How we rank tools & how we make money
Our rankings are only worth something if you can trust them. Here's exactly how they work.
The four verdicts
- ✅ Use it: our top pick for that job.
- 👍 Worth a try: good, with caveats.
- ⛔ Skip it: overhyped, weak on privacy, or built mainly to cheat.
- 👀 Watch: promising but too new to call.
Scoring criteria
Each tool is scored 1–5 on each criterion. Weights are a starting point and will change with reader feedback.
| Criterion | Weight | What we check |
|---|---|---|
| Usefulness for the use case | 30% | Does it do the job better or faster than alternatives, on a standard task? |
| Output quality & accuracy | 20% | Factual errors, broken code, made-up content |
| Ease of use | 15% | Time to first useful result for a non-expert |
| Privacy, safety & age fit | 15% | Data policy, minimum age, student-data handling. Unclear policies cap the verdict at "Worth a try" for student and teacher tags. |
| Value for price | 10% | Free tier quality and cost vs. alternatives |
| Integrity fit | 10% | Builds skill vs. enables cheating. Cheating tools appear only in "Skip It." |
Our rules
- Scores come from our rubric applied to each tool's published features, pricing, and terms, never from hype. They are labeled preliminary until we test hands-on, which is our goal for every ranked tool.
- A human approves every rank and verdict before an issue goes out.
- Scores and scoring notes are logged so any ranking can be explained.
- Mistakes get a public correction in the next issue.
How we make money
- Paid subscriptions: a planned Tool Rankings Pro tier (full lists, scores, searchable database) and Teacher Pro plan. Prices are still being tested.
- Labeled sponsorships: marked "Sponsored" and kept separate from the rankings.
- Affiliate links: marked in-line ("affiliate link: we may earn a commission") and disclosed in every issue footer, following FTC endorsement guidelines.
What we won't take money for
- No sponsorships from cheating or essay-writing tools.
- No crypto or trading sponsors in issues aimed at students. Finance content is educational only, never buy/sell picks.
- No ads targeted at minors and no tracking of student readers beyond basic email metrics.
Frequently asked questions
How are tools scored?
Each tool is scored 1 to 5 on six weighted criteria: usefulness (30%), output quality and accuracy (20%), ease of use (15%), privacy, safety and age fit (15%), value for price (10%), and integrity fit (10%).
Can a sponsor buy a better ranking?
No. Sponsors cannot buy a rank, a verdict, or a spot in a list. A sponsor's tool can still get a Skip it verdict.
Are tools tested hands-on?
Not yet. Current scores are preliminary editorial scores based on each tool's published features, pricing, and privacy/age terms, and are labeled that way. Hands-on testing is our goal; once it starts, each score will say whether it was hands-on.