How Carehome.co.uk ranking works — the formula explained.
Carehome.co.uk publishes its ranking formula. Most homes have never read it. Here is what it says, what it means, and what you can actually do about it.
The formula is subscription tier plus review score.
Carehome.co.uk determines your position in its local search results using two components: the points value of your subscription tier and your review score. These are added together to produce your ranking score. The platform publishes this formula in its help documentation. It is not a secret. It is simply not widely understood.
What subscription tier means in practice.
Carehome.co.uk offers several subscription tiers — Basic, Standard, Enhanced, and Platinum broadly, though the naming changes over time. Each tier carries a defined points value. A Platinum subscriber starts with more points than an Enhanced subscriber before a single review is counted. Two homes with identical review scores on different tiers will be separated by their subscription in the results. Tier is a commercial decision with a direct and predictable ranking consequence.
What review score means in practice.
Your review score is calculated from the star ratings submitted by residents and their families. Recent reviews are weighted more heavily than older ones. A home with 50 reviews collected over five years with nothing recent is declining in effective review score, even if its numerical average has not changed, because the weighting toward recency is pulling the score down. The homes at the top of local Carehome.co.uk results are almost always the ones with the most consistent review collection habit, not necessarily the highest absolute review count.
What profile completeness means.
Profile completeness does not directly affect ranking position in the formula. It affects conversion rate — how many of the families who find your listing actually make contact. A listing with current photos, a detailed description, staff profiles, and regularly updated news converts at a higher rate than a sparse one, even when both rank at the same position. Getting found and getting contacted are two different problems. The formula determines the first. Your profile quality determines the second.
What you can and cannot control.
You can control your subscription tier (a commercial decision), your review collection process (a habit you build), and your profile completeness (ongoing maintenance). You cannot control how competitors behave or what tier they subscribe to. Understanding which lever is fastest for your specific situation — whether your gap to the next position is primarily a tier gap or a review score gap — is what the audit establishes.
We check your current Carehome.co.uk position, your review score trend, and your profile completeness against your nearest competitors as part of every free audit.
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