Google Reviews API PHP
—
### **Step 1: Enable the Google Places API**
1. Go to the [Google Cloud Console](https://console.cloud.google.com/).
2. Create or select a project.
3. Enable the **Places API**.
4. Go to the "Credentials" section and generate an API key.
—
### **Step 2: Create a PHP Script to Fetch Google Reviews**
You will use the **Place Details API** endpoint to fetch reviews for a specific place.
#### **PHP Code Example:**
<?php
// Your Google API Key
$apiKey = 'YOUR_GOOGLE_API_KEY';
// Place ID for the location you want reviews for (you can get it using Google Maps or the Places API)
$placeId = 'PLACE_ID_HERE';
// API endpoint for Place Details
$endpoint = "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/details/json?place_id=$placeId&fields=name,rating,reviews&key=$apiKey";
// Initialize cURL
$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_URL, $endpoint);
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
// Execute the API request
$response = curl_exec($curl);
curl_close($curl);
// Decode the JSON response
$data = json_decode($response, true);
// Check if the API returned reviews
if (isset($data['result']['reviews'])) {
$reviews = $data['result']['reviews'];
echo "<h1>Reviews for: " . $data['result']['name'] . "</h1>";
foreach ($reviews as $review) {
echo "<div style='margin-bottom: 20px;'>";
echo "<strong>" . htmlspecialchars($review['author_name']) . "</strong> - ";
echo "Rating: " . $review['rating'] . "/5<br>";
echo "<p>" . htmlspecialchars($review['text']) . "</p>";
echo "<small>Time: " . date('F j, Y', $review['time']) . "</small>";
echo "</div>";
}
} else {
echo "No reviews found.";
}
?>—
### **Step 3: Get the Place ID**
1. Use the **Place Autocomplete API** or the **Place Search API** to get the `place_id` for a location.
2. Alternatively, use [Google Maps](https://maps.google.com) to find the Place ID:
– Search for the location.
– Right-click on the location pin and select "What's here?"
– The Place ID will be in the URL as `placeid=`.
—
### **Notes**
1. **Quota**: The API has usage limits (free and paid tiers). Monitor your Google Cloud billing and quotas.
2. **Security**: Restrict your API key to specific domains or IPs in the Google Cloud Console.
3. **Formatting**: Customize the output to match your website's design.
—
If you face any specific challenges or need advanced customization, feel free to ask! 😊