Yes, but less each day. G2 states that a review begins to decay the moment it is submitted, recalculated daily, and holds stronger weight for about 18 months before decay speeds up. After roughly three years it counts for about 3 percent of its original weight. Updating a review resets the clock.
How the decay is described
G2's scoring documentation gives a rough shape. Decay is gradual for the first 90 days. Reviews keep a stronger weight for about 18 months. After that the curve steepens, and at about three years a review sits at roughly 3 percent of its starting weight.
G2 says an updated review restarts its decay. That gives vendors a reason to ask happy customers to refresh what they wrote. It also means a recent date on a review does not prove the reviewer started using the product recently.
Why this matters for security tools
Security products change fast. A scanner reviewed two years ago may have different language support, a different engine and a different pricing structure today. The decay rule is G2's way of reflecting that, but it only affects the score. The text of an old review stays on the page and looks the same as a new one.
When you read reviews of a security tool, check three things:
- The date, and whether the review was updated.
- The version or feature the reviewer talks about, if they say.
- How large the reviewer's company was, since a team of five and a team of five thousand run these tools differently.
What else shapes the weight
Recency is one of four factors G2 lists. The others are review volume, review quality and review source. Reviews gathered without an incentive count more. That is useful context, because a page full of reviews that arrived through a gift card campaign carries less weight in the score than organic ones, though you can still read them.
Reviews from business partners and guest users do not affect the score at all, according to the same documentation.
A short routine for reading reviews
Spend ten minutes, not an hour. Filter to the last twelve months. Read the lowest rated reviews first, since they describe failures. Look for repeated themes such as noisy results, slow support or missing integrations. Then write down three questions to test in your own trial.
For the bigger picture of what a grid score does and does not include, see how G2 Grid scores are built.
Where Safeguard fits
If you would rather test than read, Safeguard offers a free scan at gold.safeguard.sh/scan, along with SBOM and dependency scanning and reachability analysis.
Quick check
Does editing a review change its weight?
According to G2's documentation, updating a review resets its decay, so it counts more again.
Is an eighteen month old review useless?
No. G2 says reviews keep a stronger weight for about 18 months. After that, treat the content as possibly out of date.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
