Why Trustpilot is a stock to watch for e-commerce exposure

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Trustpilot (LSE: TRST) is a unique business on the UK stock market. It sits at the intersection of technology and consumer confidence by helping people to make better-informed choices, while giving companies a seal of credibility. Its platform allows users to rate and review businesses they have bought from, creating a feedback loop that benefits both sides. The firm earns its living by selling subscriptions to businesses that want to access review data and use Trustpilot’s marketing tools to boost their reputation.

How Trustpilot went global

Trustpilot was founded in Copenhagen in 2007 by Peter Holten Mühlmann, then a university student. His idea came about as he observed his parents’ struggle to trust companies they were buying from online. His start-up set out to bring transparency to online commerce by letting customers review the companies they dealt with. The concept took off and within a few years Trustpilot had become a global name. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2021. Mühlmann stepped down as chief executive in 2022 and was succeeded by Adrian Blair, formerly chief operating officer at Just Eat.

The company’s strategy is based on a “freemium” model. Any business can create a profile for free, but more advanced features are locked behind paid tiers. This approach encourages adoption while nudging users to upgrade. Over time, the brand itself has become a valuable asset. A strong rating on the platform lends instant credibility, making the service a near-essential cost for any online business. That gives Trustpilot a meaningful degree of pricing power. By mid-2025, users had posted more than 330 million reviews, reinforcing Trustpilot’s position as one of the most trusted sources of consumer feedback.

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Trustpilot builds a value ladder

Trustpilot’s subscription model has four main levels. The free tier gives businesses basic visibility, but serious users tend to move up quickly. The Premium plan, at $299 per month, includes verified reviews and marketing tools. The Advanced plan, at $629, adds data analytics such as TrustScore forecasting and competitive benchmarking. The Enterprise plan is from $1,099 for deeper analytical and system integration. Bespoke pricing continues to rise at this level to allow customisation.

The most expensive plans deliver sophisticated business intelligence that is difficult to replicate elsewhere. This structured pricing encourages customers to upgrade over time. In the first half of 2025, the average annual contract value rose by 17%, suggesting the company’s strategy is working well.

Trustpilot’s biggest opportunity now lies in getting existing customers into these premium tiers. Enterprise clients, who pay more than $20,000 a year, have been growing at a rate of 38% over the past two years, though from a small base. These accounts are highly profitable and make the platform deeply embedded in clients’ operations, reducing the risk of them cancelling subscriptions.

The company is also developing a new product line called TrustLayer, which aims to monetise its vast data set in new ways. Using verified review data, TrustLayer will provide analytics and insights to help businesses make better decisions. Launched this year, it is hoped that it will open a valuable new revenue stream with strong profit potential. The company’s average annual contract value now stands at $9,781, confirming that its move upmarket is paying off.

How Trustpilot is building trust through its technology

Trustpilot’s reputation depends entirely on the authenticity of its content. Fake or manipulated reviews are an ever-present threat, and regulators such as the UK Competition and Markets Authority have taken a keen interest in ensuring the platform remains transparent.

Maintaining integrity is therefore a constant battle, and the company spends heavily on detection technology to root out fraud.

Competition is also a risk. Google Reviews dominates local searches, while specialist sites cater for niche markets such as restaurants or travel. This fragmentation could limit Trustpilot’s expansion outside its e-commerce heartland.

Meanwhile, advances in AI make it easier to generate realistic fake reviews, raising the bar for Trustpilot’s moderation systems. Yet the company’s scale, and investment in detection technology, make it difficult for smaller rivals to compete on trust and authenticity.

Should you invest in Trustpilot?

At roughly £800 million in market value, Trustpilot trades on roughly three times forward sales – a premium to most UK-listed software firms, but modest compared with high-growth US peers. Over the next few years, revenue is expected to grow by mid-teen percentages and margins to expand as more clients move to higher tiers.

The closest comparable model is Yelp in the US, though Trustpilot’s global reach and business-to-business focus set it apart. Google is the dominant generalist, but Trustpilot’s neutrality and transparency give it an edge among firms seeking independence from big tech platforms. In Europe, few rivals match its scale or brand recognition. This blend of characteristics explains the market’s willingness to price in further growth.

The firm is not without risks, nor is it yet highly profitable, but its importance to the functioning of digital commerce is growing.

Trustpilot has built a defensible position in one of the most critical areas of the internet: the infrastructure of trust. For investors looking for exposure to the backbone of e-commerce, it remains a company worth watching.

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