Amazon KDP Reviews Policy: A Guide for Authors
You can ask readers to leave voluntary, honest feedback and you can give away advance reader copies. You cannot require a review, dictate its tone or rating, pay for it, or add an incentive such as a gift card. A simple rule keeps most campaigns safe: give readers the book, then give them complete freedom.
- A free or discounted book may be provided without making a review a condition.
- Do not offer money, gift cards, contest entries, refunds, bonuses, or other compensation for a review.
- Ask for an honest review, never a positive or five-star review.
- Do not tell readers what to say or pressure them to revise criticism.
- Report suspected violations through Amazon; do not organize retaliation.
This guide is based on Amazon's official KDP Customer Reviews and Merchandising Tips pages, reviewed August 7, 2026. Amazon's Community team manages customer reviews, not KDP support, and policies or enforcement systems can change. Check the live rules before launching a review campaign.
What Amazon currently allows
Amazon's KDP guidance explicitly allows authors to provide free or discounted copies to readers. The boundary is important: the book may be free, but the review must remain optional and uninfluenced. The author cannot turn the copy into payment for a required review.
A compliant advance reader copy program therefore recruits people interested in the book, delivers the same manuscript readers will receive, explains that feedback is voluntary, and accepts every outcome: a positive review, a critical review, or no review.
What crosses the line
| Practice | Why it is risky | Safer approach |
|---|---|---|
| “Leave a five-star review for a gift card.” | It combines compensation with an attempt to control the rating. | Provide only the book, then invite optional honest feedback. |
| Refunding a purchase after a review | The refund can operate as compensation tied to review activity. | Distribute a free review copy independently of Amazon purchasing. |
| Contest entry for reviewers | An extra benefit is offered in connection with leaving a review. | Run any giveaway without requiring or rewarding a review. |
| Sending suggested praise to copy | It attempts to influence the substance of the review. | Offer neutral prompts about the reader's genuine experience. |
| Removing readers who rate below four stars | It filters the review pool by desired sentiment. | Select readers for genre fit and reliability, not favorable ratings. |
| Review swaps between authors | A reciprocal arrangement creates a benefit tied to reviewing. | Build independent reader relationships without reciprocity. |
How to request reviews without pressure
A review request should be brief, accurate, and easy to decline. Avoid urgency tactics, repeated direct messages, rating targets, or language implying that access to future books depends on a review.
A neutral request template
Thank you for reading [Book Title]. If you choose to share your genuine experience, you can leave an honest review on the book's Amazon page. A review is completely optional, and there is no expected rating or wording. Please follow Amazon's current Community Guidelines.
That template does not guarantee Amazon will accept a particular review. Amazon independently checks submissions. It does, however, state the relationship clearly and preserve the reader's choice.
Build a policy-safe ARC workflow
- Finish the review edition. Complete substantive editing and formatting first. Readers should not be asked to judge a placeholder draft.
- Recruit for genuine fit. Describe the genre, themes, content notes, length, format, and reading deadline. Do not select people based on promises of praise.
- State the terms before delivery. Explain that the book is free, a review is optional, and the reader controls the opinion, rating, and wording.
- Deliver the copy without extra rewards. Do not add cash, gift cards, prize eligibility, or reimbursement contingent on review activity.
- Send a limited reminder. One courteous reminder can restate where voluntary feedback may be left. Do not chase, shame, or threaten removal.
- Keep records. Save the invitation language, delivery date, edition, and reminder. Records help you audit the process, not control the reviewer.
- Accept the result. Some readers will not finish. Others will dislike the book. Both outcomes are part of a legitimate review program.
Where review requests should appear
An author's newsletter, website, social profile, launch team message, or end matter can contain a neutral request. The book's Amazon description is different: KDP's metadata guidelines prohibit requests for customer reviews in the description. Keep the retail description focused on helping shoppers understand the book.
Similarly, Amazon's current A+ Content guidelines prohibit customer reviews in A+ Content. Use that space to clarify the book's themes, characters, series order, or nonfiction outcomes. See the KDP A+ Content guide for a compliant module plan.
What to do when a review is missing
Do not promise ARC readers that their reviews will appear. KDP says Amazon's Community team checks reviews and that the process can take several days. A review may be missing because it conflicts with Community Guidelines, was removed by the person who submitted it, or was associated with an unrelated product.
If a reader asks you to fix a missing review, direct them to Amazon's Community team. Do not ask them to repost repeatedly, change the rating, add a purchase, or disguise how they obtained the book.
How star ratings and Verified Purchase labels work
Amazon says a product's star rating is calculated using machine-learned models rather than a simple arithmetic average. Authors should not promise that a certain number of new five-star reviews will produce a predictable displayed rating.
An ARC reader who did not buy the book through Amazon should not be coached to simulate a purchase merely to seek a Verified Purchase label. The purpose of an ARC is early reading and independent feedback, not manufacturing a purchase signal.
Negative reviews and reporting violations
A negative opinion is not automatically a policy violation. Amazon says reviews of older content generally remain after a book is updated unless the review violates Community Guidelines. If criticism identifies a real editing, formatting, or promise mismatch, use it as product feedback.
If a review appears to violate Amazon's rules, use the Report link below it. Amazon's Community team investigates and, for privacy reasons, does not share the outcome. Avoid contacting the reviewer to demand removal or sending followers to vote, reply, or report as a group.
- Capture the exact review and edition for your private records.
- Separate subjective criticism from a possible rules violation.
- Report only when you have a specific policy concern.
- Correct genuine book defects through a properly proofed update.
- Do not claim Amazon will remove older criticism after an update.
Reviews across formats, editions, and marketplaces
KDP says international review sharing is possible only in marketplaces where the same book's ASIN and format are live, and that other inputs can affect whether reviews display. For a new version to share reviews with an earlier version, its metadata must match appropriately and the books must be linked.
This makes accurate metadata and format linking part of review hygiene. Confirm that paperback, hardcover, and Kindle editions belong to the same book and use consistent title, subtitle, author, and contributor data. Review sharing is still Amazon's decision, not something an author can guarantee.
A pre-launch compliance checklist
- The manuscript is edited, proofed, and representative of the release edition.
- ARC invitations describe the book honestly and do not filter for positive sentiment.
- Review language says “optional” and “honest,” with no rating request.
- The only reader benefit is the free or discounted copy itself.
- No purchase, reimbursement, gift card, contest entry, or reciprocal review is required.
- Reminders are limited and respectful.
- The Amazon description and A+ Content contain no customer-review request or customer reviews.
- Your team knows that Amazon—not the author—controls acceptance and removal.
Give readers a book worth reviewing
ShakespeareAI helps authors build a structured long-form draft with planned chapters and continuity. Apply human judgment, edit deeply, proof every format, and approach reviews as independent reader feedback—not a score to manufacture.
Start your book draft →Frequently asked questions
Can KDP authors give away free copies for reviews?
Yes. Amazon says authors may provide free or discounted copies, provided a review is not required and the author does not try to influence it. Extra compensation, including a gift card, invalidates the review under current KDP guidance.
Can an author ask readers for an honest Amazon review?
Yes, when the request is neutral and the review is voluntary. Do not request a particular rating, prescribe wording, reward the act of reviewing, or penalize readers who decline.
Can an author remove a negative Amazon review?
Not simply because it is negative. If it appears to violate Community Guidelines, use the Report link and let Amazon's Community team decide.
Why is an Amazon book review missing?
Amazon says checks can take several days. A review may also conflict with Community Guidelines, have been removed by the customer, or be linked to an unrelated product.