10 Categories by Google Reviews: Vancouver 2026 Field Guide

By Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer at Jackai Agency · Published 12 October 2026 · Last updated and fact-checked October 2026

Short answer: The median business on page 1 of Google’s local results in Vancouver has 209 Google reviews, according to my October 2026 study of 200 businesses. That number hides a 25-fold spread. Page-1 web designers have a median of 52 Google reviews. Cafes have 1,300. Your real target depends on your category.

I run a web design and local SEO studio in Vancouver, and owners ask me the same question every week: how many Google reviews do I need? Nobody had published Vancouver numbers, so on 12 October 2026 I counted them.

Key takeaways

• 209 Google reviews is the median across 200 page-1 businesses in 10 Vancouver categories.
• 52 to 1,300 is the range of category medians, from web designers to cafes.
• 346 vs 178: businesses in Google’s top 3 have about twice the reviews of positions 4 to 20.
• 9 of 30 top-3 spots went to businesses with fewer reviews than their category median.
• 2% of page-1 businesses have fewer than 20 Google reviews, the line 47% of consumers say they will not cross (BrightLocal, 2026).
• 4.85 is the average rating, and only 6% of page-1 businesses sit below 4.5 stars.

How I collected the Vancouver data

For each of 10 categories, I searched Google’s local results list for “[category] in vancouver bc” on 12 October 2026, signed in to Chrome with Google set to Canada, and recorded the first 20 free (organic) businesses. I noted each one’s position, star rating and number of Google reviews. Paid listings were counted separately and left out.

That gives 200 businesses. Top 3 means the first three free listings, which sit below any paid ones. Middle half means the 25th to 75th percentile. I report only medians and totals, and no business is named. Each category has 20 businesses and each top-3 median rests on three, so read words like “twice” as “in this sample.” The data shows what page-1 businesses have; it does not prove that reviews caused their rank. This is a snapshot from one connection on one day, and results shift with the searcher’s location. Google shows counts above 1,000 rounded to the nearest hundred, so the cafe figures carry some rounding. I did not record how old each business’s newest review was.

Before this study, the closest numbers came from a 2018 BrightLocal study of 93,845 businesses, mostly in the US. It reported an average of 39 Google reviews per business and 47 for the top 3. That study averaged every ranked business, including ones with zero reviews, so it does not compare directly with the medians here.

1. Cafes: best for proving rating beats volume

Vancouver cafes on page 1 of Google have a median of 1,300 Google reviews in my study, the highest of the 10 categories. The middle half sits between 580 and 2,850. The top 3 had a median of 803, lower than the rest of page 1, and no page-1 cafe showed a perfect 5.0 rating.

• Median Google reviews: 1,300 (middle half 580 to 2,850)
• Top-3 median: 803 (positions 4 to 20: 1,900)
• Average rating: 4.57, the lowest of the 10 categories
• Share at 5.0: 0%
• Paid listings above the results: 0

Cafes show most clearly that review count alone does not decide rank. All three top results had fewer reviews than the cafe median, and one had only 314. Several cafes lower on page 1 had more than 4,000. Google’s own guidance says local results depend mainly on relevance, distance and popularity. For a quick coffee search, distance and relevance carry a lot of weight, so the closest good match can beat the most reviewed one.

Ratings may matter more here than raw volume. The cafe average of 4.57 is the lowest in the study. Businesses with thousands of reviews may collect more low ratings, though this study did not test that. A peer-reviewed study of Yelp restaurant ratings in San Francisco found that an extra half star made restaurants 19 percentage points more likely to sell out of reservations. It studied restaurants, not cafes, so treat it as a signal. For food businesses, the rating deserves at least as much attention as the count. That means answering complaints fast, fixing the cause, and asking happy regulars at the counter rather than chasing everyone at once.

“An extra half-star rating causes restaurants to sell out 19 percentage points (49%) more frequently,” wrote Michael Anderson and Jeremy Magruder in The Economic Journal (2012).

“For food businesses, the rating deserves at least as much attention as the count,” said Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer.

2. Dentists: best for steady repeat-visit reviews

Vancouver dentists on page 1 of Google have a median of 592 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 483 and 977. The top 3 had a median of 704. The category is tightly packed, so a new practice faces a high floor, and two paid listings appeared above the free results.

• Median Google reviews: 592 (middle half 483 to 977)
• Top-3 median: 704 (positions 4 to 20: 555)
• Average rating: 4.86
• Share at 5.0: 15%
• Paid listings above the results: 2

Dentistry has the narrowest spread among the high-volume categories. Half of the page-1 practices sit within a band of about 500 reviews, and the lowest count on page 1 in this sample was 144. A new clinic should expect a city-wide search to be crowded. A neighbourhood search can be easier, because distance narrows the field.

The top 3 led the rest by a modest margin, 704 against 555, and one of the three had 2,000 reviews. Dental patients come back for regular checkups, which gives a practice more chances to ask than a business people visit once. A steady request at checkout, sent the same day by text or email with a direct link, is the habit that produces numbers like these. Google allows businesses to ask for reviews, but its Maps contribution policy forbids offering payment, discounts or gifts in exchange, and it bars asking only the patients you expect to be happy.

3. Hair salons: best for competing on services, not stars

Vancouver hair salons on page 1 of Google have a median of 554 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 292 and 907. The top 3 had a median of 377, below the rest of page 1. Three paid listings appeared above the free results, tied with five other categories for the most.

• Median Google reviews: 554 (middle half 292 to 907)
• Top-3 median: 377 (positions 4 to 20: 566)
• Average rating: 4.86
• Share at 5.0: 10%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

Salons are a crowded, high-rating category. Every page-1 salon sat between 4.7 and 5.0 stars, so the rating does little to separate them. Review count does not separate the top 3 either, since their median of 377 is lower than the rest of page 1. A salon with 300 reviews can sit above one with 1,600.

That leaves two levers. The first is relevance. Google’s guidelines for representing your business ask for categories that are “as specific as possible, but representative of your main business.” Profiles that list specific services, such as balayage, men’s cuts or curly hair, match more searches. The second lever is paid placement. Three salons paid to appear above all the free results, which pushes the organic top 3 further down the screen on a phone. For a salon, a clear service list, current photos and steady reviews do more than a race to 1,000 Google reviews.

4. Physiotherapists: best for showing page 1 is reachable early

Vancouver physiotherapists on page 1 of Google have a median of 246 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 146 and 391. The number one result had only 41 reviews. Three paid listings, one of them a chiropractor, appeared above the free results.

• Median Google reviews: 246 (middle half 146 to 391)
• Top-3 median: 148 (positions 4 to 20: 260)
• Average rating: 4.88
• Share at 5.0: 30%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

Physiotherapy produced the most striking single result in the study. The first free result had 41 reviews, against a category median of 246. The next lowest count on page 1 was 133. That clinic was a dedicated physiotherapy centre with a 5.0 rating. This data cannot say why it ranked first, but Whitespark’s experts rank the primary category 1st and the searcher’s distance 2nd among Local Pack and Maps factors.

For a newer clinic, this is encouraging. Page 1 can be reachable below the median when the profile matches the search closely. Choose the most specific primary category, list each treatment as a service, and make sure the address and hours match the website exactly. Then build reviews at a steady pace. Experts surveyed by Whitespark rank a steady flow of reviews over time 14th among Local Pack and Maps factors, ahead of sudden bursts. A clinic that adds four or five reviews a month for a year looks more natural than one that adds 50 in a week and then stops.

“Page 1 can be reachable below the median when the profile matches the search closely,” said Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer.

5. Jewellery stores: best for review volume as proof

Vancouver jewellery stores on page 1 of Google have a median of 244 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 124 and 430. The top 3 had a median of 561, more than twice the category median. Ratings spread wider here than in most categories, from 4.0 to 5.0.

• Median Google reviews: 244 (middle half 124 to 430)
• Top-3 median: 561 (positions 4 to 20: 177)
• Average rating: 4.77
• Share at 5.0: 25%
• Paid listings above the results: 2

Jewellery is one of the categories where review volume clearly tracks the top spots. All three top results had more than 430 reviews, while the rest of page 1 had a median of 177. For a premium retailer, review count works as a trust signal for high-value purchases, where buyers want proof before they visit. An engagement ring is not a repeat purchase, so buyers lean on other people’s experience.

Ratings vary more here than anywhere else in the study. Page 1 included stores rated 4.0, 4.1 and 4.2. A low rating does not remove a store from page 1, but it changes how buyers read it. In a 2026 BrightLocal survey of 1,002 US adults, 68% said they only use businesses rated 4 stars or higher, and 31% require 4.5 or higher. A jewellery store at 4.1 sits close to the line where buyers start to drop off. Replying to every critical review, calmly and with specifics, is the cheapest fix available.

6. Plumbers: best for winning on count and recency

Vancouver plumbers on page 1 of Google have a median of 144 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 116 and 258. The top 3 had a median of 275. Sixty percent of page-1 plumbers show a perfect 5.0 rating, so the stars barely separate them.

• Median Google reviews: 144 (middle half 116 to 258)
• Top-3 median: 275 (positions 4 to 20: 135)
• Average rating: 4.93
• Share at 5.0: 60%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

Plumbing shows how compressed ratings have become in the trades. Twelve of the 20 page-1 plumbers had a perfect 5.0. When almost everyone has five stars, buyers look at the count and the dates instead. The top 3 had nearly double the median count.

The range is wide. One page-1 plumber had 1,600 reviews, and another, in 20th place, had 2. Three paid listings sat above the free results, one of them an HVAC company. For a plumbing business, recency may matter as much as the total. The 2026 BrightLocal survey found that 74% of consumers look for reviews written in the last three months, and 32% look for reviews from the last two weeks. A plumber with 150 reviews and three from last week reads better than one with 300 and nothing since spring. Ask on the day of the job, while the fix is fresh and the customer is still relieved.

7. Lawyers: best for matching the category to the search

Vancouver lawyers on page 1 of Google have a median of 140 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 70 and 258. The top 3 had a median of 281. Two of the top three free listings were criminal defence firms, and three paid listings appeared above the free results.

• Median Google reviews: 140 (middle half 70 to 258)
• Top-3 median: 281 (positions 4 to 20: 132)
• Average rating: 4.83
• Share at 5.0: 20%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

Law firms build reviews more slowly than retail or health businesses. Many clients use a lawyer once, and some matters are private. Even so, the top 3 had twice the median count. Two of them were criminal defence firms. The third, a general practice firm, had 611 reviews.

The search term shapes this category. “Lawyer in Vancouver” pulled a mix of criminal, family, real estate and general practice firms. A family lawyer competes on “family lawyer Vancouver”, not on the generic term. Firms should set the most specific primary category in Google Business Profile, since Google’s local ranking guidance names relevance as one of three main factors. A firm that sets “family law attorney” as its primary category, and describes its family law services in plain words, gives Google a much clearer match. Rules on client testimonials in BC sit with the Law Society of British Columbia, so firms should check those before asking clients for reviews.

8. Realtors: best for proving a 5.0 is normal

Vancouver real estate agencies on page 1 of Google have a median of 110 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 53 and 183. The top 3 had a median of 249. Eighty percent of page-1 agencies show a perfect 5.0 rating, the highest share in the study.

• Median Google reviews: 110 (middle half 53 to 183)
• Top-3 median: 249 (positions 4 to 20: 107)
• Average rating: 4.98
• Share at 5.0: 80%
• Paid listings above the results: 1

Real estate has the most uniform ratings in the study. Sixteen of the 20 page-1 agencies had 5.0 stars, and none had less than 4.9. A 5.0 rating is the norm in this category, not a way to stand out.

Count is what separates the top 3. All three had between 216 and 255 reviews, about twice the median. For an agent starting out, the gap is real but reachable. Picture a realtor who closes two deals a month and gets one review per deal. That agent would reach the median in about four and a half years. Asking past clients from earlier deals shortens that, and so does a short follow-up after possession day, when the new owners have the keys. Google forbids paying for reviews in any form, and in 2015 Bell Canada agreed to a $1.25 million penalty with the Competition Bureau after employees posted undisclosed reviews of its own apps. It was not a Google Business Profile case, but it shows how the Bureau treats hidden connections.

“A 5.0 rating is the norm in this category, not a way to stand out,” said Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer.

9. Accountants: best for the biggest reward from volume

Vancouver accountants on page 1 of Google have a median of 95 Google reviews in my study, with the middle half between 64 and 238. The top 3 had a median of 432, more than four times the category median. That is the widest gap between the top 3 and the rest in the study.

• Median Google reviews: 95 (middle half 64 to 238)
• Top-3 median: 432 (positions 4 to 20: 86)
• Average rating: 4.93
• Share at 5.0: 50%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

Accounting has the biggest reward for volume. The three top firms had 432, 171 and 495 reviews, while everyone else on page 1 had a median of 86. Bookkeepers, tax preparers and accounting firms all compete on the same search. I did not record how old their reviews are.

It is also the category where a small firm can reach page 1 with modest numbers. One page-1 business had 12 reviews. Tax season gives accountants a natural moment to ask, since clients meet them in a predictable window each spring. A short request sent after a return is filed, while the relief is fresh, is a natural moment to ask. Half of page-1 accountants show a perfect 5.0, so the count does more work than the stars. Experts in the 2026 Whitespark survey rank the number of Google reviews with text 9th among local pack factors, which supports asking clients to write a sentence, not just tap five stars.

10. Web designers: best for small studios with steady reviews

Vancouver web designers on page 1 of Google have a median of 52 Google reviews in my study, the lowest of the 10 categories. The middle half sits between 27 and 87. The top 3 had a median of 119, and two page-1 web designers had fewer than 20 reviews.

• Median Google reviews: 52 (middle half 27 to 87)
• Top-3 median: 119 (positions 4 to 20: 41)
• Average rating: 4.92
• Share at 5.0: 55%
• Paid listings above the results: 3

I run a web design business in Vancouver, so this is my own category. I did not record whether my own studio was among the 20. It is a low-volume one. Web design clients are businesses, projects take months, and a studio might finish a few dozen projects a year. A median of 52 reflects that pace.

Two page-1 web designers had 15 and 16 reviews. In this category, a small studio with a clear profile and steady reviews can appear next to established agencies. The top 3 still had more than twice the median. Three paid listings appeared above the free results, including a software company and a design agency. Both page-1 studios under 20 sit below the floor that 47% of consumers set in the BrightLocal survey, which makes the first 20 reviews the most valuable ones a new studio can collect. Asking every client at launch, with a link and a one-line prompt about what changed, is how a studio gets there.

“In this category, a small studio with a clear profile and steady reviews can appear next to agencies with ten years of history,” said Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer.

What the top 3 have that the rest do not

Across all 10 categories in my study, businesses in Google’s local top 3 had a median of 346 Google reviews, about twice the 178 median for positions 4 to 20. Yet 9 of the 30 top-3 spots went to businesses with fewer reviews than their category median. Reviews help, but relevance and distance also decide rank.

“More reviews and positive ratings can help your business’s local ranking,” stated Google in its Business Profile Help (Google).

In Whitespark’s 2026 Local Search Ranking Factors survey of 47 local search experts, review factors ranked 6th (high rating), 9th (number of reviews with text), 11th (recency) and 14th (steady flow) for the Local Pack and Maps. The Vancouver data fits that picture. In jewellery, accounting and real estate, the top 3 had two to four times the median. In cafes, salons and physiotherapy, the top 3 had fewer reviews than the median, and relevance and proximity carried more weight.

What customers expect from your Google reviews

In BrightLocal’s 2026 survey of 1,002 US adults, 47% said they will not use a business with fewer than 20 reviews, and 31% require at least 4.5 stars. In my Vancouver study, only 2% of page-1 businesses had fewer than 20 Google reviews, and 94% were rated 4.5 or higher.

• Count: 47% will not use a business with fewer than 20 reviews (BrightLocal, 2026, US sample).
• Rating: 68% only use businesses rated 4 stars or higher, up from 55% the year before. 31% require 4.5 or higher, up from 17%.
• Recency: 74% look for reviews written in the last three months.
• Replies: 89% expect owners to respond to reviews, and 50% are put off by templated replies.
• Sales effect (peer reviewed): an extra half star on Yelp made restaurants 19 percentage points more likely to sell out of reservations (Anderson and Magruder, 2012).

The BrightLocal survey covers US consumers, and no comparable Canadian survey was published in 2026. Put the two sets of numbers together and 20 reviews looks like a floor. It is the minimum buyers accept, not the number that gets a business onto page 1 in Vancouver.

“It is the minimum buyers accept, not the number that gets a business onto page 1 in Vancouver,” said Joshua Jackai, Vancouver web designer.

Compare all 10 Vancouver categories

The matrix lists every category in my study with its median Google reviews, middle half, top-3 median, average rating, share of perfect ratings and paid slots. Filter it by sector to compare your category with its neighbours, such as health and personal care or professional services. All figures come from page 1 on 12 October 2026.

Check your gap to page 1

The calculator compares your Google reviews and rating with the Vancouver medians from my study. Pick your category and enter your current reviews, rating and monthly pace. It shows how many reviews you need to reach the median and the top-3 median, and roughly how long that takes.

Frequently asked questions

These are the questions Vancouver owners ask most about Google reviews, drawn from Reddit threads in r/GoogleMyBusiness and r/localseo and from my own client calls. Each answer stands on its own and points to the policy or study behind it, so you can check the source yourself.

Is a 4.9 rating worse than a 5.0 on Google?

Not in Vancouver’s page-1 results. The average page-1 rating is 4.85, and about two thirds of page-1 businesses are below 5.0. The rating line buyers care about is 4.5, which 31% of US consumers require. A 4.9 with many recent reviews reads as more real than a 5.0.

How fast can I add Google reviews without getting flagged?

Google publishes no speed limit for real reviews. Its policy bans fake reviews, paid reviews and asking only happy customers. Google pauses new reviews after a sudden spike in spam reviews, to protect the business. Experts rank a steady flow 14th among Local Pack and Maps factors.

Can I offer a discount for a Google review in Canada?

No. Google’s contribution policy bans offering payment, discounts, free goods or services in exchange for reviews. It bans asking only satisfied customers. Canada’s Competition Bureau treats undisclosed connections in reviews as misleading. In 2015, Bell Canada agreed to a $1.25 million penalty over undisclosed employee reviews of its apps.

Why did some of my Google reviews disappear?

Google blocked or removed more than 292 million policy-violating reviews on Maps in 2025, according to Google’s April 2026 report. Real reviews sometimes get caught in that filtering. Reviews can also disappear when the reviewer’s Google account is deleted. You can report a removal through Google Business Profile support.

“Blocked or removed over 292 million policy-violating reviews,” stated Google about its 2025 Maps enforcement (Google, 2026).

Who can check your Google Business Profile

I review Google Business Profiles and websites for Vancouver businesses as part of my website audit. The audit costs CA$995 and is credited in full if a project starts within 30 days. It compares your reviews, categories and services with the page-1 businesses in your own category.

You can book it from my offers page, or start with the free AI Visibility Report if you want to see how ChatGPT and Google describe your business first.

Sources

Peer reviewed

• Anderson, M. and Magruder, J. (2012). Learning from the Crowd: Regression Discontinuity Estimates of the Effects of an Online Review Database. The Economic Journal, 122(563), 957 to 989. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0297.2012.02512.x

First-party data

• Jackai Agency review study: Google local results for 10 categories in Vancouver, 200 organic businesses, collected 12 October 2026.

Industry, official and vendor

• BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, 1,002 US adults, published 11 February 2026 (industry survey).
• Whitespark, Local Search Ranking Factors 2026, 47 experts, published 6 November 2025 (industry survey).
• Google, Tips to improve your local ranking (official documentation).
• Google, Guidelines for representing your business on Google (official documentation).
• Google, Maps user contributed content policy (official documentation).
• Google, New ways we’re protecting businesses on Maps, 16 April 2026 (official).
• Competition Bureau Canada, Bell Canada reaches agreement over online reviews, 14 October 2015 (government).
• BrightLocal, Google Reviews Study, 2018 (historical context only).