. ## What Google changed Google released the July 2022 product reviews update without a separate blog post. The [Search Status Dashboard](https://status.search.google.com/incidents/Xiid524od7fpCak86sNS) entry reads "Released the July 2022 product reviews update for English-language product reviews." Google's [reviews system documentation](https://developers.google.com/search/updates/product-reviews-update) describes what these updates do: ensure people see "reviews that share in-depth research, rather than thin content that simply summarizes a bunch of products." It evaluates review content mainly page by page, though sites with a lot of review content may be evaluated as a whole. ## When it rolled out The dashboard records the rollout from 27 July 2022 to 2 August 2022, a total of 6 days, all times US/Pacific. The dashboard entry and its completion note ("The rollout was complete as of August 2, 2022") were added on 22 March 2023. No other confirmed update overlapped it. The May 2022 core update had finished on 9 June, and the August 2022 helpful content update began on 25 August. ## What is known about its impact Google did not publish impact figures. Its documentation says affected content "may recover over time" after improvements, but that the automated assessment of review content "is only one of many factors used in ranking content." Treat any percentage you see attributed to this update as a third-party estimate. ## What site owners should do Google's [review guidance](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/specialty/ecommerce/write-high-quality-reviews) sets out the practices the reviews system rewards: - Provide evidence of your own experience, such as original photos, audio or test results. - Share quantitative measurements and explain what sets a product apart from its competitors. - Discuss benefits and drawbacks based on your own original research. - When naming a product the best, explain why with first-hand supporting evidence. - Focus on the quality and originality of reviews, not their length. ## How to check whether it affected you In Search Console, filter the Performance report to your review pages and compare clicks for the week before 27 July 2022 with the week starting 10 August 2022, a full week after completion. Stop before 25 August, when the helpful content update began. The [Google Algorithm Updates timeline](/updates) lists every confirmed update with its dates, so you can rule out overlapping rollouts before attributing a change to this one. ## Related updates - The [March 2022 product reviews update](/updates/march-2022-product-reviews-update) was the product reviews update before it. - The [September 2022 product reviews update](/updates/september-2022-product-reviews-update) was the next one. - The [August 2022 helpful content update](/updates/august-2022-helpful-content-update) began 23 days after it finished. ## Frequently asked questions ### When did the July 2022 product reviews update start and finish? The Google Search Status Dashboard records the start on 27 July 2022 and completion on 2 August 2022, a 6-day rollout. The entry was added to the dashboard on 22 March 2023. ### Which languages did the July 2022 product reviews update affect? The dashboard entry says Google released it for English-language product reviews. Google's reviews system documentation now lists English and ten other languages, but that reflects later expansion. ### Can content hit by a reviews update recover? Google says content affected by the reviews system may recover over time if it has been improved, but notes that its assessment of review content is only one of many ranking factors. ## Sources 1. [July 2022 product reviews update (incident)](https://status.search.google.com/incidents/Xiid524od7fpCak86sNS) - Google Search Status Dashboard (primary) 2. [Google Search's reviews system and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/updates/product-reviews-update) - Google Search Central (primary) 3. [Write high quality reviews](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/specialty/ecommerce/write-high-quality-reviews) - Google Search Central (primary)