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How We Review Software

Transparency is core to our mission. Here's exactly how we evaluate, compare, and recommend software tools.

Our Evaluation Process

1. Category Research

Before reviewing any tool, we deeply research the software category. We analyze:

  • Market size and trends
  • Key buyer needs and pain points
  • Common features across tools
  • Pricing benchmarks
  • Integration requirements

2. Competitor Identification

We identify the top 10+ tools in each category using data from:

  • G2 Crowd — Real user reviews and ratings
  • Capterra — User reviews and comparisons
  • Industry reports — Gartner, Forrester, etc.
  • Community feedback — Reddit, Hacker News, Twitter/X

3. Hands-On Testing

Our team signs up for each tool and tests it with real workflows. We evaluate:

  • Onboarding experience and time-to-value
  • Core feature functionality
  • Performance and reliability
  • Integration capabilities
  • Mobile experience
  • Customer support responsiveness

4. Pricing Analysis

We document actual pricing, not just starting prices. This includes:

  • All pricing tiers and their features
  • Per-user vs. flat-rate pricing
  • Annual vs. monthly pricing differences
  • Hidden costs (add-ons, overage fees)
  • Enterprise/custom pricing notes

5. Writing & Review

Our articles go through multiple review rounds:

  1. Initial draft by a category expert
  2. Technical accuracy review
  3. Editorial review for clarity and helpfulness
  4. Final fact-check against current data

Our Rating Criteria

We don't use numerical scores because they're often misleading. Instead, we focus on helping you understand:

  • Who should use it — The ideal user/team profile
  • Who should avoid it — Poor fit scenarios
  • Key strengths — What it does better than alternatives
  • Key weaknesses — Genuine limitations to consider
  • Value assessment — Is it worth the price?

How We Handle Affiliate Relationships

We may earn commissions when you sign up for tools through our links. However:

  • Affiliate relationships never influence our rankings
  • We recommend tools we genuinely believe are best, regardless of affiliate programs
  • We clearly disclose affiliate relationships
  • We include tools without affiliate programs if they're the best option

Keeping Content Fresh

Software changes constantly. We update our comparisons:

  • Monthly pricing checks
  • Feature updates as they're announced
  • Full re-review every 6 months
  • Immediate updates for major product changes

Questions or Feedback?

We're always looking to improve. If you spot an error, have a suggestion, or want to request a comparison, please contact us.