EcoWatch Reviews Methodology

Reviews

At EcoWatch, our goal is to help readers find eco-friendly brands, products, and services that can create a more sustainable future. We review products that we believe can make a difference, and evaluate them on how well they live up to any claims about their environmental impact. We thoroughly research, compare, and test different products to find ones that we would use ourselves before we recommend them to you.

Note that this approach applies to our non-energy-related consumer products, we have a separate Solar Reviews Methodology for our energy-related recommendations.

Our Review Standards

From reusable bags and recycled plastic shoes to solar panels and natural supplements, we approach every review with the same core set of standards in mind:

  1. Accuracy – Is the information true?
  2. Impact – Does the product make a difference?
  3. Transparency – Do we explain our review clearly?
  4. Accessibility – Can everyone understand our review?
  5. Positivity – Does our review help provide solutions?

Our Top Considerations

In addition to these overarching standards, here are the specific factors that we look for when evaluating eco-friendly products and brands.

  • Materials/ingredients – We look for products that use all-natural ingredients and sustainably sourced materials. We prioritize brands that use organic, recycled, or biodegradable materials whenever possible.
  • Green Certifications – We use recognized industry standards and certifications, like B-Corp, USDA Organic, Leaping Bunny, and Rainforest Alliance seals, to help distinguish the most eco-friendly brands and products from the rest.
  • Quality – The products we review need to both help the environment and actually work. Whether it’s an alternative to paper towels or an all-natural sleep aid, we want to make certain that it is actually worth your consideration.
  • Packaging – The amount of packaging waste a product creates matters, and we highlight brands that minimize packaging and use recyclable, biodegradable, or compostable materials instead of plastics.
  • Price – In the eco-space, cheaper is not always better. Still, we try to compare all of your options to ensure that anything we recommend is fairly priced and worth the cost. Whenever possible, we highlight deals and less-expensive options.
  • Causes – We love brands that donate a portion of their profits to great causes. We try to recommend options that allow you to support organizations that make a difference with your purchase.

If a certain category of products has additional or unique standards to consider, we explain those clearly so you can fully understand everything that went into our reviews.

Our Process

Each of our reviews includes several different steps to make sure that we provide accurate, honest, and useful recommendations.

Industry Research

Our first step involves researching the industry or product category broadly. This allows us to learn more about industry standards, governmental regulations, how products work, how performance and quality are measured, and the leading brands to compare. During this step, we work to become experts on the details.

Brand Evaluations

Next, we look more closely at the top brands or products that we discover in our initial research. This involves thoroughly vetting the brand’s site to see what makes them stand out and what types of products they offer. We look for information on the brand’s sustainability efforts, philosophy, and environmental impact.

Product Reviews

In this step, we dig into the details of the individual products or services. Where possible, we try to get our hands on the product itself to test and evaluate. We then scrutinize the claims made by the brand in any product descriptions and specifications to see if they hold up, and how they compare to industry standards and competitors.

Recommendations

Finally, we write up our review and include a ranked list of the best options. We do our best to provide plenty of context in our reviews so that you know how we chose the products on our list, and why. In addition to our recommendations, we give you the links to all of our sources of information.

Reviewing Eco-Friendly Products

An important thing to note about eco-friendly products is that some industries or categories have more options than others. We always try to prioritize brands with the smallest environmental footprint and products that can make the biggest impact.

In certain cases, however, there may not be a brand or product that truly meets our standards of sustainability, or that offer imperfect solutions (like a good product that includes too much plastic packaging). In those cases, we will always note the areas where brands or products fall short environmentally and explain why we still recommend them anyway. If a company pledges to do better through changes to process, we will follow up to see if they live up to those pledges.

By doing our best to highlight goods and services that prioritize environmental stewardship, we hope to promote better practices throughout entire industries.

If you have any questions about our review methodology or any of the products we recommend, please email us at contact@ecowatch.com.

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