Star Ratings & Criteria

Star ratings give your community members a quick, visual way to evaluate each other. You can choose between a simple single-star rating or multiple rating criteria to capture different aspects of performance.

How Star Ratings Work

Reviews use a 5-star scale where:

• 1 star = Poor
• 2 stars = Below Average
• 3 stars = Average
• 4 stars = Good
• 5 stars = Excellent

Each review displays individual star ratings per criterion, and the system automatically calculates an overall average rating for each member.

Single vs. Multiple Criteria

Single Criterion Rating

Use a single rating when you want reviewers to give one overall score. This works well for:

• General community ratings
• Simple feedback systems
• Communities where detailed breakdown isn’t needed

Example: “Overall Experience” (1-5 stars)

Multiple Criteria Ratings

Multiple criteria let reviewers rate different aspects separately. This provides more detailed feedback and helps members understand their strengths and areas for improvement.

Example criteria sets by community type:

Freelancer Marketplace:

• Communication (How well they communicate)
• Quality of Work (Deliverable standards)
• Timeliness (Meeting deadlines)
• Professionalism (Work ethic and behavior)

Tutoring Community:

• Knowledge (Subject expertise)
• Teaching Ability (How well they explain concepts)
• Patience (Working with students)
• Responsiveness (Reply speed)

Professional Network:

• Expertise (Professional knowledge)
• Reliability (Dependability)
• Collaboration (Teamwork skills)
• Leadership (Guidance and mentoring)

Setting Up Rating Criteria

You can configure rating criteria from your WordPress admin:

1. Go to Settings → BP Member Reviews
2. Navigate to the Criteria tab
3. Add, edit, or remove criteria
4. Set the display order
5. Save your changes

Each criterion you create appears as a separate star rating field in the review form.

How Aggregate Ratings Are Calculated

The plugin calculates member ratings using a two-step average:

1. Per-Review Average: For each review, all criterion ratings are averaged together
2. Overall Average: All per-review averages are combined to create the member’s overall rating

Example Calculation:

Review 1:

• Communication: 5 stars
• Quality: 4 stars
• Timeliness: 5 stars
• Review Average: 4.67 stars

Review 2:

• Communication: 4 stars
• Quality: 5 stars
• Timeliness: 4 stars
• Review Average: 4.33 stars

Member’s Overall Rating: (4.67 + 4.33) ÷ 2 = 4.5 stars

This approach ensures each review has equal weight regardless of how many criteria you use.

Where Ratings Display

Star ratings appear in multiple locations throughout your BuddyPress site:

Profile Header

The member’s overall rating displays prominently at the top of their profile with the total number of reviews.

Reviews Tab

Individual review ratings appear on the Reviews tab, showing:

• Overall review rating
• Individual criterion ratings
• Rating breakdown per criterion

Member Directory

Member listings can display star ratings, helping visitors find highly-rated members quickly. This requires theme support or custom template modifications.

Star Ratings & Member Ranking

Ratings impact member visibility and trust:

• Higher ratings increase credibility and trust
• More reviews provide social proof
• Recent positive reviews boost member reputation

Members with consistently high ratings across multiple criteria tend to attract more engagement.

Best Practices

For Site Administrators:

• Choose criteria that matter to your community
• Use 3-5 criteria for detailed feedback (too many overwhelms reviewers)
• Name criteria clearly so reviewers understand what to rate
• Review and adjust criteria based on community feedback

For Community Members:

• Rate honestly and fairly across all criteria
• Consider each criterion separately rather than giving the same rating to all
• Use the full 1-5 scale (avoid always giving 5 stars or 3 stars)
• Explain your ratings in the written review content

Tips for Choosing Criteria

Keep it relevant: Only include criteria that reviewers can reasonably evaluate based on their interaction.

Make it clear: Use simple, specific names like “Response Time” instead of vague terms like “Engagement.”

Stay focused: 3-5 criteria provide enough detail without overwhelming reviewers.

Test it out: Create a few test reviews to see how the criteria work in practice before launching to your community.

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Star ratings transform subjective feedback into actionable insights, helping your community members build trust and showcase their strengths.