Our Methodology
Last updated June 7, 2026
Every page on this site has to pass one test: does it help a trader make a better decision? This page explains how we research and score the products we cover so you can judge our work, and check it.
Accuracy is the product
The single most important thing we do is get the numbers right. A wrong price or drawdown rule is worse than a missing one, because it leads you to a bad decision with false confidence. So we hold ourselves to a few hard rules:
- No guessing. If we cannot source a figure from the vendor’s own materials, we mark it as not available rather than estimate it.
- No fabrication. Every commercial figure we publish traces back to a specific source and the date we last checked it.
- Sourced and dated. Pricing, drawdown limits, profit splits, and payout terms each carry a verification date. Where a figure is older than our freshness threshold, the page shows a staleness notice.
- Verify before publishing. Data is sanity-checked before it goes live.
How we score
We score products against a fixed set of criteria for their category, applied identically to every product:
- Prop firms are assessed on cost to get funded, drawdown model and how forgiving it is, profit split, payout terms and reliability, rule clarity, and platform and market coverage.
- Trading platforms are scored on charting, execution, ease of use, mobile, automation, data quality, value, and support.
- VPS providers are scored on latency to the exchange, hardware, uptime, pricing, support, setup experience, platform coverage, and overall value.
Scores are editorial judgements built on the verified data plus hands-on assessment. They are not paid placements, and a company cannot buy a higher score. Where detailed per-criterion scoring is still being finalised for a product, we say so on the page rather than show a placeholder number.
How we keep data fresh
Commercial terms change often, especially prop firm promotions. We re-verify high-volatility figures on a regular cadence and date every value. If a figure ages past our threshold before we re-check it, the page warns you and asks you to confirm on the vendor’s site before acting. Always treat the vendor’s own page as the final word on current pricing and rules.
Independence
Our ratings are independent of our revenue. We earn affiliate commissions from some companies we cover, explained in full on our how we make money page, but commission never affects a score or ranking. We rate companies we have no affiliate relationship with, and we will tell you when something popular is not worth it.
Found a mistake?
We would rather hear it from you than leave it wrong. If a figure looks off, email [email protected] or use the contact form and point us at the source. We will check it and correct the page if needed.