How we review and recommend

This is the whole method, written down so you can hold us to it.

1. 1. We start from the reader's problem

   A tool only appears once a guide has explained the problem it solves. If a guide does not need a tool, it does not get one.

2. 2. We check the things that matter

   What it costs today, whether there is a free tier or trial, whether it works on a phone or only a desktop, how easy it is to cancel, and whether support is reachable.

3. 3. We say what we have not tested

   Where we have used a product ourselves, we say so and describe the experience. Where we have not, we say that too rather than inventing detail.

4. 4. We say who should skip it

   Every recommendation carries a 'not for' line. If a tool suits almost nobody in our audience, we leave it out entirely.

5. 5. Commission never buys position

   We may earn a commission when you sign up through a partner link. No brand can pay for a ranking, a review score, placement in a guide or removal of criticism.

6. 6. We flag rules and risk

   Financial, credit, betting and health products carry eligibility, age and regional limits. Those notes are attached automatically wherever those brands appear.

7. 7. We keep guides current

   Pricing and features are re-checked on a rolling basis, links are tested regularly and anything broken is removed from the page rather than left for readers to find.

8. 8. We fix mistakes in public

   Send a correction and we update the guide and its date. We would rather be corrected than quietly wrong.

See the full list of brands we may recommend on the recommended tools page, our commercial terms on the affiliate disclosure, and the standards we hold ourselves to in the editorial policy.