What RealSelf Will Actually Remove — and What It Won’t
A genuine patient’s unfavorable but honest review stays up, even if it lowers your Worth It Rating. Here’s what does qualify for removal, and how the dispute process actually works.
Yes, in specific cases — RealSelf removes reviews that violate its Code of Conduct: reviews from someone with a personal or staff connection to the provider, incentivized reviews, reviews that don’t reflect a genuine patient experience, and content like discriminatory language or unresolved criminal accusations. A real patient’s genuine but unflattering account of their results is not grounds for removal on its own.
RealSelf’s Code of Conduct and review guidelinesWhich reviews can be removed?
- The reviewer has a personal or staff connection to the provider (for example, a family member or employee)
- The review was incentivized — the patient received or was offered something in exchange for it
- The review doesn’t reflect a genuine patient experience with that provider
- The content includes discriminatory language or unresolved criminal accusations
- The provider paid for the review or wrote it themselves, which RealSelf prohibits outright
If a flag or dispute is denied
RealSelf provides free dispute resolution to providers with a claimed profile who believe a specific review violates its Code of Conduct, submitted through its online dispute form with supporting documentation. It does not remove a review simply because a provider disagrees with a genuine patient’s account.
Improve your rating instead
For reviews that don't qualify for removal, a professional response and a consistent flow of new reviews does more than chasing a removal that isn't coming.
Frequently asked questions
A provider with a claimed RealSelf profile can submit a dispute through RealSelf’s online dispute form, providing the provider’s name and contact information, the disputed review’s URL, the specific guideline it violates, and supporting evidence.
RealSelf doesn’t publish a fixed turnaround; providers should expect the review to take anywhere from several days to a few weeks depending on how much evidence the case requires.
Only RealSelf’s moderators can remove a review, and providers cannot pay to alter or remove one. Building the case around a specific guideline violation with supporting evidence, rather than simply disagreeing with the content, is what RealSelf’s process is built to evaluate.
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