How we test
The full method behind the rankings: primary sources, the same criteria for every tool, pricing verification, sponsored separation, corrections — and the limits of what a directory can claim.
This page is the full version of “How we rank” on the homepage. The short version there says the same four things; nothing here adds a new claim.
1. We start free
Every tool is judged first on the tier you’d actually land on — the free plan or the cheapest paid one. A tool that only shines on its most expensive plan does not get to hide that behind its headline score.
2. Same tasks, every tool
Identical prompts and test jobs across rivals, so a score in video means the same thing for every card. Scores are editorial judgement from those same-task checks — what a tool costs, what its free tier actually gives you, and where the catch is — not laboratory measurements, and not results bought or supplied by vendors.
3. We read the fine print
Watermarks, credit expiry, commercial rights and renewal jumps — the catches go on the card, not in a footnote. Prices and free-tier limits are checked on the vendors’ own pricing pages, and the tool’s site is always the final word: prices and limits change, and a card can be out of date between checks.
4. Money can’t buy rank
Affiliate commissions are identical in structure across the industry. Scores move when the product changes — never when a payout does. Sponsored articles and sponsored slots are labelled, sit apart from rankings, and carry rel=“sponsored” on their links. A sponsored placement never changes a score, a verdict or a comparison result.
Primary sources
Facts on this site come from primary sources first: the tool’s own pricing page, its terms or help pages, and its own announcement posts. Secondary reporting is used for news context only, and is labelled as such with its sources listed. Where a vendor’s pages disagree with each other, the card says so instead of picking the friendlier number.
Pricing verification
Prices and free-tier details on the directory were checked against each tool’s own pricing page in October and November 2026. They are re-checked when a reader reports a change, when a tool announces one, and in periodic passes over the directory. If you spot a price or a limit that has changed, email [email protected] with a link to the vendor’s page and it gets checked and fixed.
Sponsored separation
Paid placements are labelled “Sponsored” at the top, before a word is read, with a short disclosure. Guest articles are unpaid pieces by outside contributors, published with the author’s name. Every submission — guest, sponsored or tool listing — goes into a review queue first and is checked before anything is published; nothing goes live without that check plus the owner’s approval. Adult, misleading, medical-claim and copied content is declined. See Advertise and Submit your tool for the full rules.
Corrections
Mistakes happen, and tools change. A correction is made on the page itself, and the page’s “updated” note changes with it. To report an error, email [email protected] with the page and a link to the vendor’s page showing the correct fact. Corrections apply to sponsored content the same way as to everything else.
Limitations
- Scores are editorial judgement, not independent lab results. Two tools with the same score are not identical — read the card’s fine print and the comparison that covers them.
- Free-tier checks are checks of the vendor’s published pages, not a guarantee that every account sees the same offer in every country.
- Tools change fast. A card reflects the vendor’s pages on the date it was checked; the vendor’s site is always the final word before you pay.
- Profession stacks are starting points drawn from the directory’s prices and free-tier notes, not separate hands-on tests for each profession.