When you’re looking for a good deal on a product or service, it’s important to check reviews on websites like Amazon and Yelp before you spend any money.

However, money expert Clark Howard says many people aren’t examining reviews thoroughly enough.

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How to detect fake Amazon and Yelp reviews

Here’s an example: Clark was recently traveling with his wife and needed to find somewhere to eat. He noticed a place that came up third on a list of nearby restaurants, with a number of 5-star reviews.

At that point, you might decide to just go ahead and try the place, but that could be a big mistake.

When Clark went to read the reviews, he saw the same verbiage was used over and over again in the reviews, so he suspected right away they were fake.

The key takeaway is to always check the written reviews, not just the star rating.

Think you don’t have time for that? Using the free website Fakespot, enter an Amazon product or Yelp business link and let the tool’s algorithms do the work for you.

In a matter of seconds, you’ll get a report card grading the veracity of the reviews.

Image credit: Fakespot.com

The great thing about this website is that you can pull it up on your phone when you’re on the go and don’t have time to read through a bunch of reviews completely.

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