Best Buy offers most reliable reviews, based on Fakespot analysis
By Naasir Akailvi

Fake reviews have been an nuisance to online retailers — and shoppers — for years. But some e-tailers are apparently better than others at beating back the tide of false stars.

Fakespot, a New York-based startup that helps users spot unreliable third-party sellers and fake reviews in real-time, reviewed the six largest online marketplaces for a newly released holiday report that grades them on their ability to weed out fake reviews. 

The best of the lot, Fakespot said, was Richfield-based Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY), whose reviews have the lowest fake review percentage at 8.1%. 

Walmart Inc. was on the opposite end of the spectrum; 37.6% of its reviews considered to be unreliable. Amazon.com Inc. didn't fare much better, with 27.3% of it's online reviews being flagged as unreliable or fake. 

Best Buy may have been helped by its product mix. Fakespot also ranked the five product categories that drew the most fake reviews; only one (headphones) was in the consumer electronics category that Best Buy specializes in.

In order to give its rating of reliability, Fakespot first collects product data like brand, marketplace, reviews and sellers, before analyzing specific data points within the review like subject matter. The agency then utilizes machine learning with a database of over 10 billion reviews and five million sellers before delivering the information through its free browser add-on.