Fakespot Is Shutting Down: The Best Free Alternatives for 2026

Fakespot served millions of shoppers for years. You could paste an Amazon link, get a letter grade, and make a quick decision about whether the reviews were trustworthy. It was simple and it worked well enough.

Then came the announcement: Fakespot is shutting down in July 2025.

If you're reading this, you probably need a replacement. I've spent the past few months testing every alternative I could find. Here's what actually works, what doesn't, and where each tool falls short.

What Fakespot Did Well

Before jumping into alternatives, it's worth remembering what made Fakespot useful:

• Chrome extension that added grades directly to Amazon pages
• Letter grades (A through F) for quick decision-making
• Multi-platform support beyond just Amazon (Best Buy, eBay, Walmart)
• Free tier that covered basic analysis

Any replacement needs to hit at least most of these.

The Best Fakespot Alternatives (Tested February 2026)

1. RateBud

Best for: People who want the closest Fakespot experience, but better

RateBud is free, works instantly, and has browser extensions for both Chrome and Firefox. You paste an Amazon URL and get a trust score (0 to 100%) plus a letter grade (A through F) within seconds.

What sets it apart from Fakespot: - 20+ Amazon country domains (Fakespot only supported a handful) - AI-generated review detection that specifically flags ChatGPT-written reviews - Transparent reasoning showing exactly which signals triggered the grade - No signup, no limits, no premium tier

The main limitation: it's Amazon-only. If you need to check reviews on Best Buy or Walmart, you'll need another tool alongside it.

Try RateBud free →

2. TheReviewIndex

Best for: People who want a second opinion alongside another tool

TheReviewIndex takes a different approach. Instead of grading the reviews themselves, it creates a summary of what reviewers like and dislike about a product. It also flags potentially unreliable reviews.

Available as a Chrome extension. Works on Amazon and a few other sites. The analysis is less detailed than Fakespot was, but the summarization feature is genuinely useful.

Limitation: No trust score or letter grade. You need to read the summary and decide for yourself.

3. TraceFuse

Best for: Amazon sellers worried about competitor manipulation

TraceFuse is really built for sellers, not shoppers. It monitors your product listings for suspicious negative reviews and can help with removal if they violate Amazon's terms of service.

Not a Fakespot replacement for everyday shopping, but if you're a seller dealing with review attacks, it fills a gap nobody else covers.

Limitation: Consumer-facing features are limited. This is a seller tool first.

4. Manual Checking (No Tool Required)

This sounds dismissive, but hear me out. After years of using review checkers, I've gotten decent at spotting fakes without a tool. Here's my 60-second process:

1. Sort reviews by "Most Recent" and skim the last 20 2. Look for specifics. Real reviews mention measurements, timeframes, use cases. Fake ones say "Love it! Works great!" 3. Check the 3-star reviews. These are almost always genuine because nobody pays for middling reviews 4. Scan for photo reviews. Fake reviews with photos are rare because photos are harder to fabricate at scale 5. Look at the reviewer profile. All 5-star reviews across random categories? Suspicious

This takes practice, but it's surprisingly reliable once you know the patterns.

Tools That Didn't Make the Cut

ReviewMeta: As of early 2026, the site appears to be offline. I've checked periodically over the past few months and it doesn't load. If it comes back, it was a solid tool that recalculated ratings after removing suspicious reviews.

FakeFind: Still works, but the analysis is shallow compared to what Fakespot offered. It gives a basic pass/fail without much explanation.

What to Look for in Any Review Checker

Based on everything I've tested, here's what separates good tools from bad ones:

Transparency matters more than accuracy. A tool that says "Grade D" without explaining why is useless. You need to know whether the D is because of timing patterns, language issues, reviewer behavior, or something else entirely. Without that context, you can't tell false positives from real problems.

Speed is non-negotiable. If a tool takes more than 10 seconds, you won't use it consistently. The best tools analyze in under 5 seconds.

Free means free. Some tools show you a grade for free but hide the details behind a paywall. That defeats the purpose. If the tool costs money, at least be upfront about it.

Regular updates. Fake review tactics change constantly. A tool that hasn't updated its detection in six months is already behind. Look for changelogs or update announcements.

The Bigger Picture

Fakespot shutting down is a loss for consumers. But the fake review problem isn't going away. The FTC estimated that fake reviews cost consumers $770 billion globally in unwanted purchases in 2025. That number is growing.

The good news: alternatives exist. Some are arguably better than Fakespot was. The key is finding one you'll actually use consistently, not just when you remember.

Pick a tool. Install the extension. Make it a habit. That's the best protection you have against manipulated reviews.