Momentum answers
Do Google reviews affect local search ranking?
Review count and average rating are widely understood to be a meaningful factor in local search visibility, alongside proximity to the searcher and relevance of your listing. They're not the only factor, but businesses with more recent, positive reviews tend to appear more often in local map results.
Beyond ranking, reviews also affect the click-through decision directly — even if two businesses rank next to each other, the one with a stronger review profile usually gets chosen first. For many owners, that second effect matters more day-to-day than the ranking algorithm itself.