Yelp for doctors works differently from Google. Yelp is free to claim, and patients do use it to compare practices, but Yelp tells businesses not to ask for reviews at all, and its software hides some reviews in a "not recommended" section. Replies carry the same HIPAA risk as anywhere else. Here's how to claim the page, live with Yelp's rules, reply safely and decide whether Yelp ads are worth testing.
Search volume says practices wonder about this more than they act on it: "yelp for doctors" gets about 210 searches a month, against 14,800 for the generic "yelp for business" (Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026).
Claim your practice's Yelp page
Yelp says "it's free to be on Yelp" and that a claimed page lets you update business info, respond to reviews and messages, and add photos (Yelp Local Business Pricing (opens in a new tab)).
- Search for your practice at biz.yelp.com (Yelp for Business) or in the Yelp for Business app. Yelp says starting there walks you through claiming and setting up the account (Yelp (opens in a new tab)).
- Verify by phone. If phone verification fails, Yelp prompts you to send a report to its support team.
- Use a practice-owned login, not a staff member's personal email.
- Correct the basics: name, address, phone, hours, website and categories, matching your Google listing exactly.
- Add photos of the exterior, entrance and reception. Keep patients out of every image.
- Add other locations from Account Settings under Additional Options.
Two things to know. If there's no option to claim, the page may already be claimed by someone else (often a former vendor or staff member) or still pending. And Yelp says a claimed page "may be updated to show as being unclaimed after a period of inactivity," so log in every few months.
Can you delete the page instead? No. Yelp says it doesn't remove business pages because the information is "typically a matter of public record and public concern" (Yelp (opens in a new tab)). Claiming is the only way to control it. Yelp is one item on the short list in our online listings guide.
How Yelp's review rules differ from Google's
On asking for reviews, the two platforms point in opposite directions.
| Question | Yelp | |
|---|---|---|
| Can you ask customers for reviews? | Yes: "Remind customers to leave reviews" with a link or QR code | No: "Don't ask anyone to review your business" |
| Ask after a survey or contact form? | Not addressed | No, Yelp says this is against its policy |
| Incentives for reviews? | Prohibited | Prohibited, and may be illegal |
| What happens if you ask? | Not addressed | Reviews may be filtered as "solicited" |
Sources: Google Business Profile Help (opens in a new tab) and Yelp's "Don't Ask for Reviews" (opens in a new tab).
Yelp's reasoning: asking "may hurt your Yelp rating because our automated software may not recommend reviews that seem to be prompted or encouraged by the business," and businesses tend to ask only happy customers. Yelp also runs a Consumer Alerts program that can put a pop-up warning on a business page that offers incentives for reviews.
The practical rule for a practice: don't mention Yelp in review requests, post-visit emails or front-desk scripts. If you ask for reviews at all, ask for Google reviews, ask every patient the same way, and offer nothing in return. For the federal and platform rules on selective asking, see review solicitation rules.
'Not recommended' reviews and why they move
Yelp's recommendation software is "entirely automated" and evaluates every review on "hundreds of signals of quality, reliability, and user activity" (Yelp Trust & Safety (opens in a new tab)). What it looks for:
- Conflicts of interest: reviews from competitors, staff, friends or family.
- Solicited reviews: ones it suspects the owner or an employee asked for.
- Reliability: reviews from less active users it doesn't know enough about.
- Usefulness: it tries to set aside unhelpful rants, raves and irrelevant text.
Why reviews move: Yelp says recommended reviews "can change over time as Yelp's software learns more about the reviewer and the business." A review from a new account may move into the main list as that reviewer writes more, or out of it.
Not-recommended reviews stay visible through a link at the bottom of your page, but they "don't factor into the business's overall star rating or review count." Yelp also says no employee can override the software, and that it "treats reviews of advertisers and non-advertisers exactly the same" (Yelp (opens in a new tab)). Buying ads won't change which reviews count.
Replying on Yelp without disclosing patient information
A Yelp reply is public, and HIPAA applies to it. The Privacy Rule says a covered entity "may not use or disclose protected health information" except as the rule permits (45 CFR 164.502 (opens in a new tab)). Confirming that a reviewer is your patient can itself disclose protected health information, even when they've already posted about their visit.
Guardrails for every reply:
- Never confirm the person is a patient. No "we're sorry your visit…", no "when we saw you…".
- Never mention dates, treatments, diagnoses, bills or insurance, even to correct the record.
- Speak to your policies, not their care: "Our practice aims to return every call within one business day."
- Move it offline: invite them to call the office manager by name.
- Have one trained person reply, and keep a log.
Illustrative example (fictional practice): "Thank you for taking the time to share this. We take every concern seriously, and our privacy obligations mean we can't discuss anyone's care here. Please call our office manager, Dana, at our main number so we can talk it through."
Word-for-word reply patterns for good and bad reviews are in HIPAA-safe review replies. The same rules apply on health directories; see Healthgrades profiles.
This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm how it applies to your practice with a qualified advisor.
Yelp ads: when they make sense for a practice
Yelp publishes its starting prices (Yelp pricing (opens in a new tab)), as of October 2026:
| Option | Price Yelp lists | What Yelp says it adds |
|---|---|---|
| Yelp Business Page | Free | Listing, review replies, messages, photos |
| Yelp Ads | From $150 a month | Ad spots in search; location and keyword targeting |
| Upgrade Package | $180 a month | Page upgrades, offers, no competitor ads on your page |
| Ads plus Upgrade Package | From $270 a month | Both, plus a Verified License display |
Yelp notes "minimum budgets subject to change." Its ads guide says ads appear in "Sponsored Results" in search and on competitors' pages, you set a monthly maximum, and there's no long-term contract (Yelp (opens in a new tab)).
When a test makes sense: elective or comparison-shopped services (dental, dermatology, chiropractic, med spa treatments) in an area where your Yelp page already has a solid rating. When it usually doesn't: referral-based specialties, or a page with few recommended reviews.
Two cautions specific to healthcare:
- Write your own ad text. Yelp says it can choose "a snippet from your positive Yelp reviews as ad text." HIPAA requires a patient's authorization to use their information for marketing (45 CFR 164.508 (opens in a new tab)), and quoting a patient's review in your ad can count. Ask your compliance advisor before allowing it.
- Check health-ad rules for the services you promote; see healthcare advertising.
Measure calls and booking requests from Yelp for two or three months, then keep or stop. Medfy doesn't manage Yelp. Its free marketing audit covers your Google listing, which usually drives more calls.
Frequently asked questions
Can doctors ask patients to review them on Yelp?
Yelp says no. Its support center tells businesses not to ask anyone for reviews, including customers and mailing-list subscribers, and says its software may not recommend reviews that seem prompted by the business. Google takes the opposite view and encourages asking. If you ask patients for reviews at all, point them to Google, ask everyone the same way, and never offer anything in return.
Can I remove my practice from Yelp?
No. Yelp says it doesn't remove business pages, because business information is typically a matter of public record and public concern. You can claim the page for free, correct the details through Yelp for Business, and report the practice as closed if it has closed. Claiming at least lets you control the hours, phone, photos and replies patients see.
Are Yelp ads worth it for a medical practice?
Sometimes, mostly for services patients compare and choose themselves, such as dental, dermatology or chiropractic care in a busy area. Yelp lists Yelp Ads from $150 a month, with no long-term contract, as of October 2026. Write your own ad text instead of letting Yelp quote patient reviews, track calls and booking requests for two or three months, and stop if they don't appear.