Whatnot Ratings and Reviews: How to Handle a Bad Review

New streamers with their first few ratings. After the show. Beginner. 6-min read.

Your first reviews carry a lot of weight on your profile because there are so few of them. A 1 star for something small can make it feel like Whatnot buyers are harder to please than on other apps. Whatnot does not publish data on that. What you can control is how ratings are counted, how you respond, and what goes into the box next time.

How Ratings Work

• After an order is marked delivered, it moves to Pending Review. The buyer has up to 30 days to leave a star rating and an optional written review.
• Star-only ratings count toward your average but do not show one by one. Ratings with text appear in the Reviews tab on your profile.
• Your total review count includes star-only ratings, so it can be higher than the number of written reviews you see.
• Buyers who asked to cancel an order cannot rate it, whether the cancel was accepted or declined. Orders never marked delivered cannot be rated.
• Ratings and the 30-day review window don't affect when you get paid.
• Whatnot uses ratings as one signal of seller performance and for eligibility for some features, such as Early Payout. Consistently low ratings can lead to an account review.

Steps

1. Read the review for a fixable cause. Separate "did not like it" from a real defect such as hair, smell, damage or a wrong size.
2. Fix the cause in your packing routine. For pet hair, lint roll each item right before it goes in the bag, pack in a room the pets do not use, and seal items in a clear bag before the mailer.
3. Reply once, calmly, in the app. Open your profile, the Reviews tab, the review, then the menu and Reply. You can only reply once, replies cannot be edited, and they must follow the Community Guidelines. Thank the buyer, say what you changed, and stop.
4. Report only real policy violations. If a review is harassment or misinformation, report it from the same menu. Whatnot removes only reviews that clearly break policy.
5. Tell buyers what to expect before they bid. Describe condition, flaws and sizing on camera and in the listing. Accurate descriptions are one of the four basics Whatnot lists for a good rating.
6. Ship fast and pack securely. The other basics are shipping on time, packaging items safely and communicating quickly when something goes wrong.
7. Use giveaways that reward buyers. A Buyer Appreciation Giveaway is for people who buy during your show. In the US and Canada there is also a free web entry form. Follower-only giveaways limit entry to followers. You cannot deny a winner because you suspect bot entries; report suspected abuse in the app instead.
8. Check your price floor. Selling at break-even to build reviews only pays off if the reviews come back positive. Know your margin per item before you start auctions low.

Worked Example

Example, using a seller's first 4 ratings: 5, 5, 3 and 1 stars. The average is (5 + 5 + 3 + 1) ÷ 4 = 3.5.

If the next 6 ratings are all 5 stars, the average becomes (14 + 30) ÷ 10 = 4.4. After 20 more 5 star ratings, it is (14 + 130) ÷ 30 = 4.8. Early ratings matter most when there are few of them, and steady orders dilute them.

When the Problem Is Giveaway Traffic

Giveaways cost you the shipping. Whatnot deducts giveaway shipping from your balance when the giveaway runs, and you must ship within 2 business days like any order. If standard giveaways bring entrants who never buy, switch to Buyer Appreciation or follower-only giveaways, and report accounts you believe are abusing giveaways.

Common Mistakes

• Replying in anger. You get one reply and it stays public.
• Reporting every low rating. Only clear violations are removed.
• Hiding flaws to get a higher bid. They show up later in the review.
• Running standard giveaways for every show without checking who buys.

Checklist

• Review read and cause written down
• Packing routine changed to fix the cause
• One calm public reply posted, if useful
• Report filed only for clear guideline violations
• Flaws and sizing shown on camera and in listings
• Orders dropped off within 2 business days
• Giveaway type matched to buyers, not just viewers

SaleTrail tracks picking and packing after each show, so each item is checked against the order before it ships.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Whatnot.