How Rankings Work

How Rankings Work

Every listing order and every match result on this directory is produced by one published formula. There is no second, private formula, and no member of our team adjusts individual rankings by hand. This page states the formula, defines each component, gives a worked example, and states the single rule that governs paid placement, in plain terms, so any reader can check our work against any results page on this site.

The Ranking Formula

Verification status, 40%. This is the largest component, and deliberately so: a license and an insurance policy that have been checked against their sources protect a homeowner in ways a popular business cannot. A listing with a current Verified badge, earned through the document checks on How We Verify, scores highest on this component. A claimed listing at Verification Pending scores partial credit. An Unclaimed or unverified listing scores zero on this component. Verification status is the one component a business changes by submitting documents and passing checks, and any business on this directory may do so, on any tier that includes verification.

Reviews, 25%. This component reflects the rating and the volume of reviews attached to the business's public listing record. A high rating supported by a thin record counts for less than the same rating supported by a deep record, because a small number of reviews is a weak basis for judging hundreds of jobs. Reviews are collected and moderated under our Review Policy. No business can buy a rating, edit a rating, or pay to remove a negative figure, on any tier, at any price.

Response time, 20%. This component reflects how promptly a business responds to enquiries and match introductions, measured from our own records of messages sent through this directory where we have them. Where a listing is Unclaimed and we hold no response record for it, the listing is scored at a stated directory default rather than at a figure invented for it, and that default treatment is part of this published method, not a hidden adjustment.

Profile completeness, 15%. This component is the share of standard profile fields present and current on the listing: address, phone, website, hours, services, service area, and licensing details as applicable. It rewards a listing a homeowner can actually act on. Claiming a listing and completing its fields raises this score. Claiming means joining on a paid tier (Listed $49/mo or Verified $99/mo, see Pricing); there is no free claim option, and an Unclaimed listing keeps the completeness score its public record gives it.

A Worked Example

Take two plumbers in the same city. The first is Unclaimed, with a strong public rating built on a large review count, and a partial profile. It scores zero on verification, high on reviews, the default on response time, and partial credit on completeness. The second is Verified, with a somewhat lower rating on a smaller review count, a measured record of prompt responses, and a complete profile. Under the published weights, the second business will usually rank first. That outcome is the formula working as designed: verification is the largest single weight because it is the component a homeowner can act on today, with a license record that either exists and is active, or does not.

What Payment Does, Stated Plainly

Paying for a tier buys only what the Pricing page lists for that tier. Payment does not buy ranking points inside the formula, does not change a review figure, and does not remove or soften negative information. A paid tier can change a business's inputs in only the ways the formula itself names: a Verified or Featured tier enters the business into the verification process, and a claimed, completed profile raises the completeness component, exactly as it does for any business that completes the same fields.

The one exception to score order is Featured placement, and it is bounded by rules we state here in full. A business on the Featured tier receives top placement in its city results and first position in match results for its service area. Featured placement is always labelled as Featured where it appears. It applies only within the Featured business's own city and service categories. It does not alter the formula scores of any other listing, and below the Featured position, city results and match results follow the published formula in order. If you ever find Featured placement that is not labelled, or placement that payment appears to have bought outside these rules, report it through our contact page. That would be a breach of this page, and we would correct it.

Rankings are recalculated as their inputs change: a badge gained or lost, a review record updated, a response record built up, a profile completed. If you are comparing candidates rather than reading rankings, start at Get Matched, where matching is free for homeowners, and use How to Choose a Plumber to run your own checks on any introduction you receive.