Direct answer
No, unless you are an authorized owner or manager of that verified Google Business Profile. Other Maps users can mark a review Helpful or report a policy violation. Neither action posts a public reply. Employees should use a separately invited account, not the owner’s password.
Google ties review-management permissions to the verified Business Profile. A staff member who needs to reply should be added as an owner or manager with a separate Google Account. Sharing the primary owner’s password makes access harder to audit and is unnecessary because Google supports multiple authorized users.
This question concerns replying under an existing review. Writing a review on someone else’s behalf is a different issue: reviews should reflect the writer’s own genuine experience. Use the Google review policy guide for that distinction.
Who can publish the business reply?
| Your role | What you can do |
|---|---|
| Owner or primary owner | Can publish the business reply on the verified profile. |
| Manager | Can publish the business reply through their own authorized account. |
| Employee without profile access | Cannot publish the business reply. Ask an owner to invite your account as a manager. |
| Other customer or Maps user | Cannot reply under another person’s review. Can use Helpful or report a policy violation. |
Google's current access guide lists Owner and Manager roles. For genuine-experience rules, see the Google review policy guide.
What to know
Business replies require profile access
Google says owners and managers can respond to reviews. The public label represents the business even when a manager or authorized staff member writes the response.
Other customers have limited actions
Helpful notifies the review author without showing your name or information. It is not a reply. Maps does not provide a way to contact the reviewer through the review or directly delete someone else’s review; use reporting for policy violations.
Review authors control their own review
The person who posted the review can edit or delete it from their contribution history. Another customer or an unrelated business cannot rewrite it for them.
What should each person do?
- 1
Business employee
Ask the primary owner to add your Google Account as an owner or manager, then respond through the verified profile instead of a personal Maps account.
- 2
Another customer
Use Helpful when appropriate. If you have your own firsthand experience, write your own accurate review rather than trying to answer someone else’s.
- 3
Concerned reader
Report content only when it appears to violate policy. A different opinion, rating, or interpretation does not automatically make a review removable.
Sources
- Google Business Profile: Manage owners and managers
Google documents that owners and managers can respond to reviews through their own authorized Google Accounts.
- Google Maps: Add, edit, or delete reviews and ratings
Google documents how reviewers find their past contributions, edit their own review, mark another review helpful, and report policy violations.