A review site earns trust by explaining its method and then following it. This is ours.
How a product gets on the list
We include products that South African businesses actually shortlist. That means local incumbents, international products with a real local presence, and anything that appears often enough in buyer conversations to need a considered answer. We do not include products we cannot assess properly.
Nobody pays to be listed and nobody can pay to be ranked higher. Products are added because they belong on the list.
How we assess
Every product is assessed against five dimensions: ease of use, value for money, customer service, functionality and an overall judgement. Where the category has a local statutory dimension, we assess that explicitly against a fixed checklist rather than against the vendor's claims.
For accounting, that checklist is VAT201 output, eFiling transfer, supply category handling, bank feed coverage across the major South African banks, and accountant access. For payroll it is EMP201, EMP501, IRP5 and IT3(a), e@syFile validation, UIF, SDL, ETI, BCEA leave and the ACB payment file. For HR it is BCEA leave, employment equity reporting and POPIA handling of special personal information.
Where a product fails an item on the checklist we say so plainly, including where the product is otherwise excellent.
How ratings are calculated
Aggregate ratings come from verified user reviews and nothing else. Our editorial view shapes what we write, not the star average. The averages are computed by the database from published reviews and are never written by hand.
Ranking is a different question. We rank using a Bayesian weighted average rather than a raw star average, because a raw average lets a product with eleven reviews at 4.8 outrank one with four hundred at 4.4, and that is not useful to a buyer. Each product's score is blended towards the platform mean, weighted by its review volume, with the median review count as the prior weight. A product with a lot of reviews sits close to its own average. A product with few sits closer to the middle until it earns its position.
How reviews are verified
Reviewers state their role, industry, company size and how long they have used the product. Where we can confirm a reviewer's professional identity, the review carries a verified badge. Reviews that read as vendor written, competitor written or incentivised are removed.
We do not remove negative reviews at a vendor's request. Vendors may respond publicly and their response is published alongside the review.
How we make money
Affiliate commission when a reader clicks through to a vendor and subscribes, and display advertising. Both are disclosed. Every commercial link carries a visible disclosure next to it and the sponsored attribute in the markup.
The rule we hold ourselves to is that commercial relationships never affect a rating, a ranking or the wording of an assessment. The clearest evidence is that several products we rate highly pay us nothing, and several products with affiliate programmes are rated below products without them.
What would make us change a rating
New review volume shifting the average. A vendor fixing something we criticised, which we re test. A vendor removing something we praised. A material price change, which we re verify quarterly. And errors, which we correct openly rather than quietly.
If you believe we have something wrong, tell us. Corrections that turn out to be justified are made with a note explaining what changed.