TL;DR
A trust score is a single number that summarizes how credible and reliable a business looks to outsiders — the higher the score, the lower the perceived risk of buying.
Key Points
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Trust scores are calculated differently by platform — Trustpilot, Google, and Yelp each weight factors like recency, volume, and response rate differently.
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Review recency is typically weighted heavily: a business with 500 old reviews and no recent ones scores lower than one with 50 recent reviews.
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Responding to negative reviews consistently improves trust scores on most platforms by demonstrating business accountability.
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A high trust score lowers the psychological barrier to purchase by reducing perceived risk — especially for first-time buyers with no prior brand relationship.
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ShowTrust aggregates signals from multiple sources to give businesses a unified view of their trust health across all review channels.
What Goes Into a Trust Score
Improving Your Trust Score With ShowTrust
Related Terms
Star Rating
A star rating is a 1–5 star numerical rating system used by customers to quickly indicate the quality of a product, service, or experience. It provides an instantly scannable quality signal that influences click-through rates, purchase decisions, and search visibility.
Review Velocity
Review Velocity is the rate at which new customer reviews are being generated over a given period of time — typically measured as reviews per week or per month. It is a signal of both business health and review program effectiveness, and it directly influences search engine rankings, review platform trust scores, and visitor perception of a brand's current activity.
Credibility Indicators
Credibility indicators are specific elements, signals, and proof points on a website or in marketing materials that establish a business as reliable, expert, and trustworthy to first-time visitors. They function as visual and contextual shortcuts that allow prospects to rapidly assess whether a brand is worth their time and money.
Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a widely-used customer loyalty metric based on a single question: 'How likely are you to recommend us to a friend or colleague?' Respondents answer on a 0–10 scale and are segmented into Detractors (0–6), Passives (7–8), and Promoters (9–10). The score is calculated as: NPS = % Promoters − % Detractors, yielding a number from −100 to +100.
Brand Trust
Brand trust is the level of confidence and reliability that consumers place in a brand, built through consistent positive experiences, transparent communication, and perceived alignment of values. It is one of the most durable competitive advantages a business can build, directly influencing purchase intent, loyalty, and willingness to recommend.
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