// QUESTIONS

Frequently asked questions

theRANKS is a product-ranking site operated by Kyle Cunningham in the United States. Products are ordered by a composite score computed across five dimensions - demand, trust, value, quality and durability - from aggregated market and review data, and a subset of products are also reviewed hands-on.

Questions not answered here go to kyle@the-ranks.com.

Last updated October 1, 2026.

What is theRANKS?

theRANKS is a product-ranking site operated by Kyle Cunningham in the United States. Products are ordered by a composite score computed across five dimensions - demand, trust, value, quality and durability - from aggregated market and review data, and a subset of products are also reviewed hands-on.

Who operates theRANKS?

theRANKS is operated by Kyle Cunningham, its founder & lead analyst, from the United States. It has been publishing since 2025.

How do I contact theRANKS?

By e-mail at kyle@the-ranks.com, or through the form at /contact. That is the only contact address for theRANKS; any other address attributed to us is out of date. Press, partnership and correction requests all go to the same place.

What are the five dimensions theRANKS scores on?

Demand (What the market is actually reaching for - purchase intent, aggregate search interest, category share-of-attention.) Trust (Weighted review credibility - verified-purchase ratio, rating distribution, review depth, recency.) Value (Price measured against category norms and performance tier, not absolute cheapness.) Quality (Aggregate ratings and specification benchmarks against the category frontier.) Durability (Whether a product survives daily use - warranty terms and long-tail review behaviour past twelve months.)

How is a ranking order decided?

Each dimension is computed independently and normalised against its own category, then the five normalised dimensions are combined into a single composite score. That composite is the rank order, and it is recomputed whenever newer market or review signals arrive.

What do the scores mean?

A published composite is a whole number from 60 to 99; a product with no computed score is shown without one rather than with a zero. The number is theRANKS’ own composite, not an average of customer star ratings, and it is not a user-submitted rating - which is why it is never marked up as an aggregateRating in our structured data.

Does theRANKS review products hands-on?

Both things are true, and which one applies is stated per product. The five-dimension composite is computed for the whole catalogue and is the backbone of every ranking. A subset of products are also reviewed hands-on, and only those carry a hands-on signal. A product that has only the composite is never labelled as reviewed hands-on.

How does theRANKS make money?

theRANKS earns affiliate commissions from qualifying purchases made through links on this site, at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

How often do rankings change?

A composite is recomputed when newer market or review signals arrive for the products in it, so the order can change between visits. The "Updated" date on a ranking is the date of the most recent recomputation, not a fixed publication date.

Where does the data behind a score come from?

Signals are read off each product’s retail listing and from aggregated review data - star rating, rating distribution, review text, price, and sales-rank position - and every signal is stored with the date it was collected, so a score can be traced back to the data that produced it.

Can I suggest a ranking or a product?

Yes. /submit takes both: a category you think should be ranked, and a specific product you think belongs in an existing ranking. Submissions are scored against the same five dimensions as everything else.

What should I do if a ranking looks wrong?

Send the category and the product to kyle@the-ranks.com. The data behind the composite is re-pulled and the score recomputed; the order then either holds or moves on the recomputed data.