Title: PlaceCore Reviews Author: virendrasingh06 Published: October 12, 2026 Last modified: October 12, 2026 --- Search plugins ![](https://ps.w.org/placecore-reviews/assets/banner-772x250.png?rev=3742834) ![](https://ps.w.org/placecore-reviews/assets/icon-256x256.png?rev=3742013) # PlaceCore Reviews By [virendrasingh06](https://profiles.wordpress.org/virendrasingh06/) [Download](https://downloads.wordpress.org/plugin/placecore-reviews.1.0.2.zip) * [Details](https://wordpress.org/plugins/placecore-reviews/#description) * [Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/placecore-reviews/#reviews) * [Installation](https://wordpress.org/plugins/placecore-reviews/#installation) * [Development](https://wordpress.org/plugins/placecore-reviews/#developers) [Support](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/placecore-reviews/) ## Description PlaceCore Reviews connects your WordPress site to the Google Places API and displays your business rating and recent customer reviews. It is built for speed and reliability: all API requests run server-side, responses are cached in WordPress transients, and the front end only outputs escaped, validated HTML. **This plugin is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Google LLC.** **Three ways to display reviews:** * **Gutenberg block** — “PlaceCore Reviews” block with inspector controls for Place ID and review count. * **Classic widget** — “PlaceCore Reviews” widget for any sidebar or footer. * **Shortcode** — `[placecore]` or `[placecore count="3" place_id="YOUR_ID"]`. **Features** * **Server-side API calls.** Your Google Places API key never appears in the browser. * **Cached responses.** Reviews are stored in WordPress transients for 1 hour by default. No repeated API calls on every page load. * **Lightweight.** No jQuery dependency. Plain CSS and JavaScript. * **Google-compliant.** Displays author names, avatars, and links back to Google Maps as required by the Google Places API attribution guidelines. ### External services This plugin connects to the Google Places API to retrieve business ratings and customer reviews. **What is sent:** Your Google Places API key (as an authorization header), the Place ID you configure in the settings, and the field mask requesting ratings and reviews. **When it is sent:** Only when the plugin needs to fetch or refresh reviews. Responses are cached in WordPress transients for 1 hour by default, so the API is not called on every page load. **Who receives it:** Google LLC. Requests are made server-side from your WordPress installation. No visitor data or personal information is sent. **Google Places API terms and policies:** * Terms of Service: https://cloud.google. com/maps-platform/terms * Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy * Google APIs Terms of Service: https://developers.google.com/terms ## Screenshots [⌊PlaceCore Reviews settings page.⌉⌊PlaceCore Reviews settings page.⌉[ PlaceCore Reviews settings page. [⌊The block in the Gutenberg editor.⌉⌊The block in the Gutenberg editor.⌉[ The block in the Gutenberg editor. [⌊The shortcode rendered on the front end.⌉⌊The shortcode rendered on the front end.⌉[ The shortcode rendered on the front end. [⌊The widget in a theme sidebar.⌉⌊The widget in a theme sidebar.⌉[ The widget in a theme sidebar. ## Blocks This plugin provides 1 block. * PlaceCore Reviews Displays a Google rating and recent reviews. ## Installation 1. Upload the `placecore-reviews` folder to `/wp-content/plugins/`. 2. Activate the plugin through the **Plugins** menu in WordPress. 3. Go to **PlaceCore Reviews** in the admin sidebar and enter your Google Places API key. 4. Enter your Google Place ID (find it with Google’s Place ID Finder). 5. Save changes. 6. Add the block, widget, or shortcode to any post, page, or sidebar. ## FAQ ### Where do I get a Google Places API key? Go to the Google Cloud Console, enable the Places API, create an API key, and attach a billing account. Google offers a free tier. ### How do I find my Place ID? Use Google’s Place ID Finder tool. Paste the Place ID into the PlaceCore Reviews settings page. ### Will my API key be visible to visitors? No. All API requests are made server-side using the WordPress HTTP API. Your API key is stored in the WordPress options table and is never sent to the browser. ### How long are reviews cached? By default, reviews are cached for 1 hour (3600 seconds). You can change this in the settings page, from 60 seconds up to 1 week. ### How many reviews can I display? Google returns a maximum of 5 reviews per Place ID. This is a Google API limit, not a plugin limitation. ### What happens if Google is unreachable? Visitors see nothing. Administrators (users with the `manage_options` capability) see an error message on the page so they can diagnose the problem. ## Reviews There are no reviews for this plugin. ## Contributors & Developers “PlaceCore Reviews” is open source software. The following people have contributed to this plugin. Contributors * [ virendrasingh06 ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/virendrasingh06/) [Translate “PlaceCore Reviews” into your language.](https://translate.wordpress.org/projects/wp-plugins/placecore-reviews) ### Interested in development? [Browse the code](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/browser/placecore-reviews/), check out the [SVN repository](https://plugins.svn.wordpress.org/placecore-reviews/), or subscribe to the [development log](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/placecore-reviews/) by [RSS](https://plugins.trac.wordpress.org/log/placecore-reviews/?limit=100&mode=stop_on_copy&format=rss). ## Changelog #### 1.0.2 * Improved plugin description to remove comparisons with other plugins. * Reduced tags to the 5 most relevant. * Added disclosure of the Google Places API as an external service. * Removed the unnecessary load_plugin_textdomain call. #### 1.0.1 * Fix: added missing Description, Version, and License headers to the main plugin file. #### 1.0.0 * Initial release. * Gutenberg block, classic widget, and shortcode. * Server-side Google Places API integration. * Transient caching with configurable TTL. * Admin-only error visibility for troubleshooting. ## Meta * Version **1.0.2** * Last updated **3 days ago** * Active installations **Fewer than 10** * WordPress version ** 6.0 or higher ** * Tested up to **7.1.3** * PHP version ** 7.4 or higher ** * Tags * [google places](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/google-places/)[Google Reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/google-reviews/) [ratings](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/ratings/)[reviews](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/reviews/) [social proof](https://wordpress.org/plugins/tags/social-proof/) * [Advanced View](https://wordpress.org/plugins/placecore-reviews/advanced/) ## Ratings No reviews have been submitted yet. [Your review](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/placecore-reviews/reviews/#new-post) [See all reviews](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/placecore-reviews/reviews/) ## Contributors * [ virendrasingh06 ](https://profiles.wordpress.org/virendrasingh06/) ## Support Got something to say? Need help? [View support forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/placecore-reviews/)