What “Sponsored” means
A paid placement. It changes where a listing appears, never its score or its content.
A Sponsored tag means the listing’s position was paid for.
What it does change
Position. A Sponsored spot appears in the homepage Featured section and in the right-hand column of tool pages, and sponsored listings come first in the default order.
A newsletter promotion is labeled the same way: the feature in the email says Sponsored, and the blog post and video say they are paid.
What it does not change
- The Popularity Score — that is measured, and cannot be bought
- The rating — that comes from members’ reviews
- The content of the listing, which is held to the same standard as any other
- Reviews, which are never removed or reordered because a listing is sponsored
Every paid placement is labeled wherever it appears. If you find one that is not, please tell us — see Reporting an inaccurate listing.