For mobile app developers
How to respond to Google Play reviews
Use Play Console to answer a customer review, or connect a review tool through the Google Play Developer API. Both workflows need permission to reply for the app.
Checked against the official documentation on .
Reply in Play Console
Make sure your account has the Reply to reviews permission for the app.
- Open Play Console and select your app.
- Open the Reviews page under Monitor and improve → Ratings and reviews.
- Find the review you want to answer, write your reply, and publish it.
Google’s ratings and reviews help page explains the console workflow and how users see responses.
Using a service account with a review tool
For server access, enable the Google Play Developer API in a Google Cloud project, create a service account, and invite its email address in Play Console’s Users and permissions. Grant it access to the app and permission to reply. Download its JSON key for the tool you are connecting.
A Google Cloud service account alone does not grant access to your Play Console app. If the connection fails, check the package name and the app permissions. Follow Google’s API setup instructions and the store connection support page. If you are writing the integration yourself, the reviews API guide covers rate limits and the one-week listing window.
Keep an API reply within 350 characters
The Reply to Reviews API accepts at most 350 characters per reply. It exposes production reviews with written comments; a star rating without a comment is not a review you can answer through that API.
Use that space for the issue, your response, and one next step. Remove repeated thanks or a long introduction before removing the detail that would help the user.
Example: a sign-in problem
Sorry sign-in is failing. Please send your app version and the error text to our support email so we can investigate. Please leave passwords out of the message.
Replace the support reference with your actual contact details and check the final character count before posting.
Make the response useful to the next reader too
Describe a confirmed fix accurately. If the issue remains open, explain what information would help you investigate. Focus on resolving the complaint rather than asking for a higher rating; Google’s ratings and reviews policy gives guidance for developer responses.
Replylo drafts replies in the reviewer’s language and keeps them in your queue for approval. You can edit the wording before it is posted, including shortening a draft for Google Play.