How we review software

1. Real accounts, not demo videos

We use the actual product on the actual plan our reader would buy — including paid plans where required. Reviews never rely on the vendor’s marketing pages, demo recordings, or third-party screenshots.

2. Two weeks minimum hands-on time

Each tool gets at least two weeks of daily use on a real workload before we publish. We document the workload, the team size, and the use case so the context is reproducible.

3. Documented failure modes

Every review names specific things that broke or surprised us — an import that failed, a permission that didn’t cascade, a billing surprise. If a review only lists positives, we have not done our job.

4. Pricing verified from official sources

Every pricing table is verified against the vendor’s pricing page and tagged with the date it was checked. We re-verify pricing every quarter.

5. Scoring framework

Each review awards a 1–10 score on five axes:

• Core feature depth — does it actually do the job well?
• Onboarding — time from sign-up to first useful output
• Pricing fairness — cost vs comparable alternatives
• Reliability — uptime, performance, edge-case handling
• Lock-in — how hard is it to leave?

The headline score is the unweighted average rounded to one decimal place. We do not adjust scores after publication based on vendor feedback or partner status.

6. What we refuse to count

• G2 / Capterra star averages (we cite them, we don’t score by them)
• Press releases and analyst rankings
• The vendor’s own customer count or self-reported metrics
• YouTube influencer reviews

7. Updates and corrections

Reviews are updated when the product materially changes — new pricing, major features, ownership change, security incident. Updates show the date and a brief change log at the bottom of the page. Factual corrections include the word “Correction” with the date.

8. Affiliate isolation

Affiliate links are added after the review is written and scored. Editor’s picks are chosen before partner terms are negotiated. We publish our commission ranges on the affiliate disclosure page.

9. Author accountability

Every review is signed by a named author with a public LinkedIn profile. If something is wrong, the byline tells you exactly who to email. Author bios are on the editorial board page.