This page exists so you can tell, before reading anything else, whether to trust what we publish. The short version is below; the details are spelled out further down.
The short version
- We test products ourselves before recommending them.
- Manufacturers and brands don’t get to see, edit, or approve reviews before they go live.
- When we earn commission from a link, we mark it. The commission does not influence the rating or recommendation.
- We correct mistakes publicly and visibly. No silent edits to fix factual errors.
How we choose what to review
We don’t review everything. We pick categories where:
- The market is confusing, and the “best” answer genuinely depends on the reader’s situation.
- We have access to enough comparable products to make a real recommendation, not a guess.
- Someone on the team has lived with the category long enough to know what matters in daily use.
- We do not accept payment in exchange for coverage. Pitches that begin with “we have budget for…” are declined.
How we test
Every product we review is either:
- Purchased by us at retail price, or
- Received as a sample from the manufacturer or a PR agency, and clearly labelled as such in the review.
Receiving a sample does not guarantee a review will be published. If a sample doesn’t perform well enough to recommend to anyone, the most likely outcome is that nothing is published at all. We do not publish negative-only reviews for sport.
Testing periods are stated in each review. We try not to publish “first impressions” framed as full reviews — when we do publish early-stage takes, the headline says so.
Independence
- Authors disclose any relationship with the brand being reviewed at the top of the article.
- We do not allow brands or sponsors to approve, edit, or preview editorial content.
- We do not adjust ratings based on advertiser pressure. If you see a brand on the site as an advertiser and receive a positive review, those are two separate decisions made by two separate processes.
Sponsored content
When we do publish sponsored content (rare), it is:
- Labelled as Sponsored in the headline and at the top of the body.
- Visually distinct from editorial.
- Excluded from “best of” roundups and recommendation lists.
The Sponsored tag is non-negotiable. A brand that asks us to remove or soften the label has its sponsorship declined.
Affiliate links
Many of our links to retailers are affiliate links, meaning we may earn a small commission if you purchase from them. This is explained in plain English on the Affiliate Disclosure page.
The commission has no effect on which products we recommend or how we rate them. The recommendation comes first; the affiliate link is added to whichever retailer offers the product at a fair price. If the best version of a product is sold somewhere we don’t have an affiliate relationship with, we still link to it.
Sources and facts
- Specifications are cross-checked against the manufacturer’s documentation; where the manufacturer and reality disagree, we note the discrepancy.
- Performance claims are verified in our own testing wherever feasible.
- Statistics, prices, and third-party claims are linked to the original source.
- We do not republish manufacturer marketing copy.
AI use
We do not use generative AI to write reviews, comparisons, or any factual content. AI may be used for:
- Brainstorming article angles
- Editing for grammar and clarity
- Summarising long source documents we’ve already read
Any AI-assisted editorial pass is reviewed and rewritten by a human before publication.
Corrections
If you spot an error, tell us. When we update an article to fix a factual mistake, we add a dated correction note at the bottom of the article. Minor copy edits (typos, broken links) don’t get a note; substantive changes always do.
Updates to old articles
Articles in fast-moving categories are reviewed periodically. When we update an article, we change the “Last updated” date at the top. If the update is substantive (a recommendation flipped, a new winner, a removed product), we note what changed.
Conflicts of interest
If a writer has a personal or financial relationship with a brand being reviewed, that relationship is either:
- Disclosed at the top of the article, or
- The writer is assigned a different article.
The list of disclosures is reviewed by the editor before publication.
Reader feedback
Comments are moderated. We approve all good-faith feedback, including critical feedback. We don’t approve:
- Personal attacks on writers or other commenters
- Spam, including thinly disguised promotional comments
- Comments that include affiliate links
If you disagree with a recommendation, tell us why — we’re more interested in being right than in defending a previous take.
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Last reviewed: 30/05/2026. Questions about anything on this page belong on the Contact page.