Remove eBay Feedback: What Qualifies and How

You can remove eBay feedback in two ways: the buyer revises it after a revision request, or eBay removes it because it breaks the Feedback policy or falls under a listed seller protection. A defect that came with the order is a separate record, removed by a separate eBay review. Feedback that is merely unfair, or that reflects a buyer's opinion of an item that was described accurately, stays, and the seller's remedy is a public reply.

Most sellers treat eBay feedback and seller performance as one thing. They are two records with two sets of rules. A negative comment sits on a public profile and can be revised or removed under the Feedback policy. A defect sits in a private dashboard, is counted against seller standards, and is removed under a different process with different windows. Knowing which record you are fighting decides which request you send and when.

This guide follows eBay's own help pages, read for this article, and labels each rule by the site it was read on. Policies change, so check the live page before you file.

The short version

Feedback and defects are separate records. Removing one does not automatically remove the other, and the Feedback policy says negative or neutral feedback does not affect seller performance.
There are four levers: a revision request to the buyer, a Seller Help review of the feedback, a defect appeal, and a case appeal. Each has its own window, from 30 to 90 days.
eBay removes feedback only for listed grounds, such as a buyer who asked to cancel after committing, tracking that met expectations, or a buyer actioned under the Abusive buyer policy.
If the feedback stays, post one factual reply, fix the cause, and watch the defect count rather than the comment.

Remove eBay feedback: which route changes a rating, a comment or a defect

Each route changes a different thing, so the first decision is which record you are trying to alter. The table compares the routes on the same criteria, as described on eBay's help pages.

Route	What it can change	Who decides	Window as read
Revision request	Rating and comment, replaced by the buyer	The buyer	Feedback under 30 days old; buyer has 10 days
Seller Help feedback review	Comment, rating and images, if a removal ground applies	eBay	Within 90 days of the transaction
Automatic removal	Policy-breaking feedback; defects and late shipments in set cases	eBay, without a request	Feedback within 24 hours once it qualifies; defects usually within 72 hours
Defect appeal	A defect or late shipment that was not removed automatically	eBay	After 72 hours, within 90 days of the transaction
Case appeal	A case closed without seller resolution, and the linked defect	eBay	Within 30 days of the case closing
Public reply	Nothing; adds your side beneath the comment	You	No limit stated on the pages read

The feedback review and the defect appeal are counted from the transaction. The revision window is counted from the feedback itself, so a seller who waits can lose that route while still holding the other two.

Feedback and defects are not the same record

Feedback is what a buyer publishes; a defect is what eBay counts. The eBay Seller standards policy defines a transaction defect as a seller cancelling an order unexpectedly or a buyer reporting an issue the seller does not resolve. Only paid transactions are counted, and one transaction can carry only one defect.

The pages say the two do not move together. The Feedback policy says negative or neutral feedback does not affect seller performance, and the UK Seller Centre update states that feedback does not affect your Seller Standards level. The standards rest on cases closed without seller resolution, the transaction defect rate and the late shipment rate.

On the ebay.com seller standards page, Above Standard allows a transaction defect rate of up to 2 percent, and a seller is Below Standard on defects only if they involve more than 4 unique buyers. Top Rated needs 0.5 percent or less, with defects involving no more than 3 unique buyers. Evaluations run on the 20th of each month.

Below Standard has consequences on the page, among them lower Best Match placement, possible reduced selling limits, no Promoted Listings and possible holds on order funds. Those attach to the defect record, not to a comment. One link exists: with no tracking, eBay asks the buyer in feedback whether the item arrived on time, so feedback can feed the late shipment record. Upload tracking on every order.

Which eBay feedback can be removed under the Feedback policy

eBay removes feedback only when it matches a ground listed in the Feedback policy. The ebay.com Feedback policy groups the grounds into harmful content, extortion and manipulation, and four families of neutral or negative feedback tied to what happened in the transaction.

Content and conduct grounds

The policy removes feedback that promotes hatred or violence, is profane, obscene or illegal, voices political, religious or social opinions, threatens or intimidates, contains personally identifiable information, directs sales off eBay, infringes third-party rights, is meaningless, shows an image of something other than the purchased item, is meant for a different item or seller, pairs negative text with a positive rating, or is a personal attack that is not constructive criticism.

Feedback used to extort another member, to manipulate ratings, or that is fake or misleading is also removed. A buyer who threatens negative feedback unless you hand over something not owed, such as the free upgrades in the policy's own example, is using feedback as leverage, and the message thread is the evidence.

Transaction grounds for neutral and negative feedback

These grounds apply when eBay can see the facts in its own records. On the ebay.com page they are:

Buyer-side issues: a buyer who asked to cancel after committing; a cancellation over a buyer address problem or non-payment; an issue correctly disclosed in the listing; a buyer actioned under the Abusive buyer policy; an order change requested after paying.
Delivery issues: tracking shows delivery or handling expectations were met; a natural disaster or unexpected event delayed the carrier; a customs or tax issue outside your control that eBay can identify.
Returns issues: a declined change-of-mind return where the listing offered no returns; a buyer who changed their mind and was liable for the eBay return label cost.
Site or program issues: a technical eBay issue eBay can identify, a Money Back Guarantee case or payment dispute closed with you having met your obligations, on-time shipments through eBay International Shipping or the Global Shipping Program, on-time Authenticity Guarantee items that passed authentication, and a Guaranteed Fit return where you met all obligations.

Every transaction ground is a fact eBay can verify from tracking, messages, case outcomes or listing text. A ground that rests on how the buyer felt does not appear.

How eBay applies the grounds

The policy says eBay uses automation to remove policy-violating feedback proactively, and unclear cases can get a manual review through Seller Help. Qualifying feedback is removed within 24 hours, with an email to the seller. eBay may remove the comment, the ratings, the images, or some combination. If only part of a comment breaks policy, eBay may invite the buyer to revise it.

Feedback eBay will not remove

Feedback stays when it is a buyer's account of a real problem, even if you dispute the framing. The Feedback policy says eBay is not in a position to contradict buyers' opinions or judgment of items, and that when feedback cannot be removed, eBay explains why it is allowed.

The policy gives its own example. If a listing described a dress as excellent and omitted a stain, the buyer's negative feedback is not removable. The ground that would have helped, an issue correctly disclosed in the listing, fails because the disclosure was missing.

Three situations look removable and are not. A harsh comment about slow delivery, when tracking shows a late carrier scan, is a delivery complaint, and the delivery ground needs tracking that met expectations. A buyer who returned an item inside the listed return terms has a legitimate complaint. And a blunt comment is not a personal attack: that ground covers only attacks that are not constructive criticism.

How to ask the buyer to revise feedback

A revision request is the route that leaves the buyer in control, and it lets the buyer replace the rating as well as the comment. The eBay pages, including Viewing and responding to feedback from buyers, describe the process the same way on the US, UK and Australia sites read for this article.

Sending a feedback revision request

Resolve the problem firstContact the buyer through eBay messages, fix or refund the issue, and only then ask whether they would revise. A request sent before the problem is solved invites a decline.
Check the age of the feedbackYou can request a revision only if the feedback is less than 30 days old.
Check your quotaYou get 5 requests per calendar year, plus 5 more for every 1,000 feedback ratings you receive in that year.
Send the request and waiteBay emails the buyer. The buyer has 10 days to revise, decline, or let the request expire. The buyer can decline.
Reply if the buyer declinesPost your public reply. You get one per comment and cannot edit or retract it.

If the buyer accepts, eBay guides them through changing the rating and the comment, and the original comments are no longer visible on eBay. A revision therefore works even where eBay finds no policy breach.

How to ask eBay to review feedback through Seller Help

Seller Help is the route for feedback that breaks the policy. The pages say it is open to sellers who have listed or sold an item in the past 120 days, and it lists feedback removal, defect removal and late shipment removal as separate request types. The Feedback policy sets the clock: contact Seller Help within 90 days of the transaction. The pages read do not describe the form fields or a review timeline.

Build the request around one ground and one piece of evidence:

Name the ground in the policy's own words. A buyer who asked to cancel after committing to buy is a ground. "Unfair" is not.
Attach what eBay can verify. Tracking for a delivery complaint, the buyer's request for a declined cancellation, the message thread for extortion.
Ask for the part that matches the breach. eBay may remove the comment, the ratings, the images, or all of them.

If eBay explains that the feedback is allowed, the ground you named did not match the transaction record. Send a second request only if you hold new evidence for a different ground.

How to remove a defect and the linked case

Defects follow their own three-stage path, parallel to the feedback routes.

Stage	Covers	What you do	Window as read
Automatic removal	Weather events, eBay site issues, on-time tracking, unpaid items, abusive buyer actions	Nothing; check the Seller standards dashboard	Usually within 72 hours
Defect appeal	Cancellation defects and late shipments that meet a removal criterion	Seller Help, "Request assistance", then "Appeal a defect"	After 72 hours, within 90 days of the transaction
Case appeal	Cases closed without seller resolution	Seller Dashboard, "Closed without seller resolution", then "See details"	Within 30 calendar days of closing

Automatic removal

eBay removes some defects and late shipments without a request. The defect appeal page gives three examples: widespread weather events, eBay site issues that interrupted a transaction, and late delivery where tracking shows you shipped on time. The seller protections page adds canceled orders for unpaid items, cases closed in your favor, and buyers actioned under the Abusive buyer policy. Most removals finish within 72 hours, and you should wait out that window before requesting a review.

Defect appeal criteria

A defect appeal needs a removal criterion. On the ebay.com Appeal a defect or late shipment page, a cancellation defect is removed if a buyer retracted a bid and disrupted the auction or asked for something the listing did not offer. A late shipment is removed if tracking was uploaded before the latest estimated delivery date and the acceptance scan fell within your handling time, or if tracking shows delivery by that date. Orders of $750 or more need signature confirmation. The UK and Australia pages add that an attempted delivery counts as delivered, and eBay's export.ebay.com defect appeal page says late shipment appeals without tracking are not eligible.

Cases closed without seller resolution

You cannot request a review of a defect tied to a Money Back Guarantee case outcome. The route is a case appeal, within 30 calendar days of closing, and it must contain new information that shows you met your obligations. The case appeal page lists examples: tracking showing the buyer received the item before closure, proof that a returned item went to the wrong address or was lost, documents showing the item matches the listing, or proof the buyer was refunded. That page says eBay normally replies within 48 hours.

If the case appeal succeeds, the help page says the closed case and the linked defect are removed automatically. The seller protections page adds that related negative or neutral feedback and defects are removed when eBay closes a case or appeal in the seller's favor. If eBay steps in and finds the seller responsible, feedback is not removed.

What differs between the US, UK and Australia pages

The revision rules read the same on all three sites, but several details are site-specific, so do not copy a rule from one site to another.

Point	ebay.com	ebay.co.uk	ebay.com.au
Revision request	Under 30 days, 5 per year plus 5 per 1,000 ratings, 10-day reply	Same figures	Same figures
Signature confirmation threshold	$750	£450 on the defect appeal page	$750 on the defect appeal page
Fit-return ground	Guaranteed Fit	Assured Fit	Not read
Delivery programs in the removal grounds	International Shipping, Global Shipping Program	Adds Simple Delivery and eBay Fulfilment	Not read
Mutual withdrawal	Not mentioned on the pages read	Not mentioned on the pages read	Described on a separate FAQ page

The UK Seller Centre records two changes dated April 2025. From 23 April, feedback was no longer removed automatically for items returned used or damaged where the seller deducted from the refund, or for free returns the seller handled and refunded, although a Seller Help review remained possible. From the end of April, eligible UK orders with tracked, on-time delivery and no buyer issue receive automated positive feedback seven days after delivery, which counts toward your score and is replaced by any feedback the buyer later leaves. The pages read do not say whether either change applies on other sites.

Mutual feedback withdrawal: what one eBay page says and why to check first

Mutual withdrawal is a separate process in which both parties agree to withdraw feedback, and the only eBay page read that describes it is the eBay Australia mutual feedback withdrawal FAQ. That page says both members complete an online form, the feedback stops counting toward the score and ratings, and the comments remain visible with an eBay notation. It states a request must be started within 30 days of either person leaving feedback or within 90 days of the transaction end date, whichever is later, and sets an initial limit of 5 requests per 30 days.

The revision pages read on ebay.com, ebay.co.uk and ebay.com.au do not mention it, and neither does the US Feedback policy. Do not plan around withdrawal unless you can open the process in your own account. If you can, remember the difference the Australian page describes: withdrawal keeps the comment visible, and revision removes it. Either way, never offer a refund or gift in exchange for changed feedback, because the Feedback policy removes feedback used to extort or manipulate ratings.

What to do when eBay refuses the removal

Removal is refused when the transaction record does not match a ground, so the work shifts to limiting the comment's effect.

Post one reply. Your reply appears under the buyer's comment, you get one per comment, and you cannot edit it. Write it for the next buyer who reads the profile: state what happened, what you did, and stop. Do not argue with the buyer by name or repeat their comment.
Fix the cause. Look at what the comment points to. A late carrier scan means tracking and handling time. A listing mismatch means photos and condition wording. The grounds a seller can use are the facts that tracking and listings establish, so records are the defense on the next order.
Check the defect record. If the same order left a defect, work the defect path: wait out the 72 hours, then appeal within 90 days of the transaction, or appeal the case within 30 days of closing. A refused feedback review does not close those routes.

A sample sequence for one disputed order

This scenario is invented and uses generic day counts. A seller ships with tracking that shows delivery by the estimated delivery date. The buyer leaves negative feedback on day 9 saying the item never arrived. Routes counted from the transaction come first; the revision route, counted from the feedback, comes last.

One disputed order, step by step

Day 9: pull the recordsScreenshot the tracking and the Seller standards dashboard. The comment matches the delivery ground "tracking shows delivery or handling expectations were met".
Day 9: file the Seller Help requestName that ground, attach the tracking, and ask for removal of the comment and rating. The window runs to day 90.
Day 12: check the defectWait at least 72 hours after a defect appears in the dashboard. If it remains, file "Appeal a defect" with the tracking. That window also runs to day 90.
Day 38: last revision dayFeedback left on day 9 is under 30 days old through day 38. If eBay refused removal and the buyer will talk, send a revision request before then, with the problem resolved.

The next step if a rating or defect is hurting you now

Pick the record that is doing damage, whether the comment, the defect or the closed case, and work its route first.

If this is happening to you now

Collect the tracking, the message thread and the dashboard screenshots before any request, then work the 90-day and 30-day windows in the order above. Reputation Partners also handles marketplace ratings that spill into search results and AI answers: request a private audit.

Questions people ask

Can a buyer remove feedback they left for me?

Not on their own. The eBay buyer help page says that once posted, buyer feedback cannot be edited or deleted unless the seller asks for a revision and the buyer accepts. A buyer can add one follow-up comment per item, which sits beside the original and changes neither the comment nor the rating.

How long does a buyer have to leave feedback?

The buyer help page says a buyer can leave feedback for up to 60 days after receiving the item or the expected delivery date, whichever comes first. If there is no expected delivery date, the limit is 90 days from completing the purchase. The buyer's account must be at least 5 days old. Guest checkout buyers cannot leave feedback.

What if a buyer threatens bad feedback unless I give a refund?

That fits the extortion ground in the Feedback policy. Do not agree to the demand, keep the whole thread in eBay messaging, and name the extortion ground if you ask Seller Help to review the feedback that follows. If eBay has actioned the buyer under the Abusive buyer policy, that is a separate listed ground.

Does eBay Live affect my defect count?

The seller standards page says that as of October 15, 2026, eBay Live transactions no longer count toward seller standards or service metrics, and will be evaluated separately under a future program. If you sell through eBay Live, read that page before filing a defect appeal for one of those orders.