Understanding Tripadvisor's New Rating Updates: A Quick Guide for Hoteliers

As a hotelier, you've likely been keeping a close eye on your Tripadvisor ratings. They're crucial for attracting guests and maintaining your property's reputation. That's why we want to break down Tripadvisor's officially announced rating changes in simple terms with practical examples. 

We have already seen Booking.com make crucial changes in their scoring this year, and now Tripadvisor is following suit with their own rating system refinements. This industry-wide trend toward more precise ratings means hoteliers need to stay informed about how these changes affect their online presence.

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What's Changing in 2025?

Starting in February-March 2025, Tripadvisor is getting more precise with how they display bubble ratings. Instead of rounding to the nearest half-point (like 3.5 or 4.0), they'll show ratings to the nearest tenth (like 3.8 or 4.2).

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Understanding the Three Types of Tripadvisor Ratings

Before diving into examples, let's clarify the different rating types on Tripadvisor. There is a common confusion around this, and rightfully so:) 

1. Bubble Icon Rating: The visual representation using Tripadvisor's iconic bubbles. These will continue to be displayed as full or half bubbles for visual simplicity, even as the numerical rating becomes more precise.
2. Popularity Ranking: This is entirely different from your bubble rating! It determines where your property appears in search results (e.g., "#2 of 50 hotels in Paris"). The popularity ranking uses a complex algorithm that considers factors beyond just ratings, including review recency, volume, and quality. Importantly, this ranking system is NOT changing with the bubble rating update.
3. Numerical Bubble Rating: The precise average score calculated from all your reviews (e.g., 4.2 out of 5). This is what's changing to display with more precision.

It is the numerical bubble rating that is changing. 

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Real-World Examples for Hoteliers

Let's look at how this might affect different properties:

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Example 1: The Lex Hotel

• Before: Actual calculated rating was 4.2, but displayed as 4.0
• After: Will display as 4.2
• Result: Slight increase in visible numerical rating
• Impact on bubble icons: Still displays as 4 full bubbles
• Impact on popularity ranking: None
• Key Takeaway: The new decimal format better reflects this hotel’s positive feedback. If your property is in a similar situation (i.e., above a half-point threshold), you may see a welcomed bump in your visible score.

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Example 2: The Seaside Inn

• Before: Actual calculated rating was 3.8, but displayed as 4.0
• After: Will display as 3.8
• Result: Slight decrease in visible numerical rating
• Impact on bubble icons: Still displays as 4 full bubbles
• Impact on popularity ranking: None
• Key Takeaway: Even though the Inn still shows 4 bubbles, the more precise numerical score could prompt guests to dig deeper into reviews. Encouraging fresh, positive feedback is key to pushing that 3.8 closer to a 4.0 or beyond.

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Example 3: The Mountain Lodge

• Before: Actual calculated rating was 4.5, displayed as 4.5
• After: Will display as 4.5
• Result: No change in numerical rating
• Impact on bubble icons: Still displays as 4.5 bubbles (4 full, 1 half)
• Impact on popularity ranking: None
• Key Takeaway: When your hotel’s rating is already matching the displayed half-bubble rating, the shift to decimals won’t affect you much—but maintaining recent, high-quality reviews keeps you securely in that range

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Key Points for Hoteliers

1. No Additional Action Required: These changes happen automatically - you don't need to do anything.
2. No Substantial Impact: Your numerical rating won't change by more than 0.2 in either direction.
3. Visual Bubbles Stay the Same: While the numerical rating will be more precise, the bubble icons themselves will still appear as full or half bubbles for visual simplicity.
4. No Impact on Popularity Ranking: Your hotel's position in search results won't change because of this display update.
5. All Reviews Still Count: Both old and new guest reviews continue to affect your overall rating.
   
   

What If My Rating Drops?

If you see a slight decrease, don't panic! The best response is the same as always:

• Focus on delivering excellent guest experiences
• Actively encourage satisfied guests to leave reviews
• Address any service issues mentioned in feedback
• Consider responding professionally to reviews (both positive and negative)

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Leveraging GuestTouch Reputation Platform to Improve Your Tripadvisor Ratings

With this increased rating precision, every review matters more than ever. This is where GuestTouch can make a significant difference for your property. Our reputation management platform helps you:

• Automate Review Collection: Send perfectly-timed review requests to guests when they're most likely to respond positively during the guest journey! This can happen via SMS, WhatsApp email, QR code etc. 
• Monitor All Rating Changes: Track your Tripadvisor numerical ratings with precision, even as they shift to the new decimal system
• Identify Service Gaps: Analyze feedback patterns to pinpoint exactly where improvements will have the biggest impact on your ratings
• Respond Efficiently: Manage all your Tripadvisor reviews from one dashboard, making it easier to maintain the prompt responses that travelers appreciate

Many of our hotel partners have seen their Tripadvisor ratings improve as well as their Tripadvisor ranking improve substantially after short months of implementation—a significant advantage in this new, more precise rating environment.

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Why Is Tripadvisor Making This Change?

This update gives travelers more accurate information when comparing properties. Most other booking platforms already use this more precise system, so it helps standardize the way ratings appear across the industry.

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Looking Ahead

Tripadvisor has hinted it may eventually give more weight to recent reviews in its popularity ranking algorithms. That means:

• Fresh feedback signals current quality: When guests leave recent, positive reviews, it tells potential travelers—and Tripadvisor’s algorithm—that your hotel consistently meets (or exceeds) expectations.
  
  
• Maintaining review momentum: A steady influx of new reviews can help ensure your property remains competitive, especially as review recency becomes a larger factor.

In short, the new decimal system gives travelers more precise information, and while it won’t directly affect your popularity ranking, it emphasizes the importance of consistent, high-quality guest reviews.

Remember: at the end of the day, the fundamental formula hasn't changed. Great service leads to great reviews, which leads to more bookings!:) 

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Useful Tools & Resources: 

1. Hotel Reviews & Reputation Impact Calculator: Calculate & visualize how reviews can impact your hotel’s revenue 
2. Star Rating Calculator: Calculate how many reviews you need to reach your desired rating
3. How To Dispute Hotel Reviews On Major Review Sites: A simple, easy to follow- guidelines for disputing reviews on all major OTAs, Tripadvisor and Google
4. ‍GuestTouch Platform - Start your free trial at https://www.guesttouch.com/demo