How we score.

Every product on this site carries two scores: an editor rating (1–5 stars) and an AI Confidence Score (0–100). Here's what each means.

Editor rating (stars)

A human judgment call. The editor has either used the product long-term or has extensively evaluated the top competitors. Five stars means "we would recommend this to a friend without qualifications."

AI Confidence Score (0–100)

Our AI system reads real user reviews across major retailers and scores each product against a rubric with four inputs:

1. Review consistency. Do buyers agree, or is the product polarizing?
2. Price-to-value benchmarking. How does the price compare to the alternatives?
3. Long-term durability signals. What do 12-month-old reviews say vs. brand-new ones?
4. Editor alignment. How does the AI's read match the editor's hands-on judgment?

The confidence scale:

• 90–100 — Very high. Buy this without a second thought.
• 80–89 — High. Confident recommendation.
• 70–79 — Solid. Good pick, minor caveats.
• Below 70 — Emerging. Newer product or mixed signals.

When they disagree

When the AI score is high but the editor's rating is low (or vice versa), the editor wins. We publish both scores so you can see the disagreement, and we usually explain it in the verdict.

What we don't do

• Accept payment for placement.
• Rank products by affiliate commission.
• Recommend gear we wouldn't buy ourselves.