Transparency & Governance
Affiliate & Commercial Disclosure
We believe commercial transparency is essential for honest software and services research. Here is exactly how affiliate relationships work on SMB Cost Diagnostic.
Commercial Relationships
This site may earn a commission from some provider links when commercial partnerships are active. When no active commercial offer is in place, links direct visitors directly to official provider pricing and documentation pages without affiliate tracking or commercial compensation.
Strict Independence Guarantee
- Calculations are Neutral: Formula calculations evaluate purely published base prices, included allowances, and source-reviewed fees. Commissions have 0% weighting in any formula.
- Rankings are Algorithmic: The Requirements Finder orders qualifying matches solely by 12-month calculated total cost, verification date, and service ID.
- No Paid Reviews: We do not accept payment to review or endorse any service. Providers without affiliate programs are evaluated under identical standards.
Outbound Link Architecture
When commercial partnerships are active, commercial links route through a controlled internal endpoint (/go/[offer-id]/) that validates destinations against an approved hostname whitelist and checks offer expiration. If an offer is paused or expired, or when no commercial agreement is active, links direct users directly to the provider's official public website.