Well Its your website. You can do whatever you want on your own website or blog! Sure you can display Amazon star ratings IF you want to risk getting your Amazon Associates account banned!Amazon is very clear on this topic. Here is an exact copy & paste from the Amazon Associates Program Policies
[t] You will not display or otherwise use any of our customer reviews or star ratings, in part or in whole, on your Site unless you have obtained a link to that customer review or star rating through PA API and you comply with the requirements for PA API described in theLicense.
//affiliate-program.amazon.com/help/operating/policies
This quote is taken from the Participation Requirements section > 6. Content on your Site > part [t]
But wait! It says, unless you have obtained a link to that customer review or star rating through PA API and Doesnt that mean that I CAN display star ratings if they are obtained through the API?
Sure but heres the thing. Amazon no longer provides star ratings in their API as one of the elements available for you to display. Previously they did. But now [as of the date this post is being published] they dont.
If you are displaying Amazon star ratings or reviews on your website or blog you are putting yourself at risk of getting your Amazon Associates account banned.
Amazon Star Ratings & Reviews No Longer Available
Update: October 31, 2019 As of this date, Amazon has shut down the previous version of its API that did provide rating and review information. Amazons new API [version 5] no longer provides rating or review information at all, in any format, which means that we can no longer display rating or review information in any AmaLinks Pro link types. We have crossed out text in this article that was previously relevant and true.
There IS a back doorway to legitimately display Amazon star ratings and reviews. Take a look at how we do it within an awesome AmaLinks Pro Showcase Box [example below]
Hey! By the way any links on this page that lead to products on Amazon are affiliate links and we get paid a commission if you purchase.
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Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site[s], as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Youll notice the full width reviews bar, with a down arrow, just above the price and the CTA button. When you click anywhere on that bar, a display opens up showing the ONLY rating and review information that the Amazon API currently has available. All of the information is ONLY available to display as-is meaning none of the information there is available to be displayed separately [like the star ratings].
Currently there is NO other legitimate way to show Amazon star ratings with information available through the Product Advertising API. If you are using another Amazon affiliate WordPress plugin that does show Amazon star ratings you are putting yourself at risk of getting your account suspended by Amazon.
We know of at least a couple of other plugins that do this and we also know how they do it. Ill show you one example. Here is a screenshot of an AAWP Product Info box
How Does AAWP Get Away with Displaying Amazon Star Ratings?
The AAWP plugin happens to be another one of the more popular Amazon affiliate WordPress plugins that lots of people use. They DO offer the option to display Amazon star ratings in their product comparison tables and in other places. So, how do they do it?
We investigated and found exactly how they show Amazon star ratings. In fact, it wasnt difficult to find how they do it PLUS, they admit exactly how they do it in at least 2 different blog posts on their site! Check this out
We found it in their code. They are scraping Amazon.com to get their star ratings which is totally against the terms and policies that affiliates agree to when they sign up.
//amazon.com/product-reviews/ASINHERE
That is the URL they are scraping on line 1820 class.aawp-api.php
Here are the 2 blog posts found directly on AAWPs website that describes, in their own words, pretty much what I just showed you
- //getaawp.com/blog/note-missing-star-ratings/
- //getaawp.com/docs/article/star-ratings-reviews-missing/
In case you dont feel like clicking over to read for yourself here is an exact copy/paste of part of one of those posts
Where is this data coming from?
Unfortunately Amazon doesnt provide the data via their API. Thats why the plugin has to scrape the rating and reviews out of the relevant product pages on Amazon.In the past Amazonbearedscraping the data but lately they implemented a captcha in order to prevent scraping the ratings/reviews from their sites.
Bottom line: If you want to display Amazon star ratings with AAWP then you better be comfortable with putting your Amazon Associates account at risk of getting suspended.
AmaLinks Pro Top Priority Amazon Compliance
We have several high priorities here at AmaLinks Pro. Customer service and satisfaction are up there on the list. Helping Amazon affiliates earn more money in the easiest way possible ranks up towards the top. But when it comes to the plugin itself one of the aspects weve kept top-of-mind and paid really careful attention to is making sure that every part of AmaLinks Pro is 100% compliant with the Amazon Associates Operating Policies [terms of service].
Take one more careful look at how we display the Amazon star ratings and reviews in one of our Showcase Boxes. This is the ONLY way that is currently allowed by Amazon
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Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site[s], as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Dont put yourself at risk! Just like you should not use the Amazon logo or Amazon Prime logo, do not use Amazon reviews or star ratings on your own affiliate website.
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