The Science of Sound: Our Commitment to Unbiased Hearing Tech Reviews

HearAdvisor exists for one reason: to give people objective, science-driven information about how hearing aids, hearables, and related products actually perform. Our scores and conclusions come from controlled lab measurements and standardized listening tests—not from marketing relationships or pay-to-play schemes.

We do not sell positive reviews, better scores, or favorable comparisons. Ever.

These standards guide the findings, articles, and videos we publish. They also explain how we obtain products and fund our work. For a plain-language overview of the laboratory process, see How We Measure.

Accuracy and Clear Reporting

We support factual statements with our own testing, reliable documentation, or clearly attributed sources. We favor original research and primary sources when explaining scientific findings or product features.

We distinguish laboratory measurements, model-based estimates, personal listening impressions, and manufacturer claims. A feature listed by a manufacturer is not necessarily a benefit we have verified. We do not imply that we performed testing or hands-on evaluation that did not take place.

We explain technical terms and discuss relevant limitations and trade-offs. Our reporting should help readers understand their options without assuming that everyone has the same hearing needs, budget, or preferences.

How We Choose What to Test

We prioritize products that will matter most to the largest number of people:

• Widely available hearing aids, hearables, and related devices
• Products from manufacturers with significant market share or clinical relevance
• Devices that introduce important new technology or approaches

Our test queue is usually full of these high-priority products, and we work through that queue based on reader impact and lab capacity.

We may also accept smaller or niche brands for evaluation. Public testing fees cover evaluation work; they do not guarantee publication or a particular outcome. Whether or not a company pays has no effect on how we test, score, or write about its product.

Our Lab Standards

HearAdvisor is a measurement lab first and foremost. Our work is built on:

• Standardized, repeatable test protocols developed by experts in audiology and acoustics
• Objective performance metrics, including but not limited to loudness, clarity, noise performance, and other quantitative measures
• Blind or controlled listening where applicable, to complement strictly objective data

We use documented procedures to make comparisons between products meaningful. Our methodology explains the test environments, device settings, measurements, and scoring choices behind our hearing-device results.

Results describe the units, versions, fittings, and conditions tested. They cannot represent every hearing loss, listening environment, or possible setup. A high laboratory score is not a guarantee of the same outcome for an individual, and our evaluations do not replace personalized hearing care.

Manufacturers do not get to:

• Change our test methods
• Edit our data, calculations, or scores
• Review drafts, dictate our conclusions, or approve or veto public coverage

We may contact manufacturers to verify facts or investigate technical questions. Factual verification does not transfer editorial control or give a company prepublication review or approval rights. HearAdvisor decides which products to accept for public evaluation and whether, when, and how to publish the findings.

Public Testing Fees

We may charge companies for public laboratory evaluations. These fees cover evaluation work, including lab time and operational costs. Fees and scheduling are set out in the applicable agreement; payment is required in advance of the evaluation.

Payment does not guarantee publication, favorable coverage, a particular score, an award, or a recommendation. We use the same documented methods and scoring criteria for comparable public evaluations, regardless of who paid for testing.

HearAdvisor retains control over its methods, calculations, comparisons, and editorial conclusions. Companies cannot require us to suppress unfavorable findings, change scores, or approve coverage before publication.

We disclose company-paid public evaluations in the related published content. Paid video packages are a separate service that publicizes completed results, as explained below.

Affiliate Links & How We Make Money

Our funding includes public testing fees, private laboratory work, badge licensing, paid video packages, and affiliate commissions. These arrangements do not determine test scores or editorial conclusions.

When you click a “Buy Now,” “View Price,” or similar link on our site and then purchase a product, we may earn a small commission from the retailer at no additional cost to you.

Key points:

• Affiliate links do not influence testing or scoring. We add affiliate links after testing is completed, and we apply them across the board—whether a product earns an A or an F in our tests, and whether or not the manufacturer has ever paid for testing.
• We link wherever it makes sense. If a product is available through a retailer that offers affiliate programs, we may use an affiliate link. If it isn’t, we’ll still cover it and link to it where appropriate, just without the affiliate component.
• We prefer retailer relationships, not manufacturer influence. Wherever possible, affiliate partnerships are established with retailers, not directly with manufacturers. This helps keep commercial relationships at arm’s length from the lab.
• No “pay to win.” Affiliate relationships do not determine:
  • Whether we choose to test a product
  • How we test it
  • The score it earns
  • How we compare it to alternatives
  • Whether we highlight its strengths or weaknesses

Our long-term financial health depends on your trust. If we push bad products or sugar-coat poor performance to protect affiliate revenue, we lose the very thing that makes HearAdvisor valuable.

Review Units, Samples & Returns

To run a lab, we need physical products. We obtain devices via a mix of:

• Retail purchases
• Manufacturer-provided or loaned units
• Units submitted as part of the optional paid testing program
• Friendly practicing audiologists

Regardless of how we obtain a product:

• It is tested using the same lab protocols.
• The manufacturer cannot change or veto the results.
• If a product is returned, given away, or retained for ongoing reference, that does not change the data we report.

We disclose free or loaned devices and company-paid public evaluations in the related published content.

Corrections, Updates & Retesting

We strive to be accurate and transparent. If:

• We discover a factual, technical, or calculation error in our work, or
• A manufacturer provides verifiable technical information showing that we mis-measured or mis-stated something

…we will investigate, correct the record where appropriate, and clearly note any material changes to scores or conclusions.

If a product undergoes a meaningful firmware or hardware update that could change performance, we may:

• Retest the product where feasible
• Update our data and commentary
• Clearly explain what changed and why

Scores can also change when we revise our methodology or recalculate existing measurements. We distinguish those changes from new physical testing. Hardware and software updates may warrant retesting, but we cannot promise to retest every product update.

To report an error or ask about our work, email hello@hearadvisor.com with the page or product concerned and any supporting information.

Awards & Badges

We recognize products that perform especially well in our laboratory with badges and awards, including the HearAdvisor Expert Choice badge. Awards are based on performance, with selection separate from any subsequent purchase of a badge license.

• Awards are earned, not bought. Awards are based solely on our objective test results and expert assessment. Companies cannot pay to have their products selected for an award, moved up in rankings, or treated more favorably in our analysis.
• Licensing happens only after winners are chosen. Once award winners have been determined based on performance, companies may choose—after the fact—to license our badges (such as the Expert Choice badge) for use on their websites, packaging, or marketing materials.
• Licensing fees don’t affect our decisions. Licensing fees are paid strictly for the right to display our badge and do not influence:
  • Which products we test
  • How we test them
  • Which products receive awards
  • How we score or rank products on our site

We do not sell unearned awards. Our badges are a reflection of how products perform in our lab—not of how much a company spends with us.

Paid Videos

We sometimes offer paid video packages, including alongside badge licenses. These videos publicize completed lab results and summarize product facts and features.

Payment buys publicity, not control over our findings. HearAdvisor retains editorial control. Buyers do not receive prepublication review or approval rights; their involvement is limited to factual verification. Payment does not change the underlying results.

We clearly identify these videos as paid content and disclose who funded them, so viewers can distinguish paid publicity from coverage produced without that payment.

Private Laboratory Work

We also provide confidential testing and technical consulting under separate agreements. These engagements are not public reviews and do not confer an award, endorsement, or entitlement to public coverage.

Private results and the existence of an engagement remain confidential under the applicable agreement. We do not publish or disclose them unless authorized or otherwise permitted by that agreement.

A private engagement does not prevent us from independently acquiring a commercially available product and conducting a separate public evaluation without using or disclosing confidential project information. Private lab work has no influence on the procedures, scoring, results, or editorial conclusions of a public evaluation. We apply documented, replicable test procedures consistently to comparable products, regardless of whether a company has commissioned private work.

Our Relationship with HearingTracker

HearAdvisor and HearingTracker are separate companies with overlapping leadership: HearingTracker founder Abram Bailey also co-founded HearAdvisor. We share laboratory results and recordings with HearingTracker for its coverage.

We distinguish HearAdvisor’s laboratory findings from HearingTracker’s hands-on observations and editorial judgments. HearingTracker’s use of our results is not a separate laboratory test.

Our Promise to You

• We will follow the data, even when it is inconvenient for us or for manufacturers.
• We will keep a clear separation between revenue—including testing fees, private laboratory work, badge licensing, paid videos, and affiliate commissions—and our scientific work.
• We will disclose how we make money and how we test, in plain language.
• We will correct mistakes when they happen and be transparent about what changed.

Our goal is simple: to give you the clearest possible picture of how these products actually perform, so you can make informed decisions with confidence.