Frequently Asked Questions

The Smart Score is a 0-100 trust score for Amazon products. It evaluates how trustworthy a product's reviews and ratings are, based on eight independent signals. It does not measure product quality. It measures whether you can believe the reviews you are reading.

No. The Smart Score is computed entirely from publicly available data and marketplace signals. There is no paid tier, no premium plan, and no way for brands to influence their score through any commercial relationship with GoBuy. This is a foundational principle of the system and it will never change.

Every 24 hours. The score reflects the current state of a product's reviews, ratings, seller data, and other signals. If a product receives a sudden flood of suspicious reviews today, its score will reflect that by tomorrow.

A low Smart Score does not necessarily mean your product is bad. It means your review profile shows patterns consistent with manipulation. Common causes include a high percentage of unverified reviews, a suspicious rating distribution, or review patterns that resemble coordinated campaigns. Review your review acquisition practices, ensure all reviews come from genuine post-purchase customers, and the score will improve over time as natural reviews accumulate.

No. The Smart Score is computed using publicly available data from Amazon product listings (reviews, ratings, seller information) and aggregated marketplace data from third-party sources. We do not have access to Amazon's internal systems, transaction data, or proprietary fraud detection signals. Some signals, such as return rates, are estimated from available data and may carry measurement error.

Smart Score measures trust, not quality. If your competitor has fewer but more authentic reviews, a more natural rating distribution, or a stronger verified purchase ratio, they may score higher even if their average rating is lower. The score reflects how much consumers should trust the reviews, not how good the product is.

Amazon provides a star rating based on customer reviews. It does not disclose how it weighs or filters reviews, and the system is vulnerable to manipulation. Smart Score is an independent, transparent assessment that uses eight separate signals to evaluate review authenticity. Its complete methodology is published openly, unlike Amazon's proprietary algorithms.

Any scoring system can be targeted by bad actors. However, Smart Score uses eight independent signals, making it significantly harder and more expensive to manipulate than a single-metric system. Attempting to game one signal (e.g., review velocity) will likely trigger anomalies in others (e.g., review authenticity or reviewer history). The multi-signal design is specifically intended to make manipulation prohibitively difficult and costly.

Products that maintain a Smart Score of 80 or higher for 90 consecutive days earn the GoBuy Verified badge. It indicates sustained trustworthiness over time. If the score drops below 80 at any point, the badge is automatically suspended. The badge is free and cannot be purchased.

Not necessarily. A high Smart Score means the reviews are trustworthy. It does not mean the product is safe, effective, or suitable for your needs. Always read reviews, especially negative ones, check product specifications, and use your own judgment. Smart Score is an informational tool, not purchasing advice.

Products with fewer than 10 reviews receive a provisional score with lower confidence. The statistical signals (distribution shape, velocity, authenticity) require a minimum sample size to produce meaningful results. Once a product accumulates more reviews, the score stabilizes and confidence increases.

Currently, Smart Score is optimized for Amazon's US marketplace. We are developing adaptations for international Amazon marketplaces and other e-commerce platforms. Signal baselines and thresholds vary across marketplaces, so direct cross-marketplace comparison is not yet supported.