Ask HN: How low is too low for a Glassdoor review?

When accepting or considering an offer, what is the lowest Glassdoor review that you think is acceptable.

I've gotten an offer from a healthcare company who has a rating of 2.0 and that is scaring me.

Every previous company I worked for was in tech and had a rating of 4.0 or better

2 comments

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This is a good question and I'm curious to see the HN community's responses.

I would first check to confirm that the rating is statistically significant and sound. Do both companies you are comparing collect ratings from active team members? Are the ratings for the healthcare company from disgruntled employees that left?

I would also pose that question to the healtcare company and the team that you spoke to during the interview process. I would ask the questions like these:

- Is the team aware of the issues?

- What steps are being taken?

- What can I as a new employee do to make things better?

ocdtrekkie 7y ago ↗

I would look at the substance, not the rating, and see how it meshes with their own perception of them. Bear in mind a lot of companies are going to see Glassdoor reviews posted by angry ex employees most of all. How many people stop to post positive reviews of former employers there? And I suspect a lot of tech companies game the system a bit, have a lot of current employees placing reviews, etc.

But ideally if you've met some people there and have a feel for the company, you're going to have some impression or gut feeling if those reviews are right or not. Trust that feeling.